Xoom or hp touchpad - now what?

[danielkogan]

I love android but can't help that webos seems much more polished and advanced. I'm gettin the xoom in a few weeks but if webOs had google chrome, I think I would wait for the touchpad. I live in a browser and having sync with chrome is something hard to replace. Damn u HP ! Making my like complicated. Now I'm second guessing ! I just put my iPad up on eBay today. Even the pre3 looks good.

Anyone else feeling me ?

 

[eallan]

Whichever isn't $800!

 

[Baconator]

I love android but can't help that webos seems much more polished and advanced. I'm gettin the xoom in a few weeks but if webOs had google chrome, I think I would wait for the touchpad. I live in a browser and having sync with chrome is something hard to replace. Damn u HP ! Making my like complicated. Now I'm second guessing ! I just put my iPad up on eBay today. Even the pre3 looks good.

Anyone else feeling me ?

LOL! That is what I have been thinking ever since the touchpad was announced! Well the deal breaker for me was that WebOS doesn't have as many apps as Android. I will get a WebOS device in the future but for developing.

 

[dsignori]

LOL! That is what I have been thinking ever since the touchpad was announced! Well the deal breaker for me was that WebOS doesn't have as many apps as Android. I will get a WebOS device in the future but for developing.

Yeah, the TouchPad does look sweet. I need the XOOM, but boy does that look like a nice tablet.

 

[Walter E Kurtz]

Yeah I've always been a fan of WebOS. I had a Pre until it broke, then I went back to my Treo.

Only thing that sucks it HP is taking the Apple route with less is "more". I mean no HDMI output, no back camera (not that I need one, but it'd be good for Augmented Reality), 1.3mp front facing camera...

Hopefully all this means it'll be cheap (like $500 for 16gb or $550 for 32gb).

The integration with Pre 3 looks amazing though. The fact that you can get texts or calls on the tablet is a cool feature. I don't know how often I'd use it but it's damn cool.

 

[bmhanson]

Yeah. It is really tempting me. I will say though while I do not have a big need for apps, that really is a deal breaker. To really consider it, I would need (or seriously have a possibility in the near future of) Nook, Hulu, Netflix, etc. Games are not really an issue for me, it is the media type apps.

 

[Walter E Kurtz]

I'm sure WebOS will have plenty of media apps. That is a concern though.

I know they have a lot of games as many are ported from iPhone.

 

[Nchaka]

Does the Touchpad give you full access to the web? I mean will it open full website not the mobile version? If so you should ne able to access netflix through their website. But I too would like apps. It would be easier.

 

[qnet]

I saw a preview of it on Youtube and was impressed. The only thing that may hurt it is, it comes out in the summer. By that time the Ipad 2 and a bunch of other stuff will be out.

 

[mickmel]

The integration with Pre 3 looks amazing though. The fact that you can get texts or calls on the tablet is a cool feature. I don't know how often I'd use it but it's damn cool.

You can get texts on the Xoom via Google Voice, and that integration is pretty slick. Calls would be nice too, though...

 

[davekr]

The TouchPad does look very nice, but I still think I'll be getting a Xoom. The lack of apps for webOS makes me hesitate. Also, I really like the widget system in Android and I am looking forward to having that on a tablet as well.

 

[ckeegan003]

I mean, at some point the devs are going to get stretched to a point where they say, "man, this is ridiculous, let's just stick with the top two platforms."

Seriously, the mobile space is at a point where we have iOS, Android, WP7, webOS, Symbian, and BlackBerry. I don't think anyone can honestly think that devs will continue to create apps for all 6 platforms.

I'm not a dev though, so I might be wrong.

 

[Maikai.Guy]

I mean, at some point the devs are going to get stretched to a point where they say, "man, this is ridiculous, let's just stick with the top two platforms."

Seriously, the mobile space is at a point where we have iOS, Android, WP7, webOS, Symbian, and BlackBerry. I don't think anyone can honestly think that devs will continue to create apps for all 6 platforms.

I'm not a dev though, so I might be wrong.

It depends on the developers. Larger groups will write for all platforms that are profitable for them. Smaller groups will have bandwidth limitations and do exactly as you say. Others, will find a niche and specialize in one or two of their favorite platforms.

BTW, the current mobile OS installed base breaks out as Blackberry #1, Android #2 and iOS #3, with Android being, far and away, the fastest growth mobile OS. The market fully expects Android to be #1 by year's end. The three account for over 80% of the market, so the others are essentially "also rans" unless the market has an upheaval for some reason.

 

[sed51329]

WebOS 3.0 is much more polished than Android 3.0. It just looks better.

I was originally worried about the applications missing, but since HP is going to be making dual-boot Windows/WebOS PC's, possibly even moving to WebOS completely, with over 150,000 venders working through them.....I think it's safe to say developer interest has definitely been peaked.

I'm most likely getting the TouchPad, and not the Xoom.

Possibly getting a Pre3. Same screen size as the iPhone 4, 1.4 gigahertz processor and a large updated physical keyboard with a polished WebOS operating system is VERY tempting. The way they share information is absolutely sick.

 

[ckeegan003]

Only thing that sucks it HP is taking the Apple route with less is "more". I mean no HDMI output, no back camera (not that I need one, but it'd be good for Augmented Reality), 1.3mp front facing camera...

Gotta agree with you there. Plus, the Touch Pad only has a-gps, and obviously only in 3G models. No GPS in the Wi-Fi versions, just like the iPad.

I understand some people will initially think GPS is semi-pointless in a tablet, but do you know how many apps use location-based services? A ton. Just to name a few that I have on my phone... Kayak, Realtor.com, RedBox, Layar, CardioTrainer, Google Earth, Goggles, Sky Map, IMDb, Google Maps, iHeart Radio, Urbanspoon, Weather Channel. Not to mention, a ton of websites even use your location. My website uses a users location.

I just think that is crazy to leave that out, and don't get me started on 1024x768 resolution. If you're going to bring it, bring it.

 

[frenzy757]

Apps are a bigger deal on a tablet for me than a phone...

right now iOS leads, then Android, then the rest


that reason itself is one that I wont be getting webOS. While its slick, my tablet use will be for entertainment/media and some games...that already has me looking at the IPad 2 over the Xoom...

If Netflix, MLB.tv come out and say they are now supporting Android 3.0/Xoom them I am back on Android as those two would be far and away the top apps I use on the Xoom...especially while traveling, which I do a lot. Airports are boring.

Games are another thing too...iOS has some slick point and click adventure games that I loved as a kid.

 

[Maikai.Guy]

Apps are a bigger deal on a tablet for me than a phone... right now iOS leads, then Android, then the rest

The talk on the Street is the number of Android apps will surpass iOS apps in two to three months. It will take longer for tablet apps to do the same, since Apple tablets have a year head start, but it eventually will. The number of Android devices out there already exceeds the number of iOS devices out there.

If Netflix, MLB.tv come out and say they are now supporting Android 3.0/Xoom them I am back on Android as those two would be far and away the top apps I use on the Xoom...especially while traveling, which I do a lot. Airports are boring.

Games are another thing too...iOS has some slick point and click adventure games that I loved as a kid.

Don't know about MLB.tv, but hulu and netflix have already announced their intentions of supporting Android in the first half of this year.

Android overtook iOS in January as the number 2 installed mobile OS. It's growth numbers are double digit, while Blackberry and Apple have barely moved a point.

Unless something really startling happens in the Apple or Blackberry camps, Android will take the #1 spot with Blackberry significantly behind and iOS a distant third.

Developers will continue to support all three and all three have solid futures, but Android will displace iOS as the platform that everyone makes sure their app is on first.

The last numbers I heard were from a bit more than a month ago, but there were 300K Android activations PER DAY globally. iOS or Blackberry can't hold a candle to that. Again, unless something startling happens... Android is the platform if you want "the" platform for the future.

 

[qnet]

I mean, at some point the devs are going to get stretched to a point where they say, "man, this is ridiculous, let's just stick with the top two platforms."

Seriously, the mobile space is at a point where we have iOS, Android, WP7, webOS, Symbian, and BlackBerry. I don't think anyone can honestly think that devs will continue to create apps for all 6 platforms.

I'm not a dev though, so I might be wrong.

I don't know anything about webOS , Blackberry or symbian but, from my understanding IOS is based off a Unix kernel and Android comes from a Linux kernel, which would make both somewhat similar. It seems like those two would be the easiest for developers/programers - as far as crossing over - but, I'm not a dev so I have no clue. My background is more in networking (mostly windows).

This is all very interesting to me though. I have thought about becoming a developer.

 

[dsignori]

WebOS 3.0 is much more polished than Android 3.0. It just looks better.

I was originally worried about the applications missing, but since HP is going to be making dual-boot Windows/WebOS PC's, possibly even moving to WebOS completely, with over 150,000 venders working through them.....I think it's safe to say developer interest has definitely been peaked.

I'm most likely getting the TouchPad, and not the Xoom.

Possibly getting a Pre3. Same screen size as the iPhone 4, 1.4 gigahertz processor and a large updated physical keyboard with a polished WebOS operating system is VERY tempting. The way they share information is absolutely sick.

I agree that WebOS looks very polished and awfully smooth on that tablet. It will probably be a very nice experience. Good luck with it and the Pre3 as they appear to have a nice little sync system set up there that is quite impressive.

As for the developers and apps for WebOS, we'll see. They are so far behind now that it might take some doing to be more relevant. I don't necessarily mean catching up in regard to the pure number of apps, just in the number of quality apps. I never thought the overall # of apps mattered much anyway, to be honest. (as if 300,000 compared to 200,000 makes any real world difference to a user). It's the # of good, quality apps that matter to me. HP does have a lot more leverage, and is in a dramatically better position than Palm was, to make partnerships with companies who can make WebOS versions for the more visible apps. We've seen some of that already with the magazine partnership announced at the event.

I always liked WebOS, and I hope they do well. Having good competitive OS's in the space leads to more innovation, which is good for everyone ..

 

[Baconator]

Don't get me wrong WebOS looks really smooth and I bet it is smoother than Honeycomb. The only thing I dislike is that it is the same thing you would get on a WebOS phone. It is the same as the iPad. All the iPad is is a HUGE iPod. All the TouchSlate is, is a HUGE Pre 3. I want something different. I don't want my tablet to be the same screens as my phone, the same look and feel. I want something different. Not as big as a deal breaker but something to think about.