Google Gives Away Tons of Goodies, Tries to Buys Love

Google gave away tablets and smartphones at its I/O conference to help drive developer interest in Android.

Every one of the 5,000 developers attending the yearly event received a Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 tablet a month before the devices go on sale, an exciting gift even by the standards of the annual conference famous for the quality swag disbursed by the search giant.

But that wasn't all: attendees of a game developer panel at the conference also received the Xperia Play, Sony's "PlayStation phone" with a slide-out game controller. One can only imagine the squeals of delight.

A bit less exciting but more geek-tastic was the Android Open Accessory Development Kit that some attendees received. Based on the Arduino chipset, a kind of all-purpose tech tinkerer's prototyping tool, the kit makes it easier to create Android accessories.

Google's Christmas-in-May act buys more than good vibes: it's a shrewd way to get developers interested in making apps and gadgets for the latest and greatest Android devices.

While Android phones have stormed the market -- it's now the number one smartphone platform in the U.S. -- Android tablets have been slower to catch on. Getting developers rolling on the Honeycomb-powered Samsung tablet could help nudge adoption.

Sony may be footing the bill for the Xperia Play giveaway to ensure that game makers include support for its special controls. Without wider developer support, only Sony titles will be compatible, leaving buyers wondering why they sacrificed a slide-out keyboard for a couple of directional controllers and buttons.