Google announced that it will stop releasing mobile browser updates for Chrome on the Android 4.0 operating system, also known as Ice Cream Sandwich. So far, it has already released 24 Chrome versions. The last version that will be compatible with ICS is 42.
According to company developer statistics, approximately 5.9 percent of Android devices run Ice Cream Sandwich. Records show that the number of Chrome users on ICS has dropped by 30 percent. Eighty percent of Android users are now running Android 4.1 Jelly Bean or 4.4 KitKat. Those running the newest version of Android, 5.0 Lollipop, account for only 3.3 percent. Old handsets running Android 2.3 Gingerbread make up 6.9 percent but are unaffected by Google's latest announcement.
"Developing new features on older phones has become increasingly challenging, and supporting ICS takes time away from building new experiences on the devices owned by the vast majority of our users," said the Chrome team.
For Chrome to work on ICS, developers had to perform workarounds to ensure that new Web features would continue working. Google argued that such practices make coding more complex, slow performance and increase development time.
"The number of ICS devices is now sufficiently small that we can better serve our users by phasing out support for earlier devices and focusing on making Chrome better for the vast majority of users on more modern devices," wrote Google.
Chrome 42 is expected to launch in April. ICS users can still use Chrome, although they won't get additional support following the launch. As a result, ICS devices will become potentially vulnerable and will not get upgrades that improve performance and bring about new features.
Google launched Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich in 2011. Since then, there have been several upgrades in as Jelly Bean, KitKat and Lollipop (Android 5.0).
Users keen on getting the latest updates on their Android devices should think about upgrading into a newer device. However, those who prefer ICS should know that their Chrome updates will stop at version 42.
