[cardfan]

Finallly - and I cannot stress this enough - no company of this size and professional reputation should be putting out products for the reason of "Why not?". That's just not acceptable.

My guess is because it's not hurt them in the past. Why not? They've been an OEM for the most part. HP knows no other way.

The only one from Palm who matters that's left over is Ruby. And its obvious he doesn't get it either.

So HP buys Palm. First they want to be like Apple HP Wants To Become Apple. WebOS Is The Key and Does HP Want to Be the New Apple?: Tech News «. Then they say they don't want to HP’s Bradley: HP isn’t trying to be Apple, will sell 15 million webOS printers next year . The CEO that was there during the acquisition is no longer there. HP has no clue IMO what they want to do.

Will HP CEO Leo Apotheker Kill Palm's Consumer Future? | News & Opinion | PCMag.com

I've spoken to plenty of folks at Palm who say its unit (no longer a company) has an exciting road map ahead. That's great. I want to see the products it's planning. But priorities are set at the top, and I don't see any sign that Apotheker is the kind of guy with a passion for products that actually sell on retail shelves. For Palm to succeed, it can't be a second-class citizen within its parent company.

And finally, what ecosystem will HP offer to make people even want a webOS device? If not itunes/mac compatibility or windows/zune/xbox or google search & apps..then what? HP plans for world domination. How does webOS fit in? | webOSroundup

So what is an ecosystem to HP? A “seamless, multi-device, software-enabled” world. Essentially it is several gadgets that speak and work together effortlessly. So your phone can talk to your PC, printer, doodad and whatzit right out of the box. A great idea to be sure.

Umm...if you want your phone talking to a Mac, then get an iphone. PC? Get a WP7 phone. This leaves what...printers? This must be their ePrint thing they got going on. But wait, it's not webOS exclusive? HP Blogs - HP ePrint enabled printers first to support printi... - The HP Blog Hub

Quote from Vyomesh Joshi, HP executive vice president, Imaging and Printing Group:

"Making it easy for our customers to print anytime, anywhere, is a key priority for HP. iPad, iPhone and iPod touch customers are going to love how easy it is to print using our new range of ePrint printers, creating high-quality printed pages in an instant.”

Well so much for printers..if you got another platform, HP will have you printing soon. What remains? You want a webOS phone so it can talk to ...doodads and whatzits?

It sounds like a solid strategy to me. I'm sure everyone at HP is buying into the dream.

[e-gadget-guy]

Sounds like a missed opportunity here. They're pairing the iPad with the MiFi, they should also throw some marketing into an iPad/Pre 2 pairing, get some contract subscriptions.

That is in fact how I use my iPad when I'm not near a free WiFi hotspot otherwise.

In fact, I once left my hotspot open and was surfing on my laptop at an airport when I noticed a new connection. Someone nearby had discovered it and connected. I gave them a nod and left it on until they had finish using it.