Google Nexus Tablet with Android 3.x to be made by LG. Android 2.x tablets won’t upgrade to 3.0?

Staska  By on 27 Mar 11

2011 was supposed to be the year when Google will finally tweak  it’s Android up to par to be able  compete with iOS. And it might still happen, just not right now.

Unfortunately, just like with all first major Android releases (1.0, 2.0), 3.0 Honeycomb turned out to be much less then a finished market ready product. As is the first tablet running it – Motorola Xoom. Most of the other Honeycomb tablets are still months away from shipping, and those who will make it into the market in the next few weeks doesn’t seem to have much better chance then Xoom.

So, when can we expect to see the first true Android tablet, with mature OS and made the way Google envisioned it? I have been musing in my chats with colleagues for a while now, that it will happen when Google launches Nexus Tab – it’s own Google branded tablet. Just like they did it with the Nexus One, which prompted other Android HW vendors to up their smartphone game. Now, it seems, we have a confirmation that Google Nexus Tab (or whatever Google decides to call it) is coming.

According to Mobile-Review’s Eldar Murtazin, Google is indeed working on it’s own branded tablet, which is scheduled for release sometime in mid-summer or early fall. Upon release, this device will get the latest Android 3.x version of OS, which will become available to partners only after Google’s tablet is out. This time the hardware partner making the tablet for Google, is LG.

(The above picture is LG G-Slate for T-mobile)

There was also one more interesting quip about Android 3.0 in Eldar’s article. According to him, if a hardware partner releases the tablet on Android 2.x version of OS, as per licensing agreement for Android 3.0, they are not allowed to update Android 2.x tablets to 3.0 version.

If that is true, current Samsung Galaxy Tab users are really out of luck here. And potential buyers of HTC Flyer, if and when it is released with Android 2.4 as demoed at MWC, should wait a few months until HTC comes out with Android 3.0 of their tablet.

 

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  • http://www.facebook.com/benmarvin Ben Marvin

    Screw you guys and your auto play video ads.

  • http://pulse.yahoo.com/_K3MVOVHEK4AZY777NI5KWHGL5U David Jenkins

    No grasp of the English language? “It’s” is not possessive, you know.

  • Palindrome121

    For God’s sake get yourself an editor who speaks English.

  • Anonymous

    Don’t believe the hype. Android 3.0 Honeycomb > iOS 4.3

  • Ticmie

    Has the been any advances in the Android Market for Tablets? The Android Market or the new Amazon App Store will need to step up it’s games if it’s going to keep up with the 65,000 tablet specific apps that are available on the iPad.

  • Anonymous

    Nope. Not waiting to buy the Flyer. I’ll have it on day one. If need be I’ll either hack it to run Honeycomb later thanks to amazing Android modders out there or buy the Honeycomb version and sell/gift the old one. It give me an excuse to give one to my mom. A tablet with a stylus would be perfect for her job. She isn’t going to care about Honeycomb vs Gingerbread. Somehow though, I think Google will give HTC a pass on this one.

  • Anonymous

    Nope. Not waiting to buy the Flyer. I’ll have it on day one. If need be I’ll either hack it to run Honeycomb later thanks to amazing Android modders out there or buy the Honeycomb version and sell/gift the old one. It give me an excuse to give one to my mom. A tablet with a stylus would be perfect for her job. She isn’t going to care about Honeycomb vs Gingerbread. Somehow though, I think Google will give HTC a pass on this one.

  • Anonymous

    so galaxy tab and htc flyer won’t get any official honeycomb updates. :)

  • Mohammad Neyaz Hasan

    have to see how driod 3 works

  • http://pulse.yahoo.com/_K3MVOVHEK4AZY777NI5KWHGL5U David Jenkins
  • blogger?

    Yeah, I’m not really inclined to believe anything a blogger says when they quote an obscure Russian website as their only source.

    I hope Google sends you a C&D before this rumour goes too far.

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