Google’s iPad killer that never took off
Google’s iPad killer that never took off
https://www.howtogeek.com/honeycomb-ipad-killer-that-never-took-off/
Publish Date: 2026-03-01 15:30:00
Source Domain: www.howtogeek.com
I am writing these words on a foldable tablet that fits in my pocket, but my dream of a big touchscreen goes back to a much older era of Android tablets. All the way back to the beginning, in fact, when Google unveiled the first version of Android made for larger screens.
Android 3.0 was a tablet-only version of Android
Codename: Honeycomb
Android first launched in 2008 on the HTC Dream, a device known in the US as the T-Mobile G1. This initial 1.0 release didn’t have a name, but version 1.5 would be known as “Cupcake.” By the time 2.0 came around, the alphabetical dessert-based naming scheme had reached “Eclair.” Version 2.3 launched in 2011 with the name “Gingerbread,” and at the same time, it came to phones; Android 3.0 “Honeycomb” was appearing exclusively on tablets. Despite the version number, this was actually the eighth version of Android released in four years.
Honeycomb was a notable departure from prior versions of Android. It introduced elements that would stick with the platform for a decade, such as the three virtual navigation icons in the bottom left for “back,” “home,” and “recent apps.” Pressing that last one brought up thumbnails of your most recently used apps, arranged vertically.
In the bottom-right, there was a notification area, clock, and system indicators. The design made Android resemble a conventional PC, though there was no taskbar, and to launch apps, you tapped a button in the top-right. Widgets could be arranged anywhere on the home screen.
This was an era of wildly experimental hardware
We weren’t yet sure what a tablet could be
Honeycomb was a response to the commercial success of Apple’s iPad, which hit store shelves nearly a year prior in April of 2010. The iPad had changed people’s concept of a tablet from a Windows machine with a stylus to…
