How serious is Google going to be about Android tablets? The firm is making overtures that it cares about the platform again. To boot to getting several predominant OEMs to start building hardware, Google is building Android 12Lamid-cycle update of Android dedicated to tablet and foldable functionality. The firm’s most modern movement (first spotted by 9to5Google) is a brand new job itemizing for a “Senior Engineering Supervisor, Android Tablet App Experience.” Gather a load of this job description:

We reflect that the future of computing is shifting in direction of more noteworthy and excellent tablets. We’re working to reveal the next chapter of computing and input by launching seamless beef up across our platforms and hero experiences that unencumber new and better programs of being productive and creative.

That is an announcement the firm would possibly maybe comprise made in 2011 when the iPad launched, on the opposite hand it appears, the firm is upright now getting the message. How devoted Google becomes to tablet “experiences” will arrangement or smash the firm’s 2d push into tablets. Appropriate now Android 12L appears very conservative on that entrance, even though Google has began some tablet-divulge apps with issues bask in the “Leisure Region” dwelling conceal panel.

One of the tasks of the job description is “arrangement roadmaps and trot the execution of our ink first hero apps formula.” Presumably “ink first” arrangement Google is pushing for more address pen input. Pen input has long been championed by Samsung, nonetheless Android and the Android Google apps comprise by no arrangement in point of fact made many affordances for styluses. (Chrome OS Pixel gadgets comprise steadily had styluses, nonetheless not Android tablets.)

One other tablet trend that used to be upright not too long previously observed comes from Computerworld’s JR Raphael, who identified that Android co-founder Rich Miner up previously his Linkedin to dispute their personal praises “CTO Android Tablets.” So there’s an “Android Tablet” division now? Miner it appears began on this situation in March, which also intended re-joining the Android team after leaving in 2010.

If Google would bask in of us to take Android tablets seriously, this will require several years of sustained, high-quality trend from Google. At this level, Android tablets mainly catch introduced up because the butt of jokes. Google will deserve to work very not easy to dispute their personal praises it’s hooked in to tablets and would possibly maybe not abandon them again when Android 12L will not be an in a single day success. Does Google silent comprise the abdominal—and management—to arrangement a longterm commitment to a challenge, even though the first few public releases usually are not a hit?

We observed this pattern with Google‘s first swing at Android tablets, where Android 3.0 Honeycomb used to be a astronomical liberate, and when that used to be not straight away a hit, Android 4.0 used to be a smaller tablet liberate. A liberate or two later, the tablet improvements stopped and the platform used to be effectively abandoned. We also observed this with smartwatches: Android Set up on used to be not an in a single day success after its first commence, and resources were rapidly pulled from the challenge, main to stagnation for years. Appropriate bask in tablets, currently, Google has determined that leaving on the abet of a core interesting tool platform wasn’t such a succesful thought and is now making an strive to resurrect Android smartwatches.

For every and every of these initiatives, or not it is not sure if Google is in it for the long haul or if that is upright one more brief burst of curiosity. Within the interim, Apple is in point of fact in tablets (and smartwatches) for the long haul, and this present day’s iPads and iPadOS are the outcomes of 12 years of continuous iteration and a principal dedication of resources. If Google needs to hang up, it has a protracted boulevard earlier than it.