We didna4‚¬a4„t see HP/Palma4‚¬a4„s webOS tablets at CES earlier this month as we&'d hoped to, but wea4‚¬a4„re still eager to see what the company has planned. Now Engadget has gotten its hands on some early renderings of the devices, as well as some enticing details &8212' including the fact that HP is readying 9-inch and 7-inch models, dubbed Topaz and Opal respectively.
Judging from the renders, it looks like the tablets feature no buttons and will be entirely gesture-based (something wea4‚¬a4„re hearing might be true of the iPad 2 as well). We also spot a front-facing camera for video conferencing (but no rear camera), and three speakers along the sides of the tableta4‚¬a4„s thin edges. Sources tell Engadget that the devices are running 1.2 gigahertz processors, but no other specifications are known at the moment.
HP is reportedly aiming to release WiFi, AT&'T 3G, and Verizon LTE versions of the Opal in September, with an AT&'T LTE 4G version coming in July 2012. Not surprisingly, the Opal is being positioned as an ereading-friendly device due to its more portable 7-inch size.
Judging from what we saw at CES, 2011 is going to be a year full of compelling tablets. HP will be squaring off with Motorolaa4‚¬a4„s Xoom, the iPad 2, and RIMa4‚¬a4„s BlackBerry PlayBook. Therea4‚¬a4„s certainly a lot of potential for HP to wow us with Palma4‚¬a4„s webOS software on tablets, but hopefully wea4‚¬a4„ll see the devices sooner than September. Otherwise, Palm may end up repeating its history with the Palm Pre by delivering a compelling product long after consumers actually want it.
Next Story: Apple posts stellar earnings, beating expectations by a huge margin Previous Story: On the GreenBeat: BrightSource raises $1.75 million, Germany to keep cutting solar subsidies
Print Email Twitter Facebook Google Buzz LinkedIn Digg StumbleUpon Reddit Delicious Google More&8230'
Companies: HP, Palm
Companies: HP, Palm
Devindra Hardawar is VentureBeat's lead mobile writer and East Coast correspondent. He studied philosophy at Amherst College, worked in IT support for several years, and has been writing about technology since 2004. He now lives in Brooklyn, New York. You can reach him at devindra@venturebeat.com (all story pitches should also be sent to tips@venturebeat.com), and on Twitter at @Devindra.
VentureBeat has new weekly email newsletters. Stay on top of the news, and don't miss a beat.
Discuss Add this link to... Bury
Comments