Gadgets Blog » android

While the project is still a ways off from hitting the market, Google Android head Andy Rubin gave members of the public and the press at the Dive Into Mobile conference a sneak peek at a buttonless tablet computer running on the Android operating system.

The pad looks comparable in size to Apple’s iPad, but it has no buttons. This is a departure from previous Android hardware, which included four buttons, and Rubin said this change was intentional. The pad orients itself regardless of which end is up. A button would make this confusing, so they went without it.

The tablet runs on a new version of the Android operating system and may include video conferencing and chat abilities, simplified menus and a three-dimensional version of Google Maps. Android and Motorola are developing this iPad killer.

This is the first time Google has given the public a glimpse of this much-anticipated piece of hardware, and it was just enough to whet their appetites for more. No date has been set for release, other than to say “sometime next year.”

Google’s steady move into the mobile phone market has been met with a great deal of success, with their Android operating system finding a home in the hearts of both consumers and developers. The operating system, which has future plans for tablet computers and maybe even netbooks, is still in the process of working out the kinks, but Google’s development team has been committing a great deal of resources to making sure Android is updated frequently, with features that only make it more appealing. Android 3.0, an update dubbed “Gingerbread,” is no different, with a host of new features and minor tweaks that were unveiled by the company earlier last week.

The information was leaked by Phandroid, a website devoted to Android updates and information. A bit of backstory is required before going into the actual updates themselves. Rival smartphone developer Palm has been in a structural shakeup after being acquired by HP, so much so that developer Martias Durate, the lead of Palm’s webOS team, left the company for greener pastures at Google. WebOS has been hailed for its sleek and innovative design, and with information pertaining to visual enhancements in Android, many speculated Durate was in part to thank.

Count this as the most recent development in the smartphone wars. With the world taking on Apple’s beloved iPhone, other phone manufacturers are faced with a steep challenge. Ever since its release, the iPhone has been the definitive smartphone, bringing a wide variety of features not previously known to casual phone users.

Recently, however, the battle has intensified. Apple, who for so long seemed invincible, appears to have stumbled during the course of this iPhone antenna debacle. The iPhone, it seems, is no longer perfect as we once thought.

Therefore, today’s news story is perhaps no surprise. According to an article at BBC News, shipments of Android-equipped phones shot through the roof in the 2nd quarter of 2010. The numbers, compared to the same period of 2008, show a staggering 886 percent increase in shipments. The number can be attributed to a number of factors.

First and foremost, Google’s operating system has resonated with developers. Companies from HTC to Samsung have been developing phones with Android, providing a solid opportunity for an operating system that isn’t Apple’s. Google’s reputation as a computing giant is perhaps exactly the type of name-recognition needed to combat Apple.