Live demo: android.levente.net
An interactive browser simulator of classic Android releases, each on its own Nexus phone and rebuilt from AOSP sources, the phones' factory images and period screenshots. Choose a version on the landing page:
| Version | Phone | Store |
|---|---|---|
| Android 2.1 Eclair | Nexus One | Android Market 1.71 |
| Android 2.3.6 Gingerbread | Nexus S | Android Market 2.3.4 |
| Android 4.0.4 Ice Cream Sandwich | Galaxy Nexus | Google Play Store 3.4.7 |
| Android 4.3 Jelly Bean | Nexus 4 | Google Play Store 4.2.3 |
| Android 4.4.4 KitKat | Nexus 5 (Google apps) | Google Play Store 4.5.10 |
| Android 5.1.1 Lollipop | Nexus 6 (Google apps) | Google Play Store 5.2.13 |
| Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow | Nexus 5X (Google apps) | Google Play Store 5.12.7 |
| Android 7.1.2 Nougat | Nexus 6P (Google apps) | Google Play Store 7.4.31 |
Live demo: android.levente.net, served as a static site from a checkout of main. A mirror runs on GitHub Pages.
GitHub Pages publishes the repository root from the main branch automatically after each push. The .nojekyll file keeps this plain static site out of Jekyll processing. Deployment progress is available in the repository's Actions tab, and the publishing source is configured under Settings → Pages.
The project uses static HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. No installation or build step is required. Open index.html, or start a local server from the project root:
php -S 127.0.0.1:8090 -t .Then visit http://127.0.0.1:8090/. With XAMPP, place the repository in htdocs/android-time-machine.
What each version does, screen by screen:
- Android 2.1 Eclair on the Nexus One, rebuilt from its ERE27 image alone
- Android 2.3.6 Gingerbread on the Nexus S (the audit doubles as its feature list)
- Android 4.0.4 Ice Cream Sandwich on the Galaxy Nexus
- Android 4.3 Jelly Bean on the Nexus 4
- Android 4.4.4 KitKat on the Nexus 5, with the stock Google apps
- Android 5.1.1 Lollipop on the Nexus 6, as its LMY48Y factory image ships it
- Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow on the Nexus 5X, rebuilt from its MTC20K factory image (plus Google apps of 2016 the image lacks, installed from Play and marked so: Earth, Keep, Docs, Sheets, Slides, Fit, Play Books, News & Weather, Google+, Play Newsstand)
- Android 7.1.2 Nougat on the Nexus 6P, rebuilt from its N2G48C factory image: split-screen, bundled notifications/direct reply, launcher shortcuts, Gboard and the image's Google apps (plus Google apps of 2017 the image lacks, installed from Play and marked so: Earth, Keep, Docs, Sheets, Slides, Fit, Play Books, News & Weather, Google+, Play Newsstand)
assets/og-cover.jpg is the English social preview; assets/og-cover-hu.jpg is its Hungarian counterpart. Both are 1200 × 630 and are rendered together from docs/tools/og-cover.html, using each phone's frame and landing-home.jpg. Run node docs/tools/make-og-cover.mjs with local Chrome (or set CHROME) to regenerate both.
Every page ships English SEO, Open Graph and X/Twitter tags directly in its HTML. The English cover is the stable default for sharing, independent of the interface language selected in JavaScript. The Hungarian image remains separately available. Metadata comes from the English release catalogue: node docs/tools/make-social-meta.mjs updates all pages; --check verifies them. When the cover changes, bump its image revision in that script and regenerate the metadata.
The portfolio card on levente.net uses a 1600 × 960 variant with an English headline, from docs/tools/portfolio-cover.html: node docs/tools/make-og-cover.mjs --portfolio <png> renders it (1200 × 720 at a 4/3 device pixel ratio).
node docs/tools/make-og-cover.mjsrobots.txt allows every crawler and points to sitemap.xml. The sitemap is a static file that lists the landing page and each available version from versions/catalog.js. Each lastmod is the date of the last commit that changed that page. Regenerate it after committing page changes, then commit the new sitemap.xml:
node docs/tools/make-sitemap.mjs- Create a
versions/<version>/directory with its ownindex.html, CSS, JavaScript, and assets. - Add an entry to
versions/catalog.jswithstatus: 'available'and aurlpointing to the new directory. - Run
node docs/tools/make-sitemap.mjsso that the sitemap lists the new version.
Each version keeps its interface and saved state separate, so adding a release does not change the ICS simulation.
Module tests use Node.js. Nougat's Photos pixel fixtures also require Python and Pillow (the CI installs the same pinned version):
python -m pip install -r .github/requirements-tests.txt
npm testThe browser flows open each version in headless Chrome (boot, unlock, an app, Back, the power menu, a language switch
and a reload, at desktop and phone width) against a server for the repository root, e.g. php -S localhost:8090 -t ..
Nougat's release gate also checks fresh demo data, old saves, every launcher app and every extracted preference screen
in five languages; its detailed integration flows live in tests/browser/ng-*.mjs.
Wallpaper regressions also check real mouse dragging, wheel scrolling, selection and phone touch in 5.1.1, 6.0.1 and 7.1.2:
npm run test:browserBoth run on every push (.github/workflows/tests.yml). The text, asset and font checks (npm run check:texts,
check:assets, check:fonts) write their reports to docs/reports/; how the factory images are unpacked and the generated
files rebuilt is in docs/sources.md; how the code is laid out and where to change an app is in
docs/architecture.md.
For AOSP asset sources and licenses, see THIRD_PARTY_NOTICES.md. Comparisons with the original interfaces and the remaining differences are in the visual audits: 2.3, 4.0.4, 4.3 and 4.4.
Copyright © 2026 Levente Szabó (szabolevi98).
The project's original source code is licensed under the GNU Affero General Public License, Version 3 only (AGPL-3.0-only). See LICENSE for the full terms.
If you make a modified version available to users over a network, you must prominently offer those users free access to that version's complete corresponding source code, as required by section 13. The source code is available in this repository.
Third-party code, artwork, fonts and other assets remain subject to their own licenses and terms; they are not relicensed under the AGPL. See THIRD_PARTY_NOTICES.md. Android and Google trademarks remain with their respective owners.