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All posts tagged "webos"


Monday, December 19, 2011

Can Open Source Save webOS?

Posted by Hooch Tan in "Laptop Thoughts News" @ 03:00 PM

http://gdgt.com/discuss/four-reason...to-save-it-hru/

"HP finally revealed the fate of webOS last week, announcing plans to open source the orphaned mobile OS rather than sell it to someone else or simply abandon it. As a fan of the open source model I was pleased to hear this -- it would have been a shame to let webOS die -- but I'm also realistic that opening it up isn't going to suddenly resurrect the OS and put it right back into contention alongside iOS, Android, and Windows Phone."

HP has made some waves with its announcement that it intends on open sourcing webOS. Will is save the beleaguered operating system from death? Possibly. Will it bring it to the forefront? Unlikely. Without strong and major backing, the OS is likely to stay small, and see interest mostly from niche groups. Yes, there are thousands of webOS users out there thanks to the firesale that HP had with its TouchPads, but I have doubts that most consumers really know what they got into, and are just as likely to pick up an Android or iOS device next. That is not a knock against webOS, but that with any product, it needs some backing and marketing in order to get into the minds of consumers, and with HP pushing it, I do not see that happening.


Sunday, June 12, 2011

HP TouchPad Video Walkthrough

Posted by Michael Knutson in "Other Slates & Tablets" @ 10:30 PM

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X_bE...be_gdata_player

Pretty impressive! Multitasking works like one would expect as a computer user: swiping up and down to minimize and maximize open applications. Swiping left and right through "cards" or open tasks moves you between open apps. Seems much better than task switching in iOS or Android. The onscreen keyboard is resizeable (S M L), and has numeric keys as well as easy access to special characters. HP's Synergy technology integrates application-level data at OS level, for example, Facebook photos and comments can be accessed through the WebOS Photos App. Native printing for HP printers is baked-in. Apps will be available, Kindle reader was mentioned, so there is a development community. I do like the proximity charging for the device via a "touch stone" device, but this may be an extra cost option. Looks like a good start - this may be a device that resonates well with business users, as Citrix and other enterprise-level tools are available.


Wednesday, April 20, 2011

Syncing is Just the Beginning

Posted by Hooch Tan in "Laptop Thoughts News" @ 01:00 PM

http://thisismynext.com/2011/04/18/...-win-in-mobile/

"On Sunday, PreCentral published an interesting rumor piece based on a leaked slide from HP. According to the story, the company has plans to include a “music syncing solution” with the forthcoming TouchPad tablet that will allow users to remotely store and sync music in the cloud — something like Amazon’s new Cloud Drive service, but with a webOS front-end. While this may sound like a great solution to combat Apple’s iTunes dominance, I think it’s the wrong move for HP and its mobile strategy (if it is, indeed, true)."

The idea of syncing, cloud services and Synergy, as it is being called, I do not think is going far enough. One of the benefits of cloud computing is that you do not have to cart around a massive amount of storage. Where ever you have Internet access, you have everything at your fingertips. The idea of merging the various providers into one also has benefits (assuming they are subscription and not ad based). But looking for an all-in-one solution on the mobile platform is not enough.

The other side of the equation is that people may have multiple devices, or even none. While we are starting to see integration on the provider side, we need aggregation on the consumer side. What you use on the iPhone is undoubtedly different than what you use on a Windows machine. Different services are available in different ways, or different devices. I would like my iPhone, Laptop, Android tablet and Chumby all to have access to the same data. I want to be able to go to a friend's house, boot up their networked TV and start streaming a new playlist I just created. I want it where I am the common link, not one of my devices.

Tags: software, hp, webos

Friday, April 15, 2011

HP TouchPad WebOS 3.0 Sneak Peek (Emulator)

Posted by Michael Knutson in "Other Slates & Tablets" @ 10:00 PM

http://www.businessinsider.com/hp-t...eenshots-2011-4

"Images from a WebOS 3.0 emulator just leaked, and we've got all the screenshots demonstrating the best and most essential new features."

A pretty decent collection of pics of the HP TouchPad WebOS, albeit from an emulator. As the author opines, to be successful, the TouchPad will need to "borrow and integrate" features from the most successful tablets. One of the cool features is that the on-screen keyboard can be resized (smaller) to show more content in the Memos app. Funny how the native Mail app looks very similar to the iPad's Mail app. And, the Clock app resembles the clock from HTC's Sense UI. There was also a link to a video walk-through of WebOS 3.0, but it was removed by YouTube. Oops! Overall a quite pleasing UI, but I do wonder if it's too little, too late, from HP. Can the market support another tablet and OS? Will this tablet go the way of other Palm/HP products like the Pre and Pixi?


Thursday, February 10, 2011

Best Tablet User Experience (UX)? HP TouchPad

Posted by Michael Knutson in "Laptop Thoughts Talk" @ 09:00 PM

http://www.gottabemobile.com/2011/0...et-ux-ive-seen/

"If you asked me last week which tablet user experience was the best, I wouldn't have had a solid answer for you. They all have good points and bad. Whether one is "best" depends greatly on the user. Well, I'm chucking some of that out the window because I have seen the light and it is the HP TouchPad."

Interesting that many tech writers suddenly seem to have a new top challenger to the iPad's dominance: HP's new TouchPad. The author opines that HP's User Experience (UX) is best: the card metaphor (anyone remember Apple's hypercard?); interoperability between the tablet and its siblings in the phone world; portrait or landscape doesn't matter; WebOS, lean and mean, and not like a desktop OS. That being said, some of its best features require a companion WebOS phone, and it lacks the ecosystem that iOS and Android tablets have (or will have). The conclusion is that this will be a tablet for average users, and not for power users. And it has that undeniable Wow factor. But, again we see a lack of a support ecosystem - show me the apps!


Monday, July 19, 2010

HP Files for "PalmPad" Trademark

Posted by Jason Dunn in "Laptop Thoughts News" @ 12:34 PM

http://www.precentral.net/hp-files-...lmpad-trademark

There's not much to say here, beyond the headline: PreCentral is reporting that HP has filed for the trademark on the word PalmPad. Seems like a logical name for a WebOS-based slate device, but I can't help but think that with all the flack that Apple caught for using the term "Pad" in "iPad", HP might picked a better name for it. I suppose they want to leverage the Palm brand name, but "WebSlate" might have been a better combination of Palm's WebOS and the now-terminated HP Slate. I think "slate" is a cooler term than "pad". Where do you weigh in on this?


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