The Android mobile phone operating system could be about to be broken in order to avoid fragmentation and confusion amongst mobile phone users already starting to struggle with multiple versions of the phone OS.

That's the claim from Engadget who, talking to sources within the industry believe that "Google's been iterating the core far faster than most of its partners have been able to keep up".

What that means in basic English is that Google has been developing the operating system faster than manufacturers like HTC, Motorola and Samsung have been able to develop for.

According to the tech site, that means that the next versions, Froyo and Gingerbread, will start to break out the apps from the components to allow Google to roll out updates to individual apps irrespective of what operating system a certain phone is running.

"Just because Google rolls out an awesome new browser doesn't mean you need to wait for HTC, Samsung, or whomever made your phone to roll it into a firmware update, and for your carrier to approve it".

Apps, including core apps, will then be available via the Android Market and that means incremental updates will become more likely, and in turn create a more unified operating system that won't leave people behind just months after they've bought a handset. This is something that's already happened with devices like the Motorola Droid in the US and the HTC Hero in the UK.

When the move will happen and how aggressive Google will act on splitting up the OS in this way is still very much in the open it seems.

We will keep you posted.