Google’s new Android Honeycomb OS has a lot to offer, but it also has a long way to go before it can deliver the full tablet experience.

Honeycomb is a whole different beast from the Android we’ve come to know. While previous versions of Google’s mobile operating system were built for smartphones, Honeycomb — also known as Android 3.0 — is the first to be designed specifically for tablet-size devices. And seeing it in action, it certainly shows.

Motorola’s recently launched Xoom is the first in a series of tablets that’ll run the Honeycomb OS. The Xoom has made plenty of headlines for its high-end specs: The tablet boasts a dual-core 1-GHz processor with 1GB of RAM. It has 32GB of internal storage, plus the option for additional storage via an integrated MicroSD slot. And all of that is housed beneath a beautiful (if slightly glare-prone) 10.1-in. display.

Honeycomb has the chops to compete head-to-head with Apple’s iOS. Here are six notable ways in which Google’s interface team has improved Android.

Android has always frustrated me. I’ve tracked Google’s mobile operating system ever since its debut on the T-Mobile G1, and time and again I’ve seen new versions fall short of overhauling the interface into a clean, user-friendly experience that can compete with–and push–Apple’s iOS.

Until now: With Android 3.0 (aka Honeycomb), Google has stepped up to the plate and hit one out of the park.

In using Honeycomb on the Motorola Xoom tablet, I found myself routinely enjoying, not cursing, the experience. That’s quite the contrast to how I react to my Samsung Galaxy S phone running Android 2.1–using that feels downright painful in comparison with using my Apple iPhone 4.

Motorola’s Xoom tablet is the first true challenger to Apple’s iPad, in that it runs an operating system designed for tablets — Android 3.0, or Honeycomb — and is comparably-sized with a 10.1-inch display. And after months of hype, it’s finally available at Verizon Wireless stores and ready to be picked over by the tech press.

Here’s what reviewers are saying about the Motorola Xoom:

Look and feel

The Xoom has a 10.1-inch, 1280-by-800 resolution display. Compared to an iPad, it’s taller and narrower thanks to the widescreen format and smaller bezel, but it weighs about the same. The weight is manageable for periods of two-handed operation, but intolerable for extended one-handed operation.

They’re looking forward to the upcoming ‘Honeycomb’ upgrade due in Q1 2011

Android device makers around the world are anticipating great things from the next version of Google’s mobile software, and they need the boost. Apple has a strong head start with sales of its popular iPad, while the App Store and iTunes give it apps and content, to boot.

But after a year of prodding Google, device makers think they’ve finally won with the upcoming “Honeycomb” upgrade to Android, which is expected by the end of the first quarter and is supposed to be the first version of the software designed for tablets instead of smartphones.

Earlier this year, for example, Samsung Electronics, had to fight to have the Android Market app, which connects users to the software’s online treasure trove of over 150,000 apps, on its Galaxy Tab, according to one executive who asked not to be named due to his company’s close relationship with Google.