Google plans to launch Android 3.0, or "Honeycomb," at an event at its headquarters on Feb. 2, the company said.

Google plans to launch Android 3.0, or "Honeycomb," at an event at its headquarters on Feb. 2, the company said.

Google sent out invitations to journalists on Friday, along with the new logo for the operating system - an Android-like honeybee. The new operating system is expected in several tablets; it isn't known whether Google will eventually bring the OS to smartphones.

Google released its on Wednesday, a good indication that the Honeycomb software was en route. Highlights of the SDK include: a UI framework for creating great apps for larger screen devices; high-performance 2D and 3D graphics; support for multicore processor architectures; rich multimedia; new types of connectivity; and enhancements for enterprise.

Honeycomb is expected to usher in a new generation of Android tablets, although how successful they will be in the face of the iPad is anybody's guess. According to a , price will be the distinguishing feature of Android tablets, not the new Honeycomb OS. You can also vote in an informal poll.

Google's Mike Cleron on an unnamed tablet at this year's CES, where a number of tablets either used or pledged to use Honeycomb, including the , the , and .

Honeycomb was originally expected to require a powerful processor, but so far for processor requirements.