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It wasn't long time since Android 2.3 Gingerbread was released and so for only a few phones has 2.3. And already a beta version of Android 3.0 Honeycomb is released.

What does this mean, is Android 3.0 only for tablets? If not, I guess that 2.3 will be very shortlived. If 2.3 is for phones and 3.0 is for tablets, that sounds like a fork of Android.

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  • Also, where can i download Android 3.0?? I couldn't find it at the App Market.
    – user2698
    Commented Feb 10, 2011 at 14:23
  • @noir_11: Android 3.0 hasn't been released yet. Even so, you don't download an OS upgrade in the Market.
    – ale
    Commented Feb 10, 2011 at 14:24

7 Answers 7

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I think the conventional wisdom is that Honeycomb is a fork for Tablets only but this post suggests otherwise. It says that in an interview with Engadget, Matias Duarte claimed that Honeycomb would be for all form factors.

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  • They don't mention Tablet devices only... but I've seen them mention many times larger screen format devices. So I believe they could potentially use Honeycomb for the larger devices like the Dell Streak (which Dell calls a Tablet, but at the same time has phone functionality).
    – mlevit
    Commented Jan 27, 2011 at 2:54
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    Google spokespersons have made it a point multiple times that there is not hardware requirements or restrictions for Honeycomb, and that it's as open and available as any other version of Android. It's neither restricted to dual-core or tablet devices. It's redesign and new features are to enhance it's ability as a tablet platform, not restrict it to a tablet platform.
    – Benjamin Anderson
    Commented Jan 28, 2011 at 21:51
  • Duarte confirms it again: mobilized.allthingsd.com/20110201/…
    – Matthew Read
    Commented Feb 1, 2011 at 17:56
  • Looks like Honeycomb will be Tablet only - mobile.slashdot.org/story/11/02/03/224231/…
    – Jonas
    Commented Feb 4, 2011 at 10:36
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    Keep reading through the source links and you find that the source of the slashdot thing originates with the BGR post (goo.gl/mAz4Z) that has been updated with a Google clarification that Honeycomb is coming to tablets first (e.g. the Xoom), but the changes are the future of Android. In fact, parts of Honeycomb will come to Android versions as early as 1.6 (the Fragment API, specifically, goo.gl/Evbrr).
    – lilbyrdie
    Commented Feb 4, 2011 at 17:59
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Yes, that is what it looks like. The UI doesn't seem like it will work on the smaller devices like phones. We will probably see 3.0 iterations for tablets and 2.x / 4.x for phones. I don't like that this is like a fork. hopefully they can merge it together for 3.1 and just have a different launcher for tablets.

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  • Just having a different launcher is a good idea. I'd actually prefer a scalable interface though, since there's no clear line between a minitablet like the Dell Streak and some of the larger phones.
    – Matthew Read
    Commented Jan 26, 2011 at 22:00
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I don't think a formal announcement has been made, but while Google's YouTube video about Honeycomb said it was "entirely for tablets" [1], it has been confirmed multiple times that it is for other devices as well [2].

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It was mentioned on TWiG last week, and there's a handful of photos floating around the net, but when the recently released Honeycomb source is put on a device with phone's resolution/screensize it changes to a much more familiar and small screen friendly phone-style UI.

See it in this video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5LMcBo7uKKw

So it looks like Honeycomb is the first version specifically designed with Tablets in mind, but it still retains all of the phone friendly features and swaps between them depending on the settings/screen size.

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It is a short term fork to get ahead in the tablet market.

There is a future release planned merging them back together into what is called the Android Icecream Sandwitch.

Refer wikipedia - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Android_(operating_system)

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There's no reason to believe that Honeycomb is just for tablets. It's been designed with large screens in mind, but on the developer side of the documentation there's clear indication that it's for all screen sizes:

Android 3.0 brings a new UI designed for tablets and other larger screen devices, but it also is fully compatible with applications developed for earlier versions of the platform, or for smaller screen sizes.

Source: http://developer.android.com/sdk/android-3.0-highlights.html#compatibility

My emphasis.

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I ran a release under an emulator, and it struggled on my machine, as a guide, 2.3.1 is a tab slow on the emu but usable. HoneyC is practically unusable on the emu, and seem to display many issues.

This could all be down to the development stage of the code though

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