Why are Android tablet apps so bad?

If you're thinking of buying a tablet, Apple's iPad is often the only good option available. For a long time, Android tablets were neglected and didn't get much attention, leading to developers not optimizing their apps for larger screens.

However, it looks like things are about to change. Android tablets are finally getting the attention they've always lacked, and this is changing things for good.

Why are Android tablet apps poorly optimized?

If you go back a decade or so, you'll notice that Android tablets then faced the same problem they do today: poor optimization of third-party apps . Of course, poor hardware is also to blame, but since your smart device is ultimately the gateway to your favorite apps, software plays a much bigger role.

However, iPads in the 2010s had powerful hardware and third-party apps that actually worked as expected. They receive maximum attention from developers, making them much superior.

But why? Why do apps on iPad work well while the same apps barely work on Android tablets? This has to do with the economics of application development.

Why are Android tablet apps so bad? Picture 1

As an app developer, you work with limited time and resources, so you have an incentive to optimize your app for standardized devices that will sell well. This is the thinking that explains why app developers prefer iPhone over Android.

After all, why would you waste time and money optimizing a device if no one is going to buy it? That's been the case with Android tablets for a long time: There aren't enough good options, they receive poor OS support, and even native apps are often unoptimized. All of this has contributed to Android tablets getting a bad rap.

Simply put, optimizing for Android tablets has so far been a terrible business decision for developers. By comparison, iPads haven't changed much from year to year and are selling well, making it not only easy but commercially viable for developers to optimize them.

Why are Android tablet apps suddenly getting better?

But everything is changing. Over the last few years, we've seen the tech industry slowly trend towards larger form factors, and that's largely thanks to the rise of foldable phones.

Since the release of Android 12L, designed specifically for large screens, it seems that users are also interested in tablets again.

One of the ways Google facilitates this change is by ranking tablet-optimized apps higher on the Play Store. This is explained on the Android Developer Blog:

Apps and games that follow our large screen app quality guidelines will now rank higher in search and the Apps and Games homepage.

This means that app developers who do not optimize for large screens now risk making their apps less discoverable, and those who do will have a competitive advantage.

Why are Android tablet apps so bad? Picture 2

The Android developer site also provides a variety of large-screen app quality guidelines to ensure that optimizing for Android tablets and foldable devices isn't too difficult for users. with developers.

And of course, don't forget that Google is now selling its own tablets and folding phones - the Pixel Tablet and Pixel Fold - which means Google has even more incentive to push the display story greater for developers thanks to the success of their own products.

Additionally, the faster the adoption of large-screen Android devices, the more people join or become more invested in the Android ecosystem, and the better it is for Google since they control the operating system.

Google is trying to revive Android tablets

It's too early to say whether Android tablets will ultimately be worth buying, but progress is certainly visible. If Google can get developers on board to optimize their apps for Android tablets, change adoption will be accelerated. And with large-screen Android devices becoming more popular, this could happen sooner than we expect.

Isabella Humphrey

Update 11 October 2023