Android reportedly may soon not be the monolithic threat it once was. The operating system codenamed “Honeycomb” from Google reportedly will be optimized for tablets, creating two tiers for products. The first tier will be using the first-gen Android, originally designed to compete with Apple’s iPhone. The second tier will use Android 3.0, require more powerful chips, and be aimed at the iPad 2.
As a result, some earlier Android-powered devices, such as Samsung’s Galaxy Tab, may soon be obsolete. But does it really matter? Surveys find most iPad owners use their tablet for checking email, surfing web sites, and keeping up with their social media contacts.
But could this be the opening that Apple has waited for? In December, the iOS platform, upon which the iPhone and iPad are based, was used by 1.69 percent of the web browsers, according to a firm that tracks such things. The numbers from NetApplications suggest Apple’s iOS is growing at a faster rate than Android.
In December, HP — which is planning to re-release its Slate tablet based on the company’s webOS — slammed Android as “backward-looking.”
Such in-fighting is likely not to help the nearly 100 iPad competitors expected to be announced (many vanishing) this year, according to one analyst.
