There has been so much-anticipated surrounding Android’s Honeycomb OS, especially with the upcoming Motorola Xoom around the corner. With all of us eagerly waiting, Google has decided to hold an event on Feb. 2 to give us more insight on their newest tablet optimized OS. So what can we expect from this event? Well, I’m sure Google will give us a full run down of Honeycomb.You can watch the event live on Google’s Android Youtube Channel starting at 1pm EST/ 10 am PST.
http://www.youtube.com/android
Here are a couple things that they might talk about during the event.
Honeycomb’s Interface
The new design is similar to some of the elements in the previous OS’s but the layout seems to be better suited for the larger screen most tablets have these days. This is still very much an app based OS so anyone who has owned or does own an Android device should feel right at home. One thing that is a little different is the unlock screen. After hitting the padlock a circle is presented around the icon and then you have to drag it to unlock it. Also the way the new interface is designed it alleviates the need for hardware buttons. Things such as the hardware back, menu, and home buttons are now on the bottom panel of the screen. The search button now resides at the top left corner on the Home Screen. At the bottom right of your screen displayed will be the time, internet connection, and battery life.
As mentioned before much of the customization abilities you’ve had in the previous OS’s are still available. You can still add apps to our home screen and widgets and etc. One thing that’s a little different this time though is that you add those things by hitting a button that’s on the upper right hand corner. Then you are presented a zoomed out version of each home screens and you also at this point have access to all the customizable options. At this point you drag and drop your apps and widgets onto the screen you want to customize.
The Apps
One of the most familiar things in the Honeycomb OS is the app drawer which can be accessed via an option at the top right of the screen. From there, you can scroll through and open all your apps much like every other Android based device. The apps themselves also have been change slightly to fit the screen of the bigger tablets. You can also bring up a list of running apps by pressing the menu button. Some tablets will also come with two cameras but I’m unsure of their differences as of now (Not sure who would want to walk around using a 10-inch tablet as a camera though).
Google also brings a full desktop browser to the table in Honeycomb which I can’t wait to test out myself.
What are your thoughts or impressions of Honeycomb?