Best thing I could suggest to power users out there would be to root, unlock bootloader, and flash custom ROMs based on AOSP 4.0.4...namely AOKP comes to mind, but other 4.0.4 ROMs out there besides whose main focus is stability. Codename Android is excellent for those who prioritize stability and then features, but not sure if 1.6.0 or later builds are based on Android 4.0.4.
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