TouchPad - HP Making a Mistake?

**Milenkod** · 04/07/2011, 01:44 PM

Is HP making a mistake by reserving thier best/unique features to work amongst their own ecosystem?

As I understand it TouchPad features such as phone calls, SMS and Touch To Share are only possible via another webOS device (Pre 3 for now). All cool features that are needed to differentiate the TouchPad in the tablet market. But why limit to the Pre only?

Very few are going to buy the TouchPad and Pre3 combo....there will be sales but not to the tune of "The HP Scale" mantra. People like their smartphones and are most likely already tied down on contracts. Many consumers out there buy what they believe are best-in-class or best-price devices. Why not let an iOS, Andriod, RIM device (whatever they might percieve as best-in-class/price for them) and let it pair with the TouchPad to use these differntiating features? It looks like a mistake that'll make the TouchPad "just another tablet" without the Pre. The Pre 3 or the TouchPad alone don't really compell me to buy it over the iPad Playbook or Android-whatever without these features. What does it have going for it otherwise than a "me too" iPad? Maybe there's a "one more thing" going to be pulled out of the HP hat...but I doubt it.

What do you people think?

**netwrkr9** · 04/07/2011, 01:51 PM

The other brands of phones do not have the right OS or the special uilt in coil to make everything function properly.

**beerdini** · 04/07/2011, 02:01 PM

It would also be too much work for HP to make sure that their devices work with everything else out there. New OS versions, rooting, custom ROMS... you can't be expected to support it all, especially when it isn't yours.

**Cantaffordit** · 04/07/2011, 02:06 PM

i'll bet someone could write an iOS app to do some of that stuff. Think apple would let it into the app store?

**Courousant** · 04/07/2011, 02:19 PM

I was just thinking HP should write apps for the other platforms and sell them; would you buy a $9.99 app along with your TP to enable those features? Small premium for non webOS phone owners to pay....

**Milenkod** · 04/07/2011, 02:24 PM

Originally Posted by netwrkr9

The other brands of phones do not have the right OS or the special uilt in coil to make everything function properly.

Herein lies the path to possible failure (or less success). They are relying on something proprietary in hardware. A misstep.

Originally Posted by beerdini

It would also be too much work for HP to make sure that their devices work with everything else out there. New OS versions, rooting, custom ROMS... you can't be expected to support it all, especially when it isn't yours.

True, but support the best of breed; most popular, that's the price to play this game and even just support for webOS, iOS and Android is a narrow enough focus. If HP chose a software solution rather than hardware dependency, it could have made Touch To Share with multiple smartphone platforms possible.

**deesugar** · 04/07/2011, 02:25 PM

There is nothing that special about some of the features. Although the coil is a trigger to share url's, which would be a problem to make other phone use this feature. The phone calls and text messages happen through Bluetooth, just like any hands free device can do with any handset today.

No reason why HP couldn't make some of the TP enhanced features work with iOS or Android and it would be smart for them to do so.

**Milenkod** · 04/07/2011, 02:29 PM

Originally Posted by Courousant

I was just thinking HP should write apps for the other platforms and sell them; would you buy a $9.99 app along with your TP to enable those features? Small premium for non webOS phone owners to pay....

I would buy it to let my iPhone work with the TouchPad. i'm thinking something like Bump To Share....that would work. I mean, why is HP limiting themselves here to a single smartphone platform that only has < 3% market share?

**dcbo89** · 04/07/2011, 02:33 PM

no, I dont think so. Its not a critical feature and thats why, its a nice insentive to buy both the touchpad and the Pre3/Veer but unlike the Playbook you dont need the phone to do critical things like email and calendar. RIM is making the mistake, not HP.

**Cantaffordit** · 04/07/2011, 02:35 PM

the point is that it isn't hp doing the limiting.

do you think apple would allow an app to let you use the touchpad to talk on a call that was answered on your iphone? Do you think apple would approve an app so you could use your ipad to place a call through your pre?

other than the magnetic sensor to initiate, it's all bluetooth and passing parameters back and forth.

I'm sure you could hack that stuff into iOS... But its only been a year since iphone users could change the wallpaper. Apps to interoperate with android or webOS aren't something apple is likely to allow...

**Milenkod** · 04/07/2011, 02:39 PM

Originally Posted by deesugar

There is nothing that special about some of the features. Although the coil is a trigger to share url's, which would be a problem to make other phone use this feature. The phone calls and text messages happen through Bluetooth, just like any hands free device can do with any handset today.

No reason why HP couldn't make some of the TP enhanced features work with iOS or Android and it would be smart for them to do so.

That's a mistake to soley use the coil. For instance, I'm in the middle of my contract with an iPhone4. I'm not getting a Pre3 ever or at least until im out of contract. I want a Touchpad, but I cant use those unique features with my iPhone. So I have an option of getting an iPad2 or an iPad 1.5-ish competior in the TouchPad, Galaxy Tab (or heaven forbid, a Xoom) ...the FF camera is not that compelling. I think HP just lost a potential sale.

**Milenkod** · 04/07/2011, 02:40 PM

Originally Posted by dcbo89

no, I dont think so. Its not a critical feature and thats why, its a nice insentive to buy both the touchpad and the Pre3/Veer but unlike the Playbook you dont need the phone to do critical things like email and calendar. RIM is making the mistake, not HP.

...I agree/disagree...RIM is making a bigger mistake.

**Milenkod** · 04/07/2011, 02:42 PM

Originally Posted by Cantaffordit

the point is that it isn't hp doing the limiting.

do you think apple would allow an app to let you use the touchpad to talk on a call that was answered on your iphone? Do you think apple would approve an app so you could use your ipad to place a call through your pre?

other than the magnetic sensor to initiate, it's all bluetooth and passing parameters back and forth.

I'm sure you could hack that stuff into iOS... But its only been a year since iphone users could change the wallpaper. Apps to interoperate with android or webOS aren't something apple is likely to allow...

If the TP is emulating a Bluetooth device, why would you need an app? Wouldnt it be visable as a headset? The SMS pass-through I could see needing an app to acompllish, though.

**deesugar** · 04/07/2011, 02:44 PM

Originally Posted by Cantaffordit

Apps to interoperate with android or webOS aren't something apple is likely to allow...

I'm not really an expert about this stuff but wouldn't Apple preventing an app that allows their device to work with another be overstepping some legal bounds here?

It would be akin to preventing a wireless keyboard maker from including an app to make their device to work with an iPhone. I didn't think they could do that since it doesn't infringe on any Apple stuff. In other words I wouldn't think they'd have any legal basis to do this and could be sued from preventing it. Or am I wrong?

**Cantaffordit** · 04/07/2011, 02:47 PM

it's not emulating bluetooth. it's simply using bluetooth to pair the devices and support use of various resources across the PAN.

If you put an app or process on an iphone that could receive a URL from a touchpad or Pre, it's likely that you could pass a web page across. And if you could create an app that made the touchpad speakers and mic look like a bluetooth headset and pair it with an iphone, you could take a call on the touchpad that is using the iphone radio.

It's exactly how I dial and answer calls on my bluetooth garmin gps in the car...

The issue is what devs are likely to build that stuff into apps on other platforms, especially when Apple would never let it in to their appstore.

**Cantaffordit** · 04/07/2011, 02:48 PM

Originally Posted by deesugar

I'm not really an expert about this stuff but wouldn't Apple preventing an app that allows their device to work with another be overstepping some legal bounds here?

It would be akin to preventing a wireless keyboard maker from including an app to make their device to work with an iPhone. I didn't think they could do that since it doesn't infringe on any Apple stuff. In other words I wouldn't think they'd have any legal basis to do this and could be sued from preventing it. Or am I wrong?

You mean like the way Apple makes sure you can't tether your iPad to your iphone so you don't need a second 3G contract?

**ght** · 04/07/2011, 02:49 PM

Seriously, Jobs would NEVER allow his precious i-anythings to play with another OS. Even if HP could make it work, apple would have an update out within hours to break that functionality.

**Cantaffordit** · 04/07/2011, 02:52 PM

Originally Posted by UntidyGuy

There's no reason for any other hardware maker to adopt any of the HP protocols because the don't exist in the real world yet and they aren't that compelling.

The Bump app has been around for iOS forever and transfers contacts, photos, apps, music, calendar events, and has social network integration. You don't need a special coil to do this kind of transfer. The app just wait for an accelerometer bump and then opens up a bluetooth channel to another device that had a simultaneous bump and did the same thing. Then there is a transfer of whatever you like.

It's bluetooth. The only thing that is "proprietary" is that there is a magnet to sense both devices touching and initiate the PAN. Like how exhibition knows when the phone is on a touchstone.

You can initiate exhibition manually by tapping the app on the phone launcher. I'll bet that the initial TTS functionality can be initiated the same way... so it would work with all the Pre2 devices that developers are using...

**deesugar** · 04/07/2011, 02:53 PM

Originally Posted by Cantaffordit

You mean like the way Apple makes sure you can't tether your iPad to your iphone so you don't need a second 3G contract?

Yeah but that's stealing bandwidth that you haven't paid for. I can understand that. Just like Sprint could ask FreeTether to stop and they'd be in the right to do so.

But transferring calls and texts is no different then my car's hands free device which if Apple blocked would probably start a legal battle that they couldn't win.

**Milenkod** · 04/07/2011, 02:55 PM

Originally Posted by Cantaffordit

it's not emulating bluetooth. it's simply using bluetooth to pair the devices and support use of various resources across the PAN.

If you put an app or process on an iphone that could receive a URL from a touchpad or Pre, it's likely that you could pass a web page across. And if you could create an app that made the touchpad speakers and mic look like a bluetooth headset and pair it with an iphone, you could take a call on the touchpad that is using the iphone radio.

It's exactly how I dial and answer calls on my bluetooth garmin gps in the car...

The issue is what devs are likely to build that stuff into apps on other platforms, especially when Apple would never let it in to their appstore.

So how does an app like Bump share data between and Android and iOS device? Apple has allowed that app knowing it's interopperable between platforms. They've set a precedence there...would be hard for them to decline it provided it's made to work with other iOS devices also.

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