You've got more than a Kernel, which was already open, as Android is based on the Linux kernel. It's interesting that it isn't a common unix or GNU. The whole

You've got more than a Kernel, which was already open, as Android is based on the Linux kernel. It's interesting that it isn't a common unix or GNU. The whole software stack up from the kernel is different to anything you see elsewhere (I understand that MeeGo, another Linux-based phone OS takes a more standard approach, thus it be more comfortable to hack on, once it stops being vaporware). But AOSP does host code for the whole middleware and a couple of applications. What is missing in AOSP are some userspace drivers, the code that runs on the radio hardware ("baseband" in iPhone speak), and the Google services and brand. To continue your OS X analogy, it'd be like getting code for the whole OS, except for the stuff in /Applications. The problem with Android is that this software is useless if you don't have hardware to run it. And unlike a computer, where I can go to the store, buy a PC, download a Linux distro and run it on that hardware, most phones are tivoized and won't let you run software not signed by the manufacture. So you need to buy a special dev phone (N1 included), pull the binary drivers from the installed firmware, build AOSP from source, and flash it to the phone. And then you'd be missing the Google-candy. You can also get OpenMoko, which I think have all its drivers open. But I guess most people don't want to compile software for their own phone, just like only a few people build their OS from source. Most even never bother installing an OS, just using what came pre-installed. The hate against Android phones is from users wanting timely software upgrades, and no carrier-mandated crap. That, I'm happy to say, is mostly an American problem. Carriers sell phones the world round, but outside the US, caring customers (which are still a minority -- HN readers to the contrary, not everybody cares about what software her phone has), buy handsets from a 3rd party, and those have less limiting crap installed, as they need to satisfy the costumer, not the carrier.