Open source! Why this is an advantage?

[cchhiipp]

Also, if the manufacturers get the OS for free, then they're not spending money developing one, which ultimately reduces the cost of the device to the consumer.

 

[tonydelite]

2) Almost all manufacturers and carriers do something to ruin the openness of every Android phone, then they will promptly void your warranty on a modified handset if you try to get it repaired. Almost all phones (minus the Nexus series) either try to prevent you from installing your own apps (AT&T), load the phone with tens of megabytes of BS (Verizon), lock the bootloader (Motorola), or tweak the handset firmware in such a way as to make AOSP ROMs darn near impossible (Samsung).

But that is EXACTLY what Open Source is! It allows the manufacturer to do whatever they want with the code.

Open Source does not mean you can hack the phone in any which way. Open Source only means you are free to use the Android codebase any way you want. So you are free to take the code, and modify it to work with a device that you build.

It is completely up to the smartphone manufacturers to allow or disallow any modification to their devices.

People (not you, but people in general) seem to think that Open Source is some hippie free for all. It's not. It's just a different type of software ecosystem.

Open Source is a big advantage for Android.
Closed Source is a big advantage for iOS.

See what I did there?

Both have strengths and weaknesses. A closed system offers tighter integration, a more controlled environment, and a more consistent experience overall. The software is designed for the hardware, and the hardware is designed for the software. It is a perfect marriage. However you don't have the same sort of choice that Open Source gives you. You either like the closed system, or you don't. Take it or leave it.

An open system allows more choices, has the potential to react quicker to new technologies (android first to dual core, NFC, etc.), but you pay for it with a less optimized experience, and the potential for really poor quality hardware to hit the market (since everyone has access to it). You can't just pick up any Android phone and expect the experience to be the same as the next one. You have to know what you are getting into.

It is up to the user to decide which option is better for himself or herself.