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No one has seen much of the HP Slate until now. The ten seconds Steve Ballmer fumbled with it at CES 2010 don't really count as a debut, but someone at Conecti.ca has finally spent some real time with the device. Conecti.ca managed a quick hands-on and review. The verdict is a decidedly ambivalent one. Certainly not the response HP would have liked for their supposed iPad killer.
The HP Slate is a keyboardless touchscreen tablet with an 8.9-inch screen that rocks an Atom CPU. In every way that matters, it's a netbook without a keyboard. This is often cited as a strength, but the reviewers point out that it's also the Slate's biggest weakness. While it runs Flash and any Windows app you care to use, the touch interface on Windows 7 makes the device hard to use. HP has made a special finger-friendly graphical front-end, but much of the device's functionality is lost in it. The device also has a dock with HDMI, USB ports, and a kickstand.
It's unlikely this first salvo will sink the unicorn pad, and we're not sure it needs to be sunk. There's still a lot to learn about the new tablet market. Would you consider purchasing the HP Slate? If not, what would you need to see in a tablet to convince you?
Image via Conecti.ca
Comments are closed on this article
spoonard
April 20, 2010 at 1:25pm
This thing looks like a clunky piece of crap! I think the i-Pad is dumb, but this thing looks like a fat, retarded sibling that everyone gives a nice pat on the head and says "Oh, you are cool, too!" out of sympathy. This is really where UI design falls flat. I'm putting my money on an Android tablet.
zippzom
April 20, 2010 at 10:59am
If battery life is >6 or 7 hours, seems like a good idea. Otherwise, :(
DerrickDel
April 19, 2010 at 11:44pm
Don't know why more people don't mention this as a feature. The single best thing about the iPad/iPhone is you don't have to boot it up just to show someone something or use the web. Windows 7 tablet that I have to wait to turn on is no good.
Keith E. Whisman
April 19, 2010 at 9:55pm
Finally a PC article.. I would like to see a Tablet PC with an ULV dual core processor. Core2Duo ULV proc would do fine. A thousand percent more powerful than those middling Atom and Arm processors in the Ipad and Slate. I understand the cost would go up but really how much more considering Core 2 Duo is last generation. Should be pretty cheap now. At least close to the cost of an Intel Atom Processor.
The Tablet PC has more than just the Ipad to compete with. It has convertible Laptops and Netbooks to compete with. I don't see why a tablet can't have a dual core processor. The PC tablet will actually be a machine that can run what you run on your pc not just some enlarged Cell Phone like the stinking IPAD.
Havok
April 19, 2010 at 9:33pm
A story about a legitimate touch device not made by Apple! I'm kinda stoked for this!I hope HP teams up with Wacom again! I just wish the article had been written with as much enthusiam as the Apple articles have...
YES! This post made it through the Spam Filter!
publicimage
April 19, 2010 at 9:30pm
After reading the click-thru to the original article, it's a pretty poor excuse for a review in the first place. It barely looks like they got their hands on a working prototype. My review of the original review: "Meh."
xRadeon
April 19, 2010 at 8:19pm
I'd buy one. Rather give my money to HP than Apple. Plus it's Windows.
LGA1156
April 19, 2010 at 6:33pm
I have a Ipad... I also had a netbook, The netbook ran win 7 starter, and win 7 starter sucked the life out of it, even with a 2gb ram upgrade... I sold the netbook, micrsoft really needs to make a light weight os if there going to compete in the tablet market. I like surfing the net on the Ipad, its quick responsive, and has tremendous batery life, even though it is made by a nazi reshime of a company that locks it down more the fort knocks...
violian
April 20, 2010 at 10:34am
The HP Slate doesn't have a specialty. It's not as full-featured as a netbook because it doesn't have a physical keyboard. And it's not a really good tablet because Windows 7 doesn't bode to well for touching with your fingers. That's why it can't compete with iPad. The iPad and its OS is designed to work amazing with your fingers. And it does what it was designed to do well - entertainment at the tips of your fingerprint in an enjoyable experience.
Keith E. Whisman
April 20, 2010 at 1:12pm
Damn you mother effing Spam filter..
Why don't the MaximumPC administrators listen to us when we complain about the spam filter? I've had posts deleted by the admins that complained about the spam filter.
Deleting posts that complain about the spam filter isn't going to make the problem go away. It's just going to make us go away.
Havok
April 19, 2010 at 9:29pm
I'd be really good and zippy too. I wrote this post on an ASUS 1201n while playing Fallout 2, making wedding invitations for a friend with GIMP and watching Zombieland.You shoulda upgraded your installation of 7 to Premium or even Pro for the price you paid for that iPad
YES! This post made it through the Spam Filter!
