Can Honeycomb Tip the Scale for Android Tablets

From PC World: Since Apple introduced the world to the iPad, the tablet rivalry has been heated between iOS and Android. The problem, though--for Android at least--is that the rivalry was filled with idle speculation and vaporware compared to the blockbuster real-world sales for the iPad. With the impending launch of Android 3.0, a.k.a. "Honeycomb"--designed specifically for tablets--perhaps Android's tablet fortunes will change.

For most of 2010, Apple could not manufacture iPads fast enough to keep up with demand. Apple sold nearly 15 million iPads in about 8 months following the spring launch of the tablet. More than seven million iPads sold just in the final quarter of 2010, and a report from the New York Times suggests that the iPad would beat two-thirds of the Fortune 500 if it were a standalone company.

Android hasn't been completely absent from the tablet market. The most notable have been the Dell Streak and the Samsung Galaxy Tab. But, the Dell Streak was never really taken seriously as a tablet--more of a smartphone with a thyroid condition. Meanwhile, the Samsung Galaxy Tab seems like a comparable tablet, but price slashing by the wireless vendors selling the Galaxy Tab, and Samsung's reluctance to divulge actual sales data indicate it may not be selling all that well.

To be fair, Google stated very clearly that existing variants of Android are not suited for tablets. Android 3.0--commonly referred to by its code name "Honeycomb"--has been developed by Google specifically as a tablet version of the Android mobile OS.

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