The search giant wants people to see 'what's new from Android' at Samsung's Mobile Unpacked show next month. Could it be the official release of Android 4.0?

We may just have a date to get a taste of Ice Cream Sandwich, otherwise known as the next version of Google's Android mobile operating system. While not officially confirmed, it's likely that Android 4.0 will be released in the next month or two and an invitation Google sent out Wednesday may point to it happening sooner rather than later.

The search giant at the Google I/O conference in May to the delight of Android developers. Earlier this month, Google chairman Eric Schmidt at Salesforce.com's Dreamforce conference that Android 4.0, the next major overhaul to Google's mobile OS, will be released in "October or November."

So what to make of the message Google sent out late Wednesday, inviting the press to have "a look at what's new from Android" on Oct. 11 at the CTIA trade show in San Diego?

Keep in mind that Apple's got its own event planned for Oct. 4, when it's widely expected to unveil not just its next-generation iPhone 5 but also iOS 5, the new version of its own mobile operating system. Would anyone put it past Google to time the official release of Android 3.0 Honeycomb's successor to take some of the wind out of its rival's sails?

Of course, Google hasn't named an official release date for Ice Cream Sandwich (neither has Apple officially said that its Oct. 4 event is about the iPhone 5, wink, wink, nudge, nudge). But Schmidt's statement and unconfirmed reports that Verizon will be launching an Android 4.0 smartphone (the Droid Prime) in October add up to a distinct possibility that Samsung Mobile Unpacked is the venue where the release of the new-look OS will be released.

On the other hand, Android is still pretty fragmented, version-wise, with plenty of smartphones out there running not just Honeycomb but Android 2.2 Froyo and earlier versions. On the other other hand, Google has had considerably less success with Android tablets and it may be that it wants to get a tablet-optimized Ice Cream Sandwich out there before that Apple-dominated market gets away entirely.

Or maybe Google is getting weary of trying to lead other companies down the garden path to tablet riches, only to get lost on the way. You can bet the search giant will be watching what happens with Amazon's new Kindle Fire tablet, which is not even running Honeycomb but a heavily customized earlier version of Android.

And let's not forget about Google's bid to acquire Motorola mobility—that's about "more than just patents," . Google's Mobile Unpacked news may have as much to do with what it's building for itself with Android as with what it's giving away.