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HP Back In Tablet Game With Android-Based 'Slate7'

Posted by Soulskill on from the unique-and-special-just-like-everyone-else's-tablet dept.

theodp writes "You know the old adage, 'Fool me once, shame on you; fool me twice, shame on me?' Still, even if you got bit by the HP TouchPad debacle, HP's newly-announced $169 Slate7 tablet could prove hard to resist. Specs-wise, the Slate7 sports an ARM Dual Core Cortex-A9 1.6 GHz processor, 7-inch 1024x600 HFFS screen, Android 4.1 (Jellybean), three-megapixel camera on the back, front-facing VGA camera, 8GB of on-board storage, HP ePrint, Beats Audio, and a micro SD expandable card slot. It measures 197mm x 116mm x 10.7mm thick, and weighs in at 13 ounces. It will be available in the U.S. in April. Engadget has some pics and their initial hands-on take."

9 of 120 comments (clear)

  1. The innovation we've come to expect from HP by MrEricSir · · Score: 4, Insightful

    This represents the innovation we've come to expect from HP -- none at all.

    --
    There's no -1 for "I don't get it."
    1. Re:The innovation we've come to expect from HP by AmiMoJo · · Score: 5, Insightful

      My thoughts exactly. Compare it to the Nexus 7:

      - Shit screen
      - Shit CPU
      - Shit camera
      - Old version of Android
      - Usual HP "quality"

      About the only thing it has going for it is the SD card slot, which would put it on a par with Chinese tablets costing half the price except that it will inevitably have HP's bloatware pre-installed and un-removable instead of vanilla Android.

      --
      const int one = 65536; (Silvermoon, Texture.cs)
      SJW, n: "Someone I don't like, and by the way I'm a fuckwit" - AC
    2. Re:The innovation we've come to expect from HP by blind+biker · · Score: 3, Insightful

      - Shit camera

      The Nexus 7 has an even shittier camera.

      And I am a proud owner of a Nexus 7, but the camera really isn't anything to write home about.

      --
      "The agriculture ministry is not in charge of Gundam" - Japanese ministry official.
    3. Re:The innovation we've come to expect from HP by blind+biker · · Score: 3, Insightful

      To add to my sibling comment: the Slate 7 has a rear-facing 3 MP camera. Not fantastic, but much better than 0 MP rear facing camera of my Nexus 7.

      The CPU of the Slate 7 is somewhat comparable to that of the Nexus 7.

      So, while I love my Nexus 7 and think it's still the best value for money you can get (outside the Nexus 10, which is just phenomenal value for money - you get the absolute best tablet on the market at any price), I don't think the Slate 7 is a clear loser in all aspects, to the Nexus 7.

      --
      "The agriculture ministry is not in charge of Gundam" - Japanese ministry official.
  2. Re:Kindle HD by Threni · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Nexus 7 (pure Android), or Nexus 10 (pure Android, larger, loads more powerful). Don't see the point of saving a little money for some crappy customised machine. There's no problem looking at pdfs, movies etc on any Android device, so no advantage in Amazon hardware.

  3. HP Touchpad debacle? by Erythros · · Score: 2, Insightful

    Yes, that was a debacle. Initially overpriced so that it couldn't sell then underpriced so that you got one only if you were lucky enough. HP was onto something with the Touchpad, but not everyone was enamored with WebOS. If they were smart they would have ported Android to it and sold it at a reasonable price, maybe $250-$325 range. Those of us smart enough to get one for the hardware specs knowing Android would soon be ported got a great tablet, I use mine all of the time. As far as their latest venture, due to their lack of market penetration up to this point, I doubt consumers will take their offerings seriously and further reviews may doom the device before it has a chance. Who knows, it does seem snappy enough for a budget priced tablet even if the aspect ratio sucks.

  4. Re:I find it fishy by mwvdlee · · Score: 4, Insightful

    The only thing you can be sure about is that presenting the non-functional end of a device has absolutely nothing to do with recognizing that people buy these as fashion statements rather than functional devices.

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  5. Re:great name!! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

    I dunno.

    How many people returned the Nexus 7 because they thought it had Windows 7?

  6. It's a first step by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Part of the problem with HP is they make an entry into a market, and its not perfect and they turn and run immediately. WebOS was a case in point, overpriced, not perfect, immediately dumped. No attempt to refine it and retry.

    Here Android tablets have moved on from this, they'll need to have a few stabs at this to get it right. But they won't, they'll turn and run.