Ever since HP bought Palm in 2010, consumers and journalists alike have waited with bated breath to see what HP would do with webOS, a wonderful operating system that was hampered by Palm's subpar hardware. HP took the webOS reins, and the HP TouchPad is the first tablet to bear the fruits of the acquisition. Read our full review for all our take on the TouchPad, but before we took the tablet into the PCMag Labs and put it through its paces, we unboxed the device, took a tour of the interface, and took photos along the way.
The short version of the TouchPad's story is simple: it's the best tablet available that's not named iPad. WebOS seems naturally suited to the 9.7-inch screen size, with a card-based interface that makes multitasking easy and even fun. The tablet packs 16 or 32GB of internal storage for $499 and $599, respectively, and zips along nicely thanks to a 1.2-GHz, dual-core Qualcomm processor. There's no rear-facing camera, and the selection of native apps available for the device is slim, but for basic browsing, emailing and reading, the device performs beautifully, and the app selection should only get better.
The TouchPad also comes with some cool accessories at launch, and integrates nicely with other HP devices. There's a Bluetooth keyboard available, along with a case and a touchstone charger that lets you charge the TouchPad without connecting a single cable. If you own an HP printer, or plan on buying the Palm Pre 3 when it comes to market, you'll get some extra integration: wireless printing from the TouchPad to almost any connected HP printer, and the ability to just touch the Pre 3 to the TouchPad's Home button and send a Web page from the tablet to the phone.
There's more information on all that, and much more, in our review of the HP TouchPad. To whet your appetite and get a sense of what you'll get if you buy a TouchPad, though, hit the slideshow above for plenty of pictures and information.