The HP TouchPad is no stranger to Android, getting a taste of Ice Cream Sandwich as well as its own CyanogenMod builds. The webOS tablet was also once the target of a project called the "Application Compatibility Layer" (ACL) from a company named OpenMobile that aimed to get the TouchPad to run Android apps inside of webOS. OpenMobile got the software up and running, but the project eventually stagnated. Now another group known as Phoenix International Communications is teaming up with OpenMobile to kickstart development on the ACL and get it out to the public.
Phoenix has introduced a Kickstarter project to get the ACL project off the ground, asking for a total of $35,000 by the morning of May 23. The company has posted a video announcing its plans and showing off an alpha build of the ACL running on a TouchPad. In the clip, Phoenix shows off a TouchPad running the Facebook and Ninja Rush Android apps, complete with a set of on-screen navigation buttons that we've become accustomed to seeing in Google's mobile OS.
If Phoenix is able to hit its goal, the firm says that it has an "agressive development process" planned that includes a thorough beta process. A consumer release is scheduled for July 2013. Any TouchPad owners that'd like to give the ACL a go can guarantee themselves a copy of the software by contributing to the $30 or higher Kickstarter tiers. There's also a $150 tier that will get backers access to the ACL two weeks early, as well as a $250 tier that will grant backers access to the ACL beta program.
The promise of the ACL sounds interesting, allowing TouchPad owners to purchase and run Android apps on their tablet while staying inside the webOS that they've come to know and love. Of course, the project will have to hit its $35,000 goal by May 23 in order to actually continue being developed and see a consumer release. If you'd like to help make that happen, there's a green "Back This Project" button awaiting your click and payment information at the Kickstarter link below.
Via webOS Nation, Kickstarter
