VR-Zone

HP has finally unveiled the official pricing for its first two TouchPad tablet SKUs and we're looking at 16 and 32GB with Wi-Fi for now, although 3G models are set to follow suit. The question that remains unanswered is if HP's webOS will have enough pull to win over consumers and business users alike from Apple and the vast array of Android tablets already available in the market.

What's on offer is a 9.7-inch screen with 1024x768 resolution, a screen size and resolution that many an iPad user should be familiar with. On the inside HP hasn't skimped on the hardware though with a dual-core Qualcomm Snapdragon APQ8060 SoC clocked at 1.2GHz (3G models would have and equivalent MSM model) paired with a healthy 1GB of RAM.

Other features include 802.11a/b/g/n Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 2.1 + EDR (which is a bit surprising considering the Snapdragon SoC supports both Bluetooth 3.0 + HS and Bluetooth 4.0), a micro USB 2.0 port, a headphone socket, Beats Audio branded speakers and a front facing camera for video calls, but oddly enough not one around the back. Of course there are features like light sensors, an accelerometer, a gyroscope and a digital compass built in as well, but the non 3G versions of the TouchPad lacks a built in GPS.

The battery is rated at a healthy 6,300mAh which is about the same as Apple's iPad. At 740g the TouchPad isn't light; in fact it's one of the heaviest ARM tablets out there, albeit only just. HP's webOS main strength is multitasking, something it does better than most other hand held device operating systems, but this alone isn't going to make it a winner. The biggest problem for HP is going to be the lack of apps for the TouchPad at launch, although most standard apps come pre-installed.

At US$499.99 for the 16GB, HP wants 99 cents more than Apple charges for an iPad and the 32GB follows the same route with a price tag of US$599.99. At least it's also roughly the same you'd expect to have to pay for a Motorola Xoom, but you can pick up Asus' 32GB Eee Pad Transformer for the same price as HP's 16GB TouchPad. The proof will be in the pudding as they say and HP is really going to have a tough time convincing both consumers and business users that its webOS is the way forward.

Source: HP