The Samsung Galaxy Tab reported pretty strong sales figures and the same is with other Android tablets gradually catching up with the iPad, but return rates are an entirely different thing. According to All Things D, ITG Investment Research tracked POS data from roughly 6,000 wireless stores in the U.S., and reports a 13 percent Galaxy Tab return rate in December of last year.  Moreover, at January 15 that figure reached 16 percent, compared to the iPad’s 2% return rate.

“As Hugo Barra, director of products for mobile at Google, said last fall: Froyo is not optimized for use on tablets. If you want Android market on that platform, the apps just wouldn’t run, [Froyo] is just not designed for that form factor.”

The Galaxy Tab return rates are not good news for Samsung, nor the current Android tablet market. CNET reports Samsung posted increased revenue and profit in its Q4 2010 earnings report released last week, but that doesn’t mean its tablet has a bright outlook ahead of it.

Froyo is not built for tablets, but Honeycomb 3.0 is. We was there to cover the unveiling of Honeycomb at CES, Las Vegas, where hype is still strong around the upcoming OS’s capabilities for tablet use. The OS’s virtual and holographic UI is specifically designed for larger screen devices. With that in mind, Motorola’s upcoming Honeycomb-running XOOM tablet may turn out to be more successful than Samsung’s Galaxy Tab. That prospect is escorted by a 1 GHz CPU, 720p 10″ screen and plenty more features to drool over.