Today Google told the Telegraph that Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich) can’t be installed on the Nexus One:

Owners of the first official Google phone, the Nexus One, will not be getting the upgrade, however. Barra said the hardware was simply too old to run the new operating system.

The troubling thing here is that the Nexus One only started going on sale 21 months ago, and it continued to be sold as Google’s flagship Android device until last December, just 10 months ago.

Since most users buy Nexus phones on a 2-year carrier contract, those who purchased Nexus Ones simply can’t use the latest version of the operating system until they wait out their contracts, pay an early termination fee and change carriers, or spend a $300 premium for an unsubsidized replacement phone.

I admire how quickly the Android platform continues to evolve, but it seems to be at the expense of its users. Note that I didn’t say ‘early adopters’. Those people only have to wait a few months for their contracts to expire. Those who waited and bought the Nexus One a year later are left with an obsolete phone that’s still under contract for a year or more.