The TouchPad is far from perfect — really, not even close right now. Still, there is DNA here that is amazing, and deserves to be given a second look. What HP has done in just a year with webOS is commendable, and if the fixes for some of these big, ugly bugs come as fast as the company is promising, the TouchPad could be the contender everyone over there thinks it is.
Still, the bottom line here is that the stability and smoothness of the user experience is not up to par with the iPad or something like the Galaxy Tab 10.1, even if many of the underlying ideas are actually a lot better and more intuitive than what the competition offers. That, coupled with the minuscule number of quality apps available at launch make this a bit of a hard sell right now. If HP can convince developers to get behind this product, and the company can laser focus on the end-user experience, becoming the number two player in tablets isn’t as crazy as it sounds. Really.
Oh, happy day, when one first receives a device that’s been eagerly anticipated for months. Sad, sad day when that device fails to live up to one’s expectations. We all wanted the TouchPad to really compete, to give us a compelling third party to join the iOS and Android boxes on the ballot. But, alas, this isn’t quite it.
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If the Pre 3 were out today and if the TouchPad were $100 less we could maybe see giving it a go, if only to root for the underdog. But, as it is, you have to put your heart and two decades worth of Palm obsession ahead of any buying rationale. With such compelling alternatives readily available, that’s asking rather a lot.
HP has gotten a lot right here, but on the software side, it’s not just all there yet. The interface isn’t responsive enough, app launching is slow, and there are too many other quirks that scream that this is a 1.0 release of a tablet operating system. (Even HP seems to acknowledge this: The company says it is already readying an over-the-air update to webOS that will fix bugs and improve performance.) Some aspects of what HP is doing with the webOS are really interesting, including the Synergy feature that brings all online-service data together into a unified interface and the superior app-switching interface.
HP stresses that webOS is a platform and that the TouchPad is just one iteration of it. The company plans to add the operating system to numerous devices, including laptops, and hopes that this scale will attract many more apps. And it pledges continuous updates to fix the current shortcomings.
But, at least for now, I can’t recommend the TouchPad over the iPad 2.
I think it is clear that the TouchPad — as it stands today — is a very “1.0” product. webOS has loads of potential, and I think the TouchPad shows that. But I think HP probably rushed this thing a little bit, and it shows from these reviews.
To overcome the ever-growing number of Android tablets on the market, HP needs a home run. This looks like a pop fly to the midfield.