HP Announces TouchPad 4G Deal

Hewlett-Packard announced it would release a 4G TouchPad tablet with upgraded hardware that will be available on AT&T’s wireless network.

The tablet will have a 1.5GHz processor, which is a change from the dual-core 1.2GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon processor available with older Wi-Fi-only TouchPad models that went on sale just two weeks ago.

Last August Qualcomm said that by the start of this year it would ship the dual-core Snapdragon QSD8672 chip that could run at clock speeds of up to 1.5GHz.

The TouchPad will have 32GB of internal storage, GPS and built-in AT&T wireless mobile broadband capabilities, HP said in a statement. Specific pricing and availability will be announced at a later date.

Wireless connectivity will be available through AT&T’s DataConnect mobile data plans for tablets or Wi-Fi hotspots around the country, HP said.

TouchPad users have expressed concerns about the device’s performance, especially the long load times for some applications. HP attributes the performance issue to software problems and said it will deliver an over-the-air software update that should resolve some performance problems.

Some buyers also were concerned about the TouchPad’s weight of about 1.6 pounds (740 grams), which is heavier than Apple’s iPad at 1.32 pounds. The TouchPad includes a 9.7-inch screen and comes with WebOS 3.0, which is also used in smartphones.

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HP To Debut 7-Inch Tablet In August

The 9.7-in. TouchPad debuting on July 1 from Hewlett-Packard (HP) will be quickly followed by a 7-in. tablet from HP in August, according to an anonymous source.

Taiwan Economic News on Friday cited an unnamed subcontractor for Inventec Corp., a PC manufacturing company in Taiwan, for information about the smaller tablet. The story said Inventec has “received big-ticket orders for tablet PCs from HP,” for both the 9.7-in. TouchPad and a 7-in. model launching in August.

The announced TouchPad runs WebOS, but no other details were available on the 7-in. model.

Inventec and HP have so far not commented on this story.

HP has not announced a 7-in. tablet, although that form factor is becoming fairly common alongside tablets with screens close to 10 inches in size.

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Is Motorola Building Its Own Mobile OS?

Motorola Mobility has snagged a number of experienced mobile and Web engineers from Apple and Adobe and is developing a Web-based mobile operating system as a potential alternative to Google’s Android software, according to a source familiar with the matter.

Asked to comment, Motorola did not refute the existence of the project but continues to affirm its interest in Android. “Motorola Mobility is committed to Android as an operating system,” a company spokesperson stated.

Jonathan Goldberg, an analyst with Deutsche Bank in San Francisco, said that he too had heard Motorola was at work on its own operating system. “I know they’re working on it,”  “I think the company recognizes that they need to differentiate and they need options, just in case. Nobody wants to rely on a single supplier.”

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Android Takes Top Spot

Android smartphones bested iPhone and BlackBerry devices for the first time in the U.S. in the latest Nielsen Co. survey conducted right before Verizon Wireless began selling Apple’s iPhone.

Android devices made by several phone makers were used by 29% of the U.S. market in the November through January reporting period. That compares to 27% each for both Apple iPhones and BlackBerry devices from Research in Motion, Nielsen said.

In Nielsen’s most recent report from December, the three top smartphone operating systems were in a statistical dead heat, a Nielsen spokeswoman said Friday.

Microsoft’s Windows Mobile and Windows Phone 7 smartphones garnered 10% of the U.S. market from November through January, while the WebOS from Hewlett-Packard gained 4% and Symbian from Nokia earned 2%.  Read More…

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