Android ICS user base is increasing, but most Android users are actually on 19 months or older versions.

This is very bad for Android. Extremely bad in fact.

Oh specc why are you becoming a troll? Your Recent posts are more troll than sense. .

You could say the same for Windows users for instance.

Yes, Android is clearly a dying platform.

I look at it differently. It is a nice strategy to keep the whole (hw+sw) ecosystem growing and nice way to keep the market segmented clearly, e.g. higher-end device gets 4.x, mid 2.3.x, lower-end gets 2.2-.

So instead of saying Android is falling apart, I would say covering high to low end markets with relatively similar code base is nice, and was what Nokia originally envisioned.

Then it means that it's time for an update for most folks - 18-24 months is the norm.

I think it's pretty common knowledge that Honeycomb just wasn't ready for primetime, it was really Gingerbread at a different dpi density and a lot of clean up had to happen that started with ICS, now it's fully done at Jelly Bean.

Simply stated, skipping from one version of Android to the newest one is perhaps the best case scenario and likely to happen for most folks. You'd have to be a fan, rich, or stupid (or combinations therein) to have experienced each and every version of Android.

How is android falling apart exactly?

I would also add that the majority of those users still on the old cookie dough variants are either still waiting for the updates to be pushed down by there carriers if their devices are deemed worthy of the upgrade. Others may not have chosen to upgrade there devices even if they have the notification flashing on there devices (for what ever reason).

Then there is also the abundant amount of cheap Chinese devices where some are still choosing to package android 1.6 still on the low end devices.

ICS is still a high end OS so many wont even get to see it until they upgrade there phones, which not every one is interested in doing really.

None of which is Googles fault at the moment, however they have also commented on the fragmentation in Android in the past and are actively tryong to address the issue. (see motorola buy out and other stories)

It's bad because Android cannot maintain momentum this way. It becomes increasingly more attractive to simply fork Android.

The worst thing is it leaves the door wide open for WP8. Android market share is irrelevant when 90% are running on 2 years or older software. People are loyal to the HW brand in the extent they are loyal, not the OS. A real Android device will now be a Google branded device, everything else becomes second rate.

Android is a huge securety risk for any enterprise. I cant see how they can continue this slow or no update of old hw. atleast new securety patches most come to even older versions.

And yet many, if not most, "enterprises" use Windows.

"Security" is a scam based on FUD, medieval thought principles and overenthusiastic nazi type IT managers that are given "responsibility". Elopians love this stuff.