HP says it's in the smartphone market, after all
By Nilay Patel 
posted June 3rd 2010 5:57PM
posted June 3rd 2010 5:57PM
HP CEO Mark Hurd certainly caused a few sad faces yesterday when he told investors and analysts that HP "didn't buy Palm to be in the smartphone business," and now the company is trying to walk that back a little -- rest easy, folks, because there are definitely more webOS smartphones on the way. Apparently what Hurd was really trying to say was that HP is excited about using webOS as the foundation for all types of smaller web-connected devices, and smartphones are just a part of that universe -- a part HP intends to pursue. Phew. Now, can we see these new webOS devices, please? Here's the full statement from HP:When we look at the market, we see an array of interconnected devices, including tablets, printers, and of course, smartphones. We believe webOS can become the backbone for many of HP's small form factor devices, and we expect to expand webOS's footprint beyond just the smartphone market, all while leveraging our financial strength, scale, and global reach to grow in smartphones.
Cause everyone knows HP is great at making phones. Am I right, people.
@peestandingup Wow, these CEO's are really feeling the power of the internet today.
@peestandingup
You obviously never used an iPaq before, it was a pretty bitchin phone back in the day. Regardless, it would work like this:
HP is Palm's sugardaddy, giving them money because its attractive, and Palm uses that money to finally build a superphone that would smack down the Evo, or iPhone 4G. However Palms gonna have to drop to its knee's every once in a while to whore out WebOS to things it was never meant for like printers (shudders) or tablets (please please give me a webos tablet with flash).
news next: "Microsoft CEO announced they'll making the Courier"
@peestandingup
Haha, cause HP is doing so well in the smartphone market! So the bought Palm who was on a steady decline even though it was already at the bottom. And now they are joining together? Intriguing!
HP have HTC build the hardware for you, and then have your new division drop WebOS on it and profit.
@N900
Good Joke HP, GOOD
@peestandingup : All they need to do is call HTC and Sprint and slap webOs on a big ass EVO clone. (minor work involved)
YOU SEE. My Force Choke knocked some sense into them
@peestandingup to be fair they sort of did start the whole "smartphone" thing and now they have access to the best Mobile OS available... they better be in the smartphone game with WebOS
@peestandingup
Palm had a great idea with WebOS, and in some ways it rivaled the intuitiveness of iPhone OS, but it was never executed properly, battery life and speed suffered, and it was marketed horribly. While I think HP has the power to market WebOS better, I doubt that they have the talent to fix the other problems that plagued the operating stystem.
@ Vader
I thought the Force choke was always fatal, except for that one time Tarkin made you stop.
@treats It's funny but that really would boost sales a lot and could have brought palm back from death in my opinion. 3.5+inch screen and a decent onscreen keyboard (or something like the windows phone 7 dell phone) would make me and im sure a lot of other people buy it.
Or maybe what really happened was . . .
"Apology accepted, Captain Hurd . . ."
(Vader steps over Hurd's lifeless corpse)
@treats
HP actually has done business with HTC in the past.
The old iPAQ hx4700? HTC Roadster. Heck, if you look on the motherboard, one of the ICs has the HTC logo on it.
That's probably not the only example, either. HTC built a lot of devices for other entities to slap their own brands on (the Dell Axim X50v was another one), but only more recently have they put their own name on their devices.
I wouldn't be surprised if they DID have HTC build the hardware because of this. Let's just hope it's good, reliable hardware. (The iPAQ 210 pictured above with a webOS screen shopped on it apparently had a lot of issues that kept me from replacing my hx4700 with one. Don't know if HTC built it, though.)
@Lord Vader Hey, good job. Now can you give it a try on Randall Stephenson, in regards to the new data plans?
@DavidBurnia And while you're at it, Nadir Mohamed, George Cope and Darren Entwistle please. Tell them to stop colluding.
@N900
Psych out!
@peestandingup I thought all of HP's smartphones were made by HTC but just sold under the HP name. Does anyone know if they are going to continue that route with WebOS or if they are going to use Palm's own phone design team?
@Lord Vader
Thank god you were here lord Vader.... You saved a million people from extreeme anger and possible rioting.
@SteveyAyo,
Everybody is telling me that WebOS is the best smartphone OS, but no one wants to explain - why, what exactly is so great about WebOS.
I'm a happy Android user, but was always thinking, that the best way to study new computer language or OS is to do it *in comparison* to another language / OS.
So, I'm greatly tempted to buy either a new WebOS phone or a tablet, once they are a available.
@dorothymantooth You must not have used a Pre lately. A Pre Plus with uber-kernel overclocking and Govnah, using the "screenstate" profile, has the same battery life as a regular Pre Plus (or better), but runs 60% faster when it's being used. I'm finding it to be a remakable device.
@peestandingup well that's what WebOS is for... HP can make some pretty nice phones now.
@SteveyAyo
well, that would be unfair to Nokia.
Palm might take a little umbrage as well.
@peestandingup As far as I'm concerned the damage is done.
@Andurilan
Yeah the touchscreen iPaq phone was around BEFORE the "world's first touchscreen phone!" aka... the iPhone
@dorothymantooth
Battery life and speed were addressed through the ongoing patches that Palm was administering toward the end of the Pre's life (I'd say it's basically "dead" now). The Pre Plus didn't demonstrate the same kind of lag or stuttering that the original Pre did and it's battery life was better than my Droid Incredible (which may not be saying a whole lot).
@peestandingup
He's still a douche. We all know that external pressure is what's responsible for the backtrack. For all we know, he'll still treat Palm like he did other acquired techs.
@Lord Vader
Hi, I always wanted to ask you this: why oh why, being so damn dark-sider, didn't you "force corrupt" Tarkin into blowing up Yavin instead of waiting for the lazy- ass Death star to be in position to take out the frigging moon?
@WebOn scratch that, why in the galaxy would a baddie bad ass like yourself be reduced to a moff's Biatch?
@peestandingup
they were not,
which is why they bought Palm,
so they bought the know how.
@Andurilan
Why wouldn't it be a good idea to have WebOs on printers and other hardware? I imagine there would be the sync / synergy options. Printing from a webos smartphone, scanning to a webos smartphone, no?
@WebOn It was my plan all along to have Moff Tarkin die in the first Death Star. I let the Rebels destroy it, killing all my "superiors" making me the Second in Command leader of the Empire. Then I went on to plot my overthrowing of the Emperor, to become the Greatest Sith Lord in the Galaxy
@Lord Vader
BRILLIANT plan Lord Vader! How did it work out for you?
@Juke Box Hero
That kiddo Vader got nothing to do with this. In my universe I am the ruler and no one but me.
Mark Hurd is one of my close servants. The goal was to get HP globalized then striking Palm to suffer financially. It was matter of time to buy it in cheap price. The next goal would be installing WebOS into every single gadget.
We forced Google to leave Windows for Mac/Linux then the next step will be to adapt WebOS.
Nasa is on the list as well.
All of these towards my superior goal.
_______________________
Engadget soon will be mine.
This is what rudderless leadership looks like. HP doesn't have a clue anymore...well, to imply that they have for the past 20 years. But this is pathetic. Sounds like they really don't know why they bought Palm. I sense they are going to screw up.
Good move. WebOS started on smartphones, it should be on smartphones. Not that I'm not looking forward to w/e tablets and netbooks may be coming out with WebOS installed.
OH THANK GOD. SERIOUSLY GOD, THANKS. I LOVE YOU!
@jefwif
That mother fu- . . . . . Oh wait. YES!!!
Good to hear. Theres so much to make in the Smartphone market...
And with HP's hardware and resources and WebOS; they're gonna be some competition for others.
I just can't wait to see what they have in store...
HP,
I could have have told you that...
Sincerely,
The Internets
HTC Evo tomorrow.
@jarobusa
Why does someone always have to pipe in about the EVO even when the topic has nothing to do with Sprint, HTC, or Android??
@Moisture It has to do with Sprint. Especially Palm Pre early adopters like myself. If Palm would have leaked anything about a new phone they will make, I would have waited. Shoot, even Apple allows leaks now. Maybe next year I will come back.
@jarobusa
The above article mentions Nothing about the Palm Pre or Sprint!
@Moisture so you are saying Sprint would not get the new HP Palm Smart Phone? Because that is how I read this. When HP does make a new Palm phone I bet you anything it will come out for SPRINT.
@jarobusa
That is beside the point! This particular article says nothing about Sprint! AT ALL! Im just saying why does someone always have to throw in an EVO comment when the article has absolutely nothing to do with EVO??
@jarobusa
Huh, doesn't sound like there IS a Palm smartphone to leak at this point.
@Smart People Play Tuba there no leaks at all. That is my point. HP / Palm is planning on a new Smart Phone. Great. But give us some details. Why is that so hard to understand for some people?
@Moisture why the anger? "because there are definitely more webOS smart phones on the way". Great. What are they? Is that OK I ask this question? And if they would have said anything about this mythical smart phone I would not be buying a EVO tomorrow.