Why Are There No Apps for Android Tablets? (ContributorNetwork)

The iPad 2 has more than 65,000 apps for it, in the App Store. And that's not counting iPhone / iPod Touch apps, which can be scaled up to fit its display.

How many apps do we have in the Android world, for our tablets? There are only a few dozen in the Android Market's "Featured Tablet Apps" section. And while that's probably not all the tablet apps out there, not all of those are even designed for tablets; many are just Android phone apps that work OK on a larger screen.

It's clear that we're facing an app shortage, for people who bought an Android tablet like a Xoom or an Asus Transformer. But why, when there are so many for the iPad ... and when Android phones are catching up to the iPhone, app-wise?

To find out, let's look at two things: Who's writing the apps, and why they write them.

These are the developers in your neighborhood

Imagine, if you will, that we're watching an episode of Mister Rogers' Neighborhood, and he's going to take us on a tour of where our apps are made. (Which, he totally would've if he were still alive today.) Where do you suppose we'd end up?

Apple answers that question on its website, profiling indie, academic, and corporate app developers in an entertaining video tour. Some were Mac app developers, who found that writing for iOS was a natural use of their talents. Some worked for a company like AOL, which decided it had to have a presence in the App Store. And some were drawn in during the iPhone's Gold Rush, looking to sell apps right when the App Store opened.

I have a feeling that if you profile Android developers, you'll see basically the same motivations. Some like the technology, and enjoy making it do stuff; some work for a company that tells them to; and some simply want to make money. The problem is, the differences between the App Store and the Android Market make the latter much less appealing to many of those developers.

This is why we can't have nice things

Android apps are written in Java, which is an easy programming language that's often taught in college. Add to that how it's just a $25 flat fee to put your apps on the Android Market (compared to $99 per year on the App Store), and you see why Android beats out iOS in its number of free apps.

So that's your "like the technology" contingent, right there. But what about the people who see the design possibilities? Who see a tablet's screen as a canvas, and want to create their masterpiece? Which platform do you think they'd like better, the quirky one with the ugly apps or the shiny, pristine Apple one?

People like that write apps for the devices they have, and they're buying a lot more iPads. Add in the fact that there's less money being made on the Android Market, and that doesn't leave too many developers who aren't writing the official CNN app (or something). The problem is even worse with Android tablets than with Android phones, because fewer people are buying them and buying apps for them.

What are people buying? iPads ... and the Nook Color, which doesn't even run the tablet version of Android. Maybe things will pick up once Amazon releases its rumored tablet, but I won't be holding my breath.

Jared Spurbeck is an open-source software enthusiast, who uses an Android phone and an Ubuntu laptop PC. He has been writing about technology and electronics since 2008.

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Samsung to stick with Google for its tablets (AFP)

SEOUL (AFP) – Samsung Electronics will depend on Google's Android mobile-device software to run future versions of its tablet computers, a senior Samsung official said in an interview published Tuesday.

"We'll continue to work with Android on future tablets," J.K. Shin, head of the South Korean giant's mobile division, told The Wall Street Journal.

Samsung Electronics is the world's second-largest cellphone maker after Finland's Nokia but trails Apple's iPhone and iPad in smartphones and tablets.

However, the Android system has boosted its smartphone business and Samsung hopes to do the same with tablets.

The iPad surprised competitors with the success of its launch early last year. Samsung responded by choosing Android for its tablets and introduced the seven-inch (17.8 centimetre) Galaxy Tab in October 2010 to take on Apple.

Samsung will launch new versions of the Galaxy Tab this summer in an 8.9-inch and 10.1-inch model. Both will run the latest version of Android, known as Honeycomb.

Despite Apple's status as a major customer for Samsung components, the two companies are embroiled in lawsuits.

The US firm sued its South Korean rival, claiming it copied the look and feel of the iPhone and iPad. Samsung launched its own suits, alleging that Apple violated patents covering Samsung's cellphone transmission technologies.

"We didn't copy Apple's design," Shin told The Wall Street Journal. "We have used many similar designs over the past years and it (Apple's allegation) will not be legally problematic."

Samsung expects its tablet shipments to rise about fivefold this year to 7.5 million. Market data provider IHS iSuppli forecast in April that Apple's iPad shipments would reach 39.7 million this year.

"Android is the fastest-growing platform and the market direction is headed toward Android so we're riding the wave," said Younghee Lee, senior vice president of sales and marketing.

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Two new tablets unveiled ahead of top Asia IT fair (AFP)

TAIPEI (AFP) – Two electronic firms unveiled new tablet computers in Taipei Monday, on the eve of Asia's biggest IT trade fair, as they try to get a slice of a lucrative market dominated by Apple's iPad.

As thousands of industry delegates prepared for the Computex Taipei fair US firm ViewSonic and Taiwan's Shuttle Inc showed off their latest innovations.

ViewSonic, a visual technology firm based in California, introduced what it said is the world's first tablet that is equipped with both Windows 7 and Google's Android platforms.

"While iPad users are aimed for entertainment, our new machine has functions more than that," Kai Wang, a ViewSonic product manager, told AFP during a news conference on the eve of the five-day event.

Kai said the ViewPad 10 Pro will be a simple transition for people who are already used to Microsoft's operation system, adding that he expects much of its customer base to come from those who already use netbooks.

The new tablet, weighing slightly more than 830 grams, will hit the Taiwan market in June and elsewhere in the Asia Pacific in July, with a price tag of up to $799.

IT firm Shuttle Inc from Taipei, meanwhile, showed off its low-priced gadget aimed at the student market.

On unveiling the Shuttle V08, company manager Donald Chen told journalists: "It's true iPad is popular, but it is impossible for Apple to take the world's entire tablet market. There is still room for some tailor-made tablet developers."

With anti-dust and waterproof characteristics, its tablet weighs only 650 grams and is slated to cost just $200.

"Can you see how big the market will be as long as competitors can grab up to a 30 percent share of the global tablet market?" Chen said.

Worldwide sales of tablet computers are forecast to hit 50 million units this year and double to 100 million in 2012, said Chang Li from the Taipei Computer Association, which co-hosts the annual trade fair.

Computex Taipei, which runs from Tuesday until Saturday, is the biggest information technology and communications trade show in Asia and attracts thousands of exhibitors from around the world.

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Two new tablets unveiled ahead of top Asia IT fair (AFP)

TAIPEI (AFP) – Two electronic firms unveiled new tablet computers in Taipei Monday, on the eve of Asia's biggest IT trade fair, as they try to get a slice of a lucrative market dominated by Apple's iPad.

As thousands of industry delegates prepared for the Computex Taipei fair US firm ViewSonic and Taiwan's Shuttle Inc showed off their latest innovations.

ViewSonic, a visual technology firm based in California, introduced what it said is the world's first tablet that is equipped with both Windows 7 and Google's Android platforms.

"While iPad users are aimed for entertainment, our new machine has functions more than that," Kai Wang, a ViewSonic product manager, told AFP during a news conference on the eve of the five-day event.

Kai said the ViewPad 10 Pro will be a simple transition for people who are already used to Microsoft's operation system, adding that he expects much of its customer base to come from those who already use netbooks.

The new tablet, weighing slightly more than 830 grams, will hit the Taiwan market in June and elsewhere in the Asia Pacific in July, with a price tag of up to $799.

IT firm Shuttle Inc from Taipei, meanwhile, showed off its low-priced gadget aimed at the student market.

On unveiling the Shuttle V08, company manager Donald Chen told journalists: "It's true iPad is popular, but it is impossible for Apple to take the world's entire tablet market. There is still room for some tailor-made tablet developers."

With anti-dust and waterproof characteristics, its tablet weighs only 650 grams and is slated to cost just $200.

"Can you see how big the market will be as long as competitors can grab up to a 30 percent share of the global tablet market?" Chen said.

Worldwide sales of tablet computers are forecast to hit 50 million units this year and double to 100 million in 2012, said Chang Li from the Taipei Computer Association, which co-hosts the annual trade fair.

Computex Taipei, which runs from Tuesday until Saturday, is the biggest information technology and communications trade show in Asia and attracts thousands of exhibitors from around the world.

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Android 3.1 Update Coming in June to Acer, Asus, and T-Mobile Tablets (PC World)

Melissa J. Perenson Melissa J. Perenson – Tue May 17, 9:15 pm ET

The first major update to Google's Honeycomb platform, Android 3.1, was announced last week at the Google I/O developer event, and it's slowly rolling out as an over-the-air update to mobile broadband-connected Motorola Xoom tablets. When announced, Google was vague about when we could expect Android 3.1 on other Honeycomb tablets, but today saw update details flying across the Web for both the Acer Iconia A500 and the Asus EeePad Transformer.

The details remain vague, however. According to reports on ThisIsMyNext and Engadget, Asus Italia used its Facebook page to reveal an over-the-air update was coming in June. And Acer says an update is coming in June, as well. Mind you, we don't know when in June, nor do we know if U.S. models will receive the update at the same time as other regions will. Still, add that T-Mobile says it will be doing an OTA update of the T-Mobile G-Slate,and we've got a bona fide Android 3.1 party.

I've yet to see the Android 3.1 update, but I'm looking forward to it: In addition to adding things like resizable widgets, Google says it has fixed the image rendering issue I've noted before.

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RIM recalls 1,000 Playbook tablets: report (Reuters)

(Reuters) – Research In Motion Ltd has recalled about 1,000 of its Playbook tablets which were shipped with a flawed operating system build that could pose problems during the initial set-up, technology blog Engadget and several other media channels reported.

In a statement to CrackBerry.com, the Blackberry maker said the majority of the affected devices were still in the distribution channel and had not reached customers.

The company is working to replace the affected tablets, it said.

The Engadget blog reported on Saturday that the faulty batch was shipped to office supply chain Staples Inc.

RIM had hoped to turn around its fortunes with the launch of the PlayBook tablet, but the product won poor reviews and complaints it was rushed out before it was ready.

In April, RIM cut its first-quarter earnings outlook citing fewer BlackBerry smartphone shipments in the period.

Research In Motion and Staples could not immediately be reached by Reuters for comment.

(Reporting by Renju Jose in Bangalore; Editing by David Holmes)

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