Google Earth for Android fragments into Phone and Tablet optimized versions

Google Earth for Android has been available for just over a year, giving mobile users an on-the-go access to the 3D mapping software previously only available for full desktop operating systems.

With an update to Google Earth for Android that rolled out on Thursday, Google unveiled a version of the software optimized for Android tablets running Honeycomb (Android 3.0) in addition to the existant version for smartphones running 2.1 and up.

"Tablet users...can now enjoy a new Google Earth experience optimized for the large screen. With a new action bar, you can get easy access to search, reset-to-north, my location, and layers. Also, you can now explore the same photo-realistic 3D buildings that have previously only been accessible with the desktop version of Google Earth," the software's release notes said on Thursday.

The arrival of new Google branded Apps for Honeycomb is very promising, since the new tablet-centric Android branch has been ciriticized for launching with too few optimized apps, and Google's services are truly the glue that held the Android experience together when it was first getting started more than two years ago.