HP Slate: back for good, with Windows 7?
After a peppered history full of delays, operating system switches and (at one point at least) having the entire project scrapped, it looks like HP’s Slate tablet may yet see the light of day.
Returning from the development scrap heap with Windows 7 rather than the Palm OS, it looks like the tablet may now be released under the “HP Slate 500” moniker.
PC World uncovered this little nugget of info buried away on the HP website:
“No matter where you are or what kind of fun you’re in the mood for, the HP Slate 500 is all you need. Exclusive HP software gives you access to photos, videos and everything on the Internet with just a touch, while Windows 7 Premium gives you the power to do what you want.
“The unique design and 22.6 cm (8.9”) screen put the full Internet in your hands, while two cameras (video and still) let you capture life as it happens or participate in web conferencing.
“Adjust the screen orientation to fit your content and use the pen to write or draw as if on a piece of paper. Whatever you want to do, the HP Slate 500 helps you do it – and makes it more fun too”.
The HP Slate is now in quite a bizarre position. After its own designers slated the use of Windows 7 in a tablet form, here we again apparently have it, back to square one with the same operating system. Unless they’ve given it a fairly major overhaul in a brief period of time, how can they expect consumers to show any confidence in the device when they themselves only a few months ago could not?
We’ll be watching this one closely.
