HP's new Slate 7 tablet

HP just announced a new tablet. Currently, they are the #1 computer manufacturer in America - but their last attempt at a tablet crashed and burned. There were very few survivors.

Not everybody knows about the TouchPad, but it was HP's first attempt at a tablet. It ran Web OS - an evolution of the software that ran the old Palm phones. They couldn't sell any until they reduced the price from $600 to $99. Yes, it was a similar situation to the BlackBerry Playbook. Funny how companies think they can release their first tablet and price it the same as the iPad. Hahaha.

Earlier when I herd that HP will be releasing the Slate 7, I was shocked. After reading about it a bit, it started to make some more sense. This time around, they are trying to tackle the tablet market from the opposite end - the Slate 7 is a budget 7" tablet. My main concern is that this is a new segment of the market, pioneered last year by Asus, Amazon, and Barnes and Noble, and it's crazy hot right now. Not only those 3 companies, but now Acer, Apple, and another dozen or so manufacturers have joined in again. The Slate 7 is running Android this time around, which is a good change from Web OS the TouchPad ran. It's got a dual core A9 processor, a relatively low-res screen (1024X600), 2 cameras and not much else. I'm worried for HP - they seem almost desperate to get a foot in the mobile door, because laptop and desktop sales are plummeting.

What do I think of this? I think HP needs to crack into the mobile market if it wants to remain relevant in the consumer market, but they aren't going to get far just with the Slate 7. The 7" market is booming, but if consumers know about the Nexus 7, this HP tablet will be a tough sell. The Nexus 7 costs only $30 more than the Slate 7, but comes with 16GB instead of 8GB, has a higher res screen, a quad core processor, and the latest software straight from Google.

HP needs to wow consumers before they can get widespread adoption, and while the Slate 7 doesn't look like it will quite do the trick, it's a good start getting one of their products out there. HP looks like it's beginning to change it's brand into a more mobile based company, which is very important to today's consumers. They need the Slate 7 to succeed if they want to get any recognition in the harsh mobile sector.