TouchPad: HP launches rival to iPad

In a major boost to its quest for an alternative to Apple’s iPad and also finding its own niche amongst a barrage of tablet PCs, touted as the future of personal computers, HP has unveiled its much awaited tablet PC, the TouchPad.

This new kid of the slate block has a breakthrough webOS user interface, and is said to be the first webOS slate. According to the company’s official website, TouchPad has a vibrant 9.7-inch diagonal flush capacitive multitouch display, virtual keyboard, instant-on access, support for Adobe® Flash® Player 10.1 beta in the browser and access to thousands of webOS applications. The PC giant claims that the TouchPad works the way you do and is designed not just for fun but for mobile productivity. ‘It’s ideal for anyone who wants the benefits of the amazing webOS platform on a much bigger scale.’

The breakthrough interface of TouchPad features a spacious workspace and activity cards that provide an easy way to visualize and organize what you’re working on. Easily move back and forth between cards and group related cards in stacks—or have them stacked automatically. What's more the TouchPad can be charged wirelessly by just placing the gadget on the charging console.

Further, TouchPad’s virtual full QWERTY keyboard includes a number row, which reduces keyboard switching, making typing easy and fast. It powers on instantly and brings you back to exactly where you left off, whether you were in the middle of composing an email, playing a game or browsing a web page.  

The TouchPad, with its 1.3-megapixel front-facing webcam, also offers video calling capability. It is also compatible with HP’s printing solutions, so you can wirelessly print documents, photos and emails to compatible wireless and networked HP printers.

Hewlett-Packard has come up with three sizes of this tablet/phone in small, medium and large, ie tablet size, which can be a threat to Apple's iPad.

So Guys, Happy exploring!



See the video below:

Technical Specifications

Color: Black

Operating system: HP webOS

Display: 9.7-inch XGA capacitive, multitouch screen with a vibrant 18-bit color, 1024x768 resolution display

Keyboard: Virtual keyboard

Email: Microsoft^® Exchange email with Microsoft Direct Push Technology/ POP3/IMAP (Yahoo!^® Mail, Gmail^™, AOL, Hotmail^®, etc.)

Messaging: Integrated IM and SMS

GPS: A-GPS (3G models only)

Digital camera: Front-facing 1.3-megapixel webcam for live video calling⁴

Sensors: Light sensor, accelerometer, compass (magnetometer), and gyroscope

Media formats supported: Audio formats: DRM-free MP3, AAC, AAC+, eAAC+, AMR, QCELP, WAV
Video formats: MPEG-4, H.263, H.264

Wireless connectivity: Wi-Fi 802.11b/g/n with WPA, WPA2, WEP, 802.1X authentication; Bluetooth^® wireless technology 2.1 + EDR with A2DP stereo Bluetooth support

Memory: Choose either 16GB or 32GB internal storage

Battery: Rechargeable 6300 mAh (typical) battery

Connector: Charger/microUSB connector with USB 2.0 Hi-Speed

Headphone jack: 3.5mm stereo headset/headphone/microphone jack

Speakers: Internal stereo speakers and Beats Audio^™

HP Touchstone for TouchPad: Compatible

Processor: Qualcomm Snapdragon dual-CPU APQ8060 1.2GHz

Dimensions:

Width: 240mm (9.45 inches)
Height: 190mm (7.48 inches)
Thickness: 13.7mm (0.54 inches)

Weight: Approximately 740 grams (1.6 pounds)

Source: http://www.palm.com,   www.mobilmania.cz 

So, Apple better watch out for this new competition in TouchPad from HP.

Amy, Chief Editor.