Posts Tagged ‘HP’

The HP Slate isn’t dead…it’s just getting a bit more professional.  According to Todd Bradley, VP of HP’s Personal Systems Group, the HP Slate will be “more customer-specific than broadly deployed,” and the device will be released “for the enterprise” in the fall.

While this isn’t entirely surprising – so far Microsoft Windows tablets have mostly found success in niche enterprise markets – we are a bit disappointed to hear that the Slate and iPad won’t be competing head to head.

HP isn’t planning to give up the tablet market, however.  Former Palm CEO Jon Rubenstein in a separate interview confirmed that HP plans on bringing a wide variety of webOS devices to the market, including smartphones, slates and netbooks.

All things considered, this strategy makes a lot of sense.  A Windows 7 tablet is likely to be too complex, power hungry, and robust for casual users.  webOS devices are much more accessible to the consumer, and HP’s decision to focus webOS on this market will likely be much more successful than forcing a Windows 7 tablet into consumer channels.

HP hasn’t made anything official yet, however, although with Fall quickly approaching we wouldn’t be surprised if HP released information about the HP Slate soon.

Sources:  Engadget  Afterdawn

The HP Slate rumor mill has been buzzing ever since Steve Ballmer revealed the device at this year’s CES.  However, in late April Tech Crunch reported that HP planned to kill the Windows 7 tablet project.  Interestingly, this news came at about the same time that HP announced plans to acquire Palm – the maker of Pre and Pixi phones, and the developer of the webOS mobile device operating system.

According to The Examiner, the timing of the Slate’s demise and Palm’s acquisition may not have been a coincidence.  The paper, citing ‘an insider at HP’, reported yesterday that HP is planning to release a webOS-powered tablet codenamed the ‘HP Hurricane.’

This isn’t a bad move for HP, especially considering that Windows-powered tablets have not been able to build much momentum over the years.  Early reviews of the Slate were underwhelming, and the device seemed handicapped by Windows 7 and an underpowered Intel Atom processor.

webOS provides HP with an operating system that will work in mobile, power conscious environments.  Unlike Windows 7, webOS is snappy even on slower processors like the 600MHz TI OMAP3430 processor that powers the Pre.  webOS is also better suited for mouse and keyboard-less environments, while Windows 7 is less than stellar on touchscreen devices.

Still, HP hasn’t officially killed of the Slate, so we’ll have to wait and see.  The Examiner reports that we may see the Hurricane in the 3rd quarter of this year – so our questions will likely be answered in less than four months.

Image from Slash Gear

We first spotted HP’s Pink Mini 210 on the FCC back in April.  Today, HP formally unveiled the Preppy Pink Mini 210, above left, along with a more subtle Crystal White Mini 210.

We like the work HP is doing to make its netbooks less bland.  However, the Preppy Pink design does seem to be targeted at the rather narrow demographic of plaid loving women.

Source:  Engadget

This netbook from HP made an appearance on the FCC today thanks to a filing by Ralink.  Known as the H110UI1, the device sports a nice Batmobile-ish matte black finish, and appears to be part of HP’s Mini lineup.

We don’t know much more about the device, other than it sports an 802.11 b/g/n WiFi card from Ralink.  HP has made a bunch of announcements today, so we’ll keep you posted as we learn more.

We first spotted the HP Mini 210, aka HSTNN-Q46C, on the FCC back in December 2009.  At that time, all we had were label pics of the device.  Today, HP passed the same netbook through the FCC, this time with an upgraded Ralink WLAN module, a new chiclet keyboard, and an interesting pinkish, plaid color scheme.

HP has made an effort to make its Mini Series netbooks more unique, offering imprints from Tord Boontje and Vivienne Tam.  We don’t see any designer-branding on this Mini 210, but the pink plaid color scheme is definitely targeted towards a fashion conscious, female crowd.

Additionally, pics of this Mini 210 show what appears to be a new chiclet keypad that features shallow, rounded keys.  This isn’t a big change from the other Mini 210 models – it’s almost like HP just sanded down the keys.

This version of the Mini 210 also has a Gobi2000, for worldwide 3G connectivity, while its Ralink WiFi card supports 802.11 a/b/g/n WiFi.

Personally, I wouldn’t be caught dead with this thing, but it is nice to see that HP is customizing its Mini line to appeal to specific market segments.  No word on pricing or availability.

Not one of the 300,000 plus who already got their hands on an iPad?  Then maybe the graphic above will interest you.  Engadget just posted this internal HP document that compares the upcoming HP Slate tablet to the iPad, and in the process discloses a bunch of juicy Slate specs.

According to the document, the Slate will rock a 1.6 GHz Intel Atom Z530 processor, 32 to 64 GB of flash storage, 1 GB of RAM, Intel GMA graphics capable of 1080p playback, front and rear facing cameras, WiFi, Bluetooth, optional 3G, SD card reader, USB port and dock connector that provides HDMI out.  The device’s WSVGA capacitive touch screen will measure 8.9” with a 1024 x 600 resolution, and feature pen/digitizer support.  And as expected the Slate will run Windows 7, with what HP calls a touch-optimized UI.

The Slate will measure 9.21” x 5.7” x 0.57” and weigh 1.49 pounds.  The device will run for up to 5 hours with its non-replaceable 2 cell battery.

Pricing for the Slate will range from $549 to $599.  According to Engadget the 32 GB Slate will cost $549, while the 64 GB version will cost $599.  No word on how much 3G will cost, however.

So, how do the two devices stack up?  HP conveniently marks the advantages of the Slate in green, while the advantages of the iPad are in red.  Here are our thoughts:

HP Slate Wins:

• 1080p playback – the iPad maxes out at 720p
• Front and rear facing cameras – the iPad has none
• SD card reader with support for up to 128 GB cards – the iPad has none
• USB port – the iPad has none
• HDMI out (requires a dock) – So far only a VGA connector is available for the iPad

Apple iPad Wins:

• Battery life – the iPad offers up to 10 hours of battery life compared to 5 hours for the Slate
• 9.7” screen with 1024 x 768 resolution is larger, and higher res than the Slate
• 802.11 a/b/g/n WiFi – the Slate only offers b/g
• Pricing – the 16 GB iPad is $499, while the cheapest Slate will run you $549

Question marks:

• Processor:  The HP Slate uses an 1.6 GHz Intel Atom Z530, compared to the iPad’s 1 GHz Apple A4 processor.  However, a faster processor on the Slate doesn’t necessarily mean a faster device, especially since the Slate runs Windows 7.  Additionally, Apple has worked to optimize the A4 for the iPad, so we’ll need a side-by-side comparison to declare a winner here.
• Software:  Windows 7 and the iPhone OS are both great operating systems, albeit for different usage scenarios.  The iPhone OS seems a bit limited on the iPad, while Windows 7 is a lot of OS for the Slate.  Plus, we have no idea how well HP’s touch-optimized UI will work.  The iPhone OS opens the door to a few hundred thousand apps, but there are millions of apps for Windows.  The winner here will probably vary depending on how you use the devices.

So what device comes out on top?  It’s impossible to tell at this point, of course.  However, the iPad’s 10+ hour battery life is a huge differentiator for the device and we love the iPad’s 9.7” screen.

But, the versatility of Windows 7 is intriguing on the Slate – we like the idea of having Microsoft Office and Flash available.  Still, the iPhone OS is always on, or at least boots up quickly – a key advantage over Windows.  And we do love our iPhone apps.

We’ll keep you updated as we learn more, but if this graphic is any indication HP certainly has a compelling device on their hands.  And, the recent surge in marketing materials for the Slate suggests the device is nearing its launch date.

The Compaq Airlife 100 first turned up on the FCC back in January, and since then we’ve learned that this smartbook will sport Android, a Qualcomm Snapdragon CPU, SSD, WiFi and 3G.

Today, the Airlife 100 made another appearance on the FCC, this time for its 3G capabilities.  According to FCC test reports, the device will support GSM 850 and 1900 bands, as well as WCDMA bands II and V.

Support for WCDMA bands II and V indicates that the device may be coming to AT&T in the United States.  This seems consistent with HP’s current distribution efforts in Europe, where the company sells the Airlife 100 through Telefonica.

The HP Slate made its first appearance at CES this year, and it looks like today we finally have a release timeframe and price for the device.  According to Clipset, a Spanish blog that appears to have access to HP and the Slate, the device will be released in June of this year for €400, or about $546.  Clipset also reports that HP has confirmed that the Slate will rock an Intel Atom and feature Windows 7, a webcam, Adobe Flash support and a memory card reader.

It’s peculiar that HP would decide to release this information through a relatively unknown Spanish blog.  However, Clipset does appear to have the best access to the Slate that we’ve seen so far.

The Slate’s release will take place shortly after the release of Apple’s iPad.  Anyone cancelling their pre-orders?

Hopefully HP will release a bit more information on the Slate at the launch date for the device nears.  The fingerprint-smudged pictures from Clipset don’t do the device justice.

Information about HP’s HSTNN-W75C has been trickling in ever since the device first appeared on the FCC back in December.  We spotted a lone pic of the device last week, and today we got a read on the device’s battery.

According to FCC filings from HP today, the HSTNN-W75C uses an HP battery with the model number HSTNN-OB45.  This is the same battery used in the HP Compaq 2710P ultralight tablet PC that was released back in 2007.

We’re not sure that’s good news, since the 2710P is a pretty dated device.  I can’t imagine that the form factor of the HSTNN-W75C is much different than the 2710P if the two devices are using the same battery.  Hopefully, the HSTNN-W75C will be a bit more innovative than the HP Compaq 2710P platform in other respects.

We first spotted the HP HSTNN-W75C tablet on the FCC back in December 2009.  Today, the first picture of the device surfaced on the FCC, thanks to a filing by Qualcomm.

Unfortunately, the pic of the HSTNN-W75C (above) doesn’t reveal much.  It is interesting to note, however, that the device appears to have a retractable antenna, which is likely used by the HSTNN-W75C’s Gobi2000 WLAN card.

We don’t know much more at this point, but we’ll keep you updated as we learn more.