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Android 3.0 and TabletsTable of contents
 Android 3.0 Home Screen (with Settings Popped Out) Android 3.0 won't be coming to your phone, but it would like a place on your coffee table. Or your bedside table. Maybe your kitchen counter, too, and close to your comfiest chair. It's built specifically for tablets: wider, cinema-style displays, more swiping and multi-finger actions, and with apps built for the bigger-screen experience. That's not to say that Honeycomb, as 3.0 is code-named, won't feel familiar to anyone who's been using Android all along. In fact, if you're already set up with an Android phone, jumping into an Android tablet is remarkably easy: your downloaded apps, settings, and even bookmarks can automatically load right in from across the internet. All of the familiar controls are there, just in different places, and the settings and options should feel the same.  The Unlocking Circle of Android 3.0 (Drag the Smaller Circle to the Edge of the Larger Circle) In this early look at Android 3.0, we'll be focusing on what's new and different about using an Android tablet. For a better understanding of Android, we'd point back to the main chapters of this guide, which still apply. As more Android tablets become available, we will likely integrate these Honeycomb-specific tips and tutorials into the individual chapters; for now, it's mainly an add-on to the Android know-how we hope we've provided. Now, on to the shiny stuff and gee-whiz tablet goodies, as captured from a Motorola XOOM tablet. The ControlsNote: We're basing this section on what we've seen in Android 3.0 on the Motorola XOOM, the first tablet available with the Android tablet interface. Future tablets may update the controls, re-order them, or simply give them new looks, but this is how they generally operate and interact. Android 3.0 changes the control schemes of the Android system just enough to raise your eyebrows a few times, at least at first. After playing with them for a bit, and seeing how they're supposed to make application switching easier, they should feel more like they're ready and willing, rather than in the way. If you're familiar with Android's previously phone-focused controls, you'll already know the Back and Home buttons, and they do the same here as they do there: head back to the previous screen that brought you to where you are, and head straight back to the Home Screen, respectively. But the Menu button isn't quite what it once was, the Search button is no longer a constant offering, and there are two new contextual buttons—plus a new Action Bar, in case you thought that maybe Android didn't just love it some buttons. Oh, and some new copy & paste controls. Let's dig in. The Standard "Blue Buttons" Controls from the Home Screen: Back, Home, and the New Recent Apps From your Home Screen, you'll see Back, Home, and—is that a Menu button? It's actually Recent Apps which, when pressed, does just what you'd think it does: popping up a vertical stack of thumbnail images for the apps you've most recently opened.  Recent Apps Pop-Up Menu You'd previously have to hold down the Home button to get this kind of access in the phone-based Android, but this is pretty convenient—though limited to five apps. You can tap anywhere to dismiss this menu, or hit that downward-pointing arrow (which can also lower a keyboard, if it's up). On some apps, mainly those not yet updated with a tablet-ready version, the Menu button will indeed appear among its former peers.  Menu Button and Older-Style Menu Pop-Up The button, styled like a spreadsheet or grid, looks at first glance a bit too close to the similarly square and nearby Recent Apps button. In all honesty, this can be annoying at first, but you'll likely learn to navigate the two buttons pretty easily after a bit of practice. Whither the Search button? It's one of the four main buttons on most Android phones. In Android 3.0, it lives in the upper-left corner of your Home Screens.  Search and Voice Search Buttons on the Home Screen The Search and Voice Search buttons also show up in the Action Bar of certain other apps. The Action BarIn a Honeycomb tablet, the Menu button (if it's available) is often found in the upper-right corner as part of an Action Bar that apps can customize for their own frequent actions.  The Action Bar in, Uh, Action In the Gmail app, for example, you can search, create a new message, archive things, delete things, and see more Menu options from anywhere in the app. That's a bit more convenient than having to press the Menu button every time you want to do one of these things, which is how it (still) works in Gmail for Android phones.  Action Bar in Maps App In the Maps app, the Action Bar is put to use for other frequent actions. From left to right, you can pinpoint your location and turn on Compass Mode (tilt the tablet and the map tilts with you), place a marker, get directions, turn on layers, and activate Latitude social markers, as well as access the Menu. The Keyboard and Text Manipulation Android 3.0 Keyboard The keyboard in Honeycomb isn't all that different from the keyboard included with Android phones; it's just bigger. Maybe that bigger layout is a good thing; or maybe to you it feels incredibly awkward to type with your fingers on a glass plane. That's a problem with tablets in general. Perhaps one day they'll come up with glass that feels like a Selectric when you tap it, but until then, these are the keys we've been dealt. You get a standard QWERTY layout with some Android-specific additions, like the Settings button in the lower-left corner, and a smiley-face emoticon. Tap the "?123" key, and your keys fill up with numbers and special characters you may need.  The "?123" Layout, with Options to Go Back to ABC or Ahead to "More" You don't always have to go to the special character layouts to get your "@," a colon, or other common keys. Note the light gray marks in the upper-right corners of certain keys.  Holding the "/" Key to Quickly Type a "@" Press and hold on those keys with light gray corner characters, and you can type them as soon as you release the key. Copy, Cut, and Paste Text (and Find, and Share, and Web Search) Selecting Text, then Deciding What to Do With It Copying text on your tablet is much, much easier than on your phone. For one thing, your fingers have more room to select and fine-point the text you want to grab. But on a higher level, Android 3.0 uses its Action Bar to great effect in this regard. Press and hold on or near the text you want to select, and you'll see two paddles appear. They're the same paddles in Android 2.3, for those who got to see it. Drag the two paddles so that the text you're interested in is highlighted. Next ... well, just press the button in the upper-right that describes what you want to do. You can copy, search that page for repeat occurrences, or search the web for that text, possibly to explain it better.  Sending/Sharing Text After Selection You can also hit the Share key and fling the text over to another app. It's pretty neat what you can do with your fingers these days.  Finishing Up Your Text Task If you've selected text on a page and want to move on, or can't find a match on the page for it, look for the "Done" button with an "X" in the upper-left corner of the screen. Press it, and the Action Bar reverts, so your text goes unselected. Honeycomb Home ScreensHome screens in Android 3.0 have the same elements as any Android system. There are shortcuts for apps and quick actions, widgets for keeping tabs on information, and wallpapers for making everything look pretty. Everything's arranged on a grid, and most of the same shortcuts, widgets, and wallpapers are available on tablets. But then again, Android tablets have quite a few exclusive goodies, too, which we'll show off—er, detail—a bit further on. On Android phones, pressing and holding on a blank space on the screen opened a list-style menu for picking what you wanted to add. In Honeycomb, pressing and holding (or hitting the "+" icon in the upper-right corner) angles and flattens all of your home screens into an array, and you get to pick and drag screen elements onto each space. It's both crazy eye candy and really rewarding for obsessive home screen organizers.  You can browse through the categories of app shortcuts, widgets, wallpapers, and "Other" (generally the custom shortcuts created by apps) from this customization screen. Adding ShortcutsThe width and spacing of a tablet really helps with arranging your app shortcuts, as you can pick from a wide well of apps in the bottom row:  App Shortcut Selection Drag an app with your finger onto one of the five home screens where you'd like to place the shortcut:  Dragging an App Onto a Home Screen The home screen will expand out, with grid markers to fit your shortcut between (go ahead, soak in that feeling of being a kinda-architect).  Grid Display for Placing a Shortcut And now you're good to go. This system works the same for "More" shortcuts and widgets, too. Adding Widgets Android 3.0 Widgets Most of the widgets and shortcuts are the same, with a few very neat exceptions. Among them are Calendar, Email, and Gmail widgets that show recent or upcoming items, with the option to click on an item to launch it, or click the "+" icon in the upper-right corner to create a new appointment or message. You can also add your web bookmarks as a widget, your Google Books collection, YouTube videos, and a few other goodies, above and beyond what's offered on phones. The unique thing about all these widgets is the ability to scroll through them. You can glide your finger up or down inside the Calendar widget to quickly skim through the next few days, or flip back through your email to see what other messages await your vital time. The same goes for bookmarks, books, YouTube channels—skim and flip through your widgets as if they were tiny tablets-in-tablets. Removing Items from Home ScreensThe "Trash Can" for removing, but not actually deleting items, has moved in Android 3.0 to the upper-right corner. Press and hold down on an item, then drag it onto the "Remove" area until it turns red. Release to remove the item.  Removing a Widget from the Home Screen Notifications and Quick SettingsNotifications through Honeycomb are structured in the same general fashion as on Android phones, but let's venture to say they work a bit better. Throw in a new way to quickly adjust the most common device settings, and you'll be hoping that some of this thinking makes it back to the smaller Android screens.  Notifications from the Bottom Right Corner in Honeycomb There's no sliding up (or down for that matter) to see all your notifications on Android tablets. Each of your notifications gets its own icon that you can tap on to reveal that specific notice. That's handy if you're in the mood for seeing new tweets and Facebook frivolity, but not checking your email, or vice-versa. If you do want the full stack of notifications, tap anywhere on what's officially called the System Bar, located somewhere near the time, the network/Wi-Fi signal indicator, and the battery gauge.  The Full Stack of Notifications and System Data After tapping the bottom-right tray, you can see everything waiting for your attention and "X" out the items you wish to dismiss. You also see details on everything else: the date with the time, the specific Wi-Fi router you're connected to, and the percentage of battery life you've got left. You'll also see a "Settings"-style icon of sliders. Tap that icon to dig one level deeper into settings.  The Pop-Up "Quick Settings" in Honeycomb's Lower Tray It's a fairly convenient set of the settings you're most likely to adjust while using the tablet. From the top, you can toggle the no-connection "Airplane mode," jump into your Wi-Fi settings, lock your tablet's orientation to its current state (portrait/vertical or landscape/horizontal), adjust your screen brightness or switch on automatic brightness, toggle notifications for some quiet time, and enter the full, multi-section Settings if your needs go deeper. The Browser Android 3.0 Browser, with Tabs Most of the upgrades in Android 3.0 are nice, shiny, convenient, or very fitting to the form. The Browser app in Honeycomb is all of those things, and perhaps the best new thing on Android. In its wider landscape orientation, the screen—at least on the Motorola XOOM tablet—makes the tabs on top much more convenient than the Android phone's Windows button. The Address bar is present at first loading and when tapping on a tab or near the top, but hides itself as you scroll down. As with Google's Chrome browser for the desktop, the page you're browsing gets as much space as possible. With the Address bar out, you can quickly bookmark ("Star"), search, or browse back through your history with the buttons on the browser bar's far right side. Press the menu button in the upper-right corner, and you'll get the rest of your options:  Menu Drop-Down for the Browser App Most of the options are fairly self-explanatory, but it should be noted that "Downloads" takes you to the dedicated Downloads app, a very recent addition to Android (2.3 and higher). That "New incognito tab" option, though—that's new, and handy in certain circumstances.  Leaving No Browsing Traces with an Incognito Tab What kind of circumstances? The polite thing to say in this situation is, "Gift shopping for your significant other," or perhaps "Looking up sensitive medical advice." Whatever you need it for, the Incognito tab—like its counterpart in the desktop Chrome browser—doesn't leave traces of your browsing on the machine itself, but it doesn't protect you from anyone outside the tablet such as network intruders, internet service providers, or web sites that track your IP address from site to site. Browser SettingsClick the Menu button in the upper-right corner, hit Settings, and poke around some. You'll find at least a few options that can make your browsing experience much, much nicer. For example:
Android 3.0 Honeycomb's New Google AppsMost of the apps in Android 3.0 are a mix of familiar functions with new looks and layout. They do the same thing as their phone-based counterparts, but in ways just different enough to merit some notice. At some point in the future, Android 3.0 and the 2.X branch will merge, and the Google Apps will acquire common interfaces. In the meantime, take a look at how Google has reformed their software for a wider screen, a user who does more swiping than typing, and the powerful hardware that's making its way into our hands. Gmail Gmail's Two-Pane Makeover Gmail's Android 3.0 look is a lot like its look in a browser on the iPad. A two-column view, with your folders on the left and message lists on the right; or, after clicking, your inbox on the left and current message on the right. Nice and fairly intuitive. Email (Non-Gmail IMAP Client) Email: Also Looking Nice in Double-Wide Panes The same goes for the Email app, where you'd tuck all your non-Google email. At last, this app measures up to its Gmail counterpart. Google Talk Google Talk, with a Notable Focus on Video Chat Availability Google Talk's app felt even more crowded on phones, so the breathing room it gets on Honeycomb is more than welcome. Maps Maps Seems Made for Widescreen Usage When you want to show off your tablet to friends, don't go for the 3-D games. Consider how amazing Maps is on Honeycomb. Turn on Compass Mode from the upper-right to locate yourself and tilt the landscape, in real time, as you tilt your tablet. Zoom in close to denser city areas and check out 3-D building models. Throw layers and places down all over to find neat stuff nearby, and get a wider Street View after you tap on any road you want to see. Camera Giving the Android a Healthy Glow with the Beach Scene Mode Sure, it feels a little awkward taking a photo with a camera that's about the size of your head. But the camera is often a good one, and the Camera app in 3.0 has some nice features. Among them are a bevy of lighting and white balance modes, along with "Scenes" for instantly filtering and stylizing your shots. Hit that camera-spinning button along the bottom, and ...  Caught Kinda Off-Guard by the Front-Facing Camera You can get all kinds of self-indulgent with the front-facing camera on an Android tablet, though video chat is really what it's made for as the stills aren't usually up to snuff. Gallery Pictures So Big, You Can Almost Taste the Mashed Potato Pizza The Gallery app isn't all that much improved, but it was pretty good before anyway. Now, with a wider, crisper screen in which to show off pics, it usually works just great. Market Bigger Screenshots and Better Layout for Market Apps We've covered the first big revision to the Android Market in the corresponding chapter, because the changes aren't limited to tablets. But when browsing the Market on a tablet, you will see a better layout, bigger images, and convenient in-tab YouTube videos to watch. Movie Studio Waiting for Apricot's Star Moment in Movie Studio Movie Studio, a new app for tablets in 3.0, uses a clever thumbs-on-the-side control scheme to make splicing together video clips far less arduous than using your finger as a pinpointer. Android's somewhat limited video compatibility, however, might hamper your efforts if you didn't shoot all the footage on the device itself. Music Android Home Screen The Music app looks great in 3.0, and does its jobs as a basic media player quite well. Flipping through album covers carousel-style is a major tablet-focused improvement from the very spartan list interface in the Music app previously available to this point. That's Android 3.0 in a nutshell, such as we've seen it. We sense that Android has only just begun to think big on tablets, and that phones will benefit from Google being forced outside its comfort zone. Files89
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