Android has more than ever need of apps for tablets

Android tablets are dead. The highlight in the coffin was the Google Pixel Slate, not the first Chrome OS tablet, but the most notable. With Chrome OS capable of running Android applications and now form factors similar to those of a tablet, there is practically no more reason to have an Android tablet, unless that you do not talk about inexpensive Android tablets of less known brands. This may be appropriate, considering that Android is notoriously bad for tablet form factors. Despite this, Google's mobile platform still needs tablet-compatible apps to survive the future of Chrome OS.

Make no mistake, Android apps run on large screens, whether it's a tablet or a "desktop". "Run", however, can sometimes involve simply displaying an enlarged version of the application or even forcing a portrait orientation, which can be disconcerting on a screen of 10 , 1 inch or more. Android tablet support is mediocre or inconsistent at best, nonexistent at worst.

Since the unfortunate publication of Honeycomb, Google provides developers with the API and tools to design their applications for multiple screen sizes and use cases. However, it was not a "build it and they will come" scenario. Very few application developers have made the effort to update their apps for a world of Android tablets. Maybe because they felt that this world would not come.

It was a self-fulfilling prophecy though. Without presenting many user-friendly apps for tablets, Android tablets felt weird, almost like a joke compared to iPads. From the beginning, Google was not particularly excited about tablets and even showed the Nexus and Pixel tablets. Despite some efforts from Samsung, Huawei, LG and, to a certain extent, Amazon, Android tablets have never really taken off, becoming a kind of no-man's land for apps.

Any water under the bridge now, right? With support for Chrome OS for Android apps and access to tablets or similar devices, Android still has a chance to be relevant on tablets, is not it? And, indeed, Android applications on Chrome OS have created a symbiotic relationship, Android providing Chrome OS with essential applications and Chrome OS providing Android with a productivity-oriented environment.

However, this does not allow developers of Android applications to fend for themselves. In fact, this new home only magnifies even more the shortcomings of Android. In Chrome OS, as in Samsung DeX, for example, Android applications are launched by default in their smartphone form. This means that they appear in a small floating window with a portrait orientation. Some applications can be resized and their user interface changes from the smartphone layout to the tablet. But what if they do not have a tablet layout similar to most Android apps in the Play Store? Then they are virtually stuck in this floating portrait mode.

It would be great if Chrome OS was stuck forever with a desktop user interface. With Chrome OS tablets becoming a thing, users are also expecting a tablet experience. Google seems to be moving in this direction with Chrome OS itself, but this could be a problem for Android apps. In other words, we will soon find the same problem with Android tablets, offering a mediocre experience for something other than a small screen.

The slate tablet market is not quite healthy, but despite this trend, Apple's iPads continue to rank first. Android has missed its opportunity, but it has a second chance with Chrome OS. It may not be Android tablets anymore, but Android remains Android, wherever it is.