Here's what I'd like to see:
* Google tells carriers, no more pre installed apps, you will use Android as is
* Google redesigns Android so that every aspect is themeable - from buttons to notification bars - via .png files without needing root
* Google bans manufacturer skins
* Updates come directly from Google
* Google sets strict standards for hardware
Once all that is implemented you are left with Apple's model and the reason people go with Android is to get something different. I agree 100% with you that something needs to be done regarding updates etc....but when you start to talk about that you go against a lot of what android stands for.
Manufactures develop low-mid-high range phones because there is a market out there for them. My co-worker who is older stepped into the smartphone world because he was able to get an Android phone for under $100. He likes it. I asked him why he didn't go for anything else and it was because of price, he couldn't see spending a lot of money on a phone, pure and simple.
Having said that you can't expect low end phones to receive updates like there high end brothers. Some phones can't handle the software. It's the nature of the beast.
I would really like to see the big manufactures (Moto, HTC, LG, Samsung) come out with one stellar phone per year. It would be awesome if they slowed the technology race to allow customers to enjoy there phones. But once again this presents a very big problem. If HTC says they are only putting out one high quality phone a year then what stops Samsung from coming out with something 10x better a few months later. That high end HTC phone now looks old and HTC is left sitting in the dust. It's, once again, the nature of the beast.
Take away the skins and you are pretty much left with hardware. If all the manufactures just used plain android then you would be left with a bunch of phones similar spec with only looks as a differentiation. There is only so much you can do with that, Eventually all the phones would look the same. Skins allow the manufacture to differentiate between each other. Once again it's the nature of the beast.
Last, Apple did bloatware correctly, the simple told At&t we will not have any, end of story, you don't like it then we will bring the iPhone somewhere else. they stood there ground and the Apple customers really benefited from this. The Android manufactures cared less and what we are left with is a bunch of garbage on our phone that can't be uninstalled. It's frustrating. When I told the same co-worker about using his phone for navigation he said "there is no way I am paying for that!", confused I looked at his phone and he was trying to use At&t's navigation software which cost $9.99/mo. Mean while google navigate was a few icons under it!
Ian, like I said on Google +, keep an open mind, a lot can happen from now until the release of the next iPhone. Maybe for the better, maybe for the worse. Android is it's own worst enemy. Being "open" creates a lot of problems as discussed but closing off the system destroys the eco-system they are trying to create.
I just installed CM9 on my Touchpad and it really made me excited about Android again. I feel that it brings a new freshness that I was missing. But what tickles my fancy certainly doesn't have to tickle yours. Losing you would suck for this community but it would also be a good thing. An active consumer is the best consumer. By leaving Android you tell them that they are doing something wrong and that will hopefully encourage change. Nothing ever changes if you just sit on the internet and complain, money talks, loss of customers talks.
If you read any part of this thread let it be:
Fanboys do more harm then good and money talks
Sorry for the long post....
