HP TouchPad Announced

1. Greed
2. Laziness
3. Arrogance

For #4, the old Palm's "lack of funds" is replaced by "Obvious Apple-mimicry whenever possible" (QWERTY keyboard & all-cloud mentality aside).

Example:
It's not cool to have removable batteries. It's not cool to focus on PIM. It's not cool to have a tap-counter. It's not cool to be able to operate a device with one hand. It's not cool to offer backwards compatibility. It's not cool to use industry-standard ports (proprietary cables help you build an "ecosystem', y'know?). It's not cool to have expandable storage. It's not cool to have a device not tied to carrier partners unless you have your own retail stores. It's not cool to have physical buttons.

I could go on and on but you get the picture....
Pilot 1000->Pilot 5000->PalmPilot Pro->IIIe->Vx->m505->T|T->T|T2->T|C->T|T3->T|T5->Zodiac 2->TX->Verizon Treo 700P->Verizon Treo 755p->Verizon Moto Droid + Verizon Palm Centro-> Verizon Moto Droid X + Palm TX

http://galaxytab.samsungmobile.com/

If that is the case, then TWO new iPads in 2011 will catch all of the competitors (HP, Moto, RIM, Samsung etc) flat-footed and absolutely be the death blow to all competing tablets.

It does make perfect sense to have the iPad refresh line up with the annual iPod refreshe as well. I could also see Apple segmenting the iPad in a way similar to the previous-gen iPod Touch and the last 2 generations of iPhone---have the entry-level model(s) be a carryover part or based on the previous-gen tech and have the pricier models carry the latest and greatest.

I definitely thought the iPad entry level $499 price was a stunner last year and by far the #1 reason for its success IMHO (though the widespread retail availability later in 2010 really helped too). One year later, no one has still figured this out (HP included). Guaranteed retail availability 60 days from announcement helps too. HP & Moto, please take notes.

Pilot 1000->Pilot 5000->PalmPilot Pro->IIIe->Vx->m505->T|T->T|T2->T|C->T|T3->T|T5->Zodiac 2->TX->Verizon Treo 700P->Verizon Treo 755p->Verizon Moto Droid + Verizon Palm Centro-> Verizon Moto Droid X + Palm TX

I'm not sure why it would be hard to understand. I want to be able to access quantities of data that can exceed the internal storage capacities of the device. And I want to do so without having to pay to transfer my data from some online storage space.

It's not that complicated.

Wi-fi is not always available, and even with my rooted phone, downloading of multi-megabyte files is slow. I've got better things to do with my time than wait for downloads.
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PalmPilot Pro (1997) -> III (1998) -> Vx (1999) -> m500 (2001) -> m515 (2002) -> Tx (2007) -> HTC Aria (2010)

As much as the lack of removable storage bothers me, the lack of a user-replacable battery irks me even more. I'd hate to drop $500-$900 on one of these snazzy new tablets and have its battery crap out and have to send it off to be replaced.

You can buy a brand-new Acer netbook with a Win 7 Starter, 10.1" 1024x600 LED LCD, 1GB DDR3, a removable li-ion battery, a 160gb HDD, a SD card slot, 802.11b/g/n, a webcam, and 3 USB ports for $200ish. To not be able to get at least the removable battery and the memory card slot on a $500-$800 tablet is simply unacceptable.

Also, IMO there is STILL a market for devices running an OS that is more flexible/open than iOS but not as fragmented or as unreliable as Android. Sadly, it doesn't look to be WebOS or anything else currently available. Microsoft continues to be a non-starter in the mobile world.

Right now I am just desperately awaiting Android 3.0 and beyond, as that seems to be the best bet for my needs. I am so sick of Android 2.2 and below I don't know what to do anymore.

Ideally, Nokia would have bought Palm last year and combined the best bits of MeeGo with WebOS. At least we would have gotten solid hardware out of it.
Pilot 1000->Pilot 5000->PalmPilot Pro->IIIe->Vx->m505->T|T->T|T2->T|C->T|T3->T|T5->Zodiac 2->TX->Verizon Treo 700P->Verizon Treo 755p->Verizon Moto Droid + Verizon Palm Centro-> Verizon Moto Droid X + Palm TX

That's interesting, because my experience is a complete 180. I've quite enjoyed Android 2.2. Granted, I rooted and flashed a custom ROM. I can't imagine going back to my Tx, even though the PIM apps were better.

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<small>PalmPilot Pro (1997) -> III (1998) -> Vx (1999) -> m500 (2001) -> m515 (2002) -> Tx (2007) -> HTC Aria (2010) </small>

I'm also employed. I've got more PDF articles, documents and media clips that I use for work. But I don't need a laptop to access them. I do need about 25GB of storage for those documents.

Put these two things together, and I've practically maxed out the 32GB of the Touchpad. Telling me that devices will one day have 128GB is irrelevant to the storage limitations of the device in question.

I also travel for work, and I haven't even added any MP3s or movie files to the device, which I'd want to use while flying.

I live in an area where 3G data can be spotty and wi-fi is far from ubiquitous. Even if I wasn't in graduate school and, thus, a tightwad, I'm not sure I'd pay $100 a year to Dropbox for expanded service that I can't necessary access.

I get that my experience isn't yours. What I don't understand is why it seems to be so far beyond imagination that it's dismissed rather than acknowledged for what it is - my experience.

On the other hand, I can annotate PDFs on it, leaving myself notes for later. Unfortunately, I've yet to find a tablet-based PDF reader that includes that functionality.

In hindsight, that's likely a bigger issue for what I want to do than not having removable memory.

In either case, it's my opinion that local storage and instant access to my pdf collection is superior to keeping that collection online. (Of course, I do that, too, as a backup.)

If you are going to be totally bats**t insane and drop big bucks on a tablet like that, the Xoom is a FAR better choice for $100 more:

-Higher resolution (1280x800--this is a huge one)
-Slightly larger screen (10.1" vs 9.7") yet a little trimmer in some dimensions
-TWO cameras (with the front one better than the TouchPad's) + 1080p video recording
-Tegra 2 SOC (much better support & CPU/GPU performance)
-Built-in barometer (hey you never know how that may come in handy!)
-Probably larger battery capacity
-Probably better aesthetics & build quality (soft-touch and not glossy)
-HDMI output
-microSDHC expansion slot + 32Gb internally (this is a biggie)
-Better ecosystem & apps around it + earlier availability

HP's Touchpad doesn't stand a chance unless it undercuts the iPad on the cheaper verions (ie the 16 & 32Gb wi-fi Wal-Mart & BB mass market specials) and then undercuts Xoom on the higher-end by at least $200, if not more.

It's looking already like the Xoom is gonna be the best tablet for the price is no object crows and the iPad/iPad 2 is the best midrange or budget tablet experience. If you want to go REALLY low for a "budget tablet" then a rooted $250 Nook Color running Froyo or Honeycomb is your best bet.
Pilot 1000->Pilot 5000->PalmPilot Pro->IIIe->Vx->m505->T|T->T|T2->T|C->T|T3->T|T5->Zodiac 2->TX->Verizon Treo 700P->Verizon Treo 755p->Verizon Moto Droid + Verizon Palm Centro-> Verizon Moto Droid X + Palm TX

HP has the muscle to do that too. And they shouldn't think webOS makes it somehow a premium product with that crappy shiny fingerprinty black plastic back. WTF were they thinking going with THAT?! It's the same crap plastic on their mini desktops. That back is just absolutely tasteless and cheap. You pick up that aluminum-backed iPad and you go, WHOA! And this is just $499? Classy!

How many EVOs have been sold?

EVO who? LMAO!