The week in mobile finished up with one last bombshell…and a rousing Bronx cheer in the markets for the once mighty Hewlett-Packard. Its CEO’s 180 degree decision to spin off their hardware business (over 12 months!) and concentrate on software in an IBM/Gerstner-like move–shutting down their webOS–orphans the highly touted TouchPad, introduced less than two months ago. HP is also liquidating the product line, calling back the half million in the pipeline. Early adopters are furious, as HP will not support the system. But reportedly TouchPads have flown off the shelves–when retailers drop the price to a toy-level price of $99 just to be rid of them, they’ll sell despite the reported bugs and flaws. Wall Street Journal Digital, Los Angeles Times. For a jaundiced view of what HP is up to: Leo Apotheker’s HP never wanted webOS to succeed (ZDNet) and many more ‘inside baseball’ articles.
What happened to all those tabs racing for big bucks in healthcare? Why have PlayBook and TouchPad crashed and burned…Xoom has barely ascended…where’s the Galaxy Tab and the Cisco Cius in the practice and hospital? James Kendrick’s recent column on ZDNet is quite illuminating on why the iPad has succeeded in the broad market, even as those with a bit of savvy knew that the intro version was a buggy beta! Yes, it’s marketing and targeting the zillions of iPod owners to show them that the iPad was magic. It’s that old devil positioning, dear techies, as well as control of the selling experience. Maybe Motorola/Google will escape from the geeks and get that it’s the appeal–and that includes healthcare users. (Do scroll down to the comments as Mr. Kendrick is roasted by ZDNet’s uber-techie readers.) Why consumers won’t buy tablets (unless they’re iPads)