HP TouchPad
| Company type | Tablet computer |
|---|---|
| Industry | Consumer electronics |
| Founded | July 1, 2011 |
| Founder | Hewlett-Packard |
| Fate | Discontinued August 18, 2011 |
| Headquarters | United States |
| Products | HP TouchPad tablet computer |
The HP TouchPad is a tablet computer created and engineered by Hewlett-Packard. It debuted on July 1, 2011, in the United States; followed by launches on July 15 in Canada, the UK, France, and Germany; and on August 15 in Australia.
Less than two months after its initial US release, on August 18, 2011, HP declared it would cease production of all devices running webOS, including the TouchPad. The remaining stock was deeply discounted and quickly sold out.
History
HP unveiled the TouchPad on February 9, 2011, during the webOS "Think Beyond" event held in San Francisco, alongside the HP Veer and HP Pre 3 smartphones. Initial sales were underwhelming, with only 25,000 units sold out of an anticipated 270,000, falling short of HP’s projections and soon eclipsed by the launch of the iPad 2 in March. By August 16, 2011, Best Buy declined to accept further shipments of the TouchPad. In Europe, approximately 12,000 units were sold within the first month, while Australia's exclusive distributor Harvey Norman moved about 1,200 units over four days. Analysts in the industry attributed the weak performance to a sparse app catalog and insufficient marketing efforts. On August 18, HP announced it would discontinue all devices operating on webOS. HP’s CTO Shane Robison admitted that the TouchPad was "half a generation or a generation behind the iPad," which restricted sales volume. A developer later characterized it as being assembled from "cast-off reject iPad parts."
On August 19, HP slashed prices dramatically to $99 for the 16 GB version and $149 for the 32 GB model in North America, which led to rapid sellouts. Retailers such as Barnes & Noble, Amazon.com, and Best Buy were overwhelmed by demand and had to cancel numerous orders. Comparable clearance sales took place in Australia and the UK where prices dropped to £89 and £115 respectively. During this brief period, the TouchPad earned the highest customer approval rating among tablets as stock disappeared both domestically and internationally.
Following this spike in demand and to clear out supplier components like touchscreens and batteries, HP announced on August 30 a limited production run between 100,000 and 200,000 units to fulfill outstanding orders at fixed prices of $249.99 and $299.99 through retailers including Tiger Direct and Best Buy.
After Meg Whitman assumed the role of CEO, she confirmed intentions to continue developing webOS as an open-source platform with plans to reintroduce it on tablets—most likely in 2013 rather than 2012. However, by February 2013, HP sold the webOS source code and transferred its remaining development team to LG, effectively ending any further deployment of webOS on tablets or consumer devices.
Hardware
The HP TouchPad operates with HP’s webOS on a touchscreen interface and incorporates card-based multitasking first introduced with Palm Pre smartphones. It features a front-facing webcam suitable for video calls along with a backlit Home button. The device offers haptic feedback through vibration technology and is powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon processor based on ARM, paired with 1 GB of RAM. A "Touch to Share" function allows seamless data transfer with the Pre 3 smartphone via sensor contact. The TouchPad supports call forwarding and text messaging from any phone through Palm Profile integration and enables voice calls using Skype. Estimated material costs were $296.15 for the 16 GB model and $318.15 for the 32 GB version, with assembly expenses around $10.
Screen, audio and input
The TouchPad is equipped with a 9.7-inch, 1024×768 pixel multitouch capacitive display protected by Gorilla Glass, which can be operated using fingers or an optional capacitive stylus. Its on-screen keyboard offers four adjustable size options and features a number row positioned above the QWERTY keys. The device also includes an InvenSense three-axis gyroscope.
Physical buttons consist of a sleep/wake control located at the upper right, a home button positioned at the bottom front that opens either the card view or app launcher, and volume adjustment rockers on the right edge. Capturing screenshots is done by pressing the power and home buttons simultaneously. The stereo speakers incorporate Beats Audio technology for enhanced sound quality.
Connectivity
Powered by the Atheros AR6003 chipset, the TouchPad supports dual-band Wi-Fi (2.4 GHz and 5 GHz) with 802.11a/b/g/n standards, along with Bluetooth 2.1 + EDR featuring A2DP stereo Bluetooth capabilities. Through Bluetooth pairing, it can share URLs, calls, and text messages with webOS smartphones; this functionality was expanded to include non-webOS phones following software update 3.0.4.
Power and battery
The tablet is powered by a rechargeable Lithium-ion polymer battery rated at either 6000 or 6300 mAh with a voltage of 3.7 V (22.2 Wh). Charging options include MicroUSB or an optional wireless method via the Touchstone charger, which activates Exhibition Mode to display essential information such as a clock or media playback. HP estimated battery life at approximately nine hours, while an Engadget review measured usage close to eight and a half hours.
Other models
In July 2011, HP revealed its webOS hardware roadmap featuring the "HP TouchPad 4G," which boasted a faster 1.5 GHz processor, 32 GB of flash storage, built-in A-GPS, and AT&T's 3.5G HSPA+ mobile broadband support. Although demo units were exhibited, this model was never released commercially except for HP employees; some units later appeared on resale platforms. In August, a limited run of white TouchPads with 64 GB storage, a 1.5 GHz processor, and Wi-Fi only (without cellular connectivity) was produced in small numbers. Additionally, several "TouchPad Go" devices (codenamed "Opal") featuring 7-inch screens, 32 GB storage, 1.5 GHz processors, and cellular network support were developed and reviewed by technology outlets but never mass-produced; their design influenced the subsequent HP Slate 7.
Pre-installed applications
| Application Name | Description |
|---|---|
| Web | Web browser built on the WebKit rendering engine. |
| Calendar | Synchronizes calendars from Facebook, Google, Microsoft Exchange, and Yahoo with customizable Day, Week, and Month views. |
| The standard email client. | |
| Messaging | SMS and MMS app that supports AIM, Yahoo Messenger, Google Chat, and Skype. |
| App Catalog | Provides access to the HP App Catalog. |
| Memos | Application for taking notes. |
| Quickoffice | Office suite allowing users to view and create spreadsheets, presentations, and documents. |
| Adobe Reader | PDF document viewer. |
| Maps | Mapping application offering location search, directions, and traffic information. |
| Contacts | Address book that synchronizes contact details across accounts. |
| Music | Media player for audio files stored locally. |
| Phone & Video Calls | Dialer supporting phone calls as well as Skype video calls. |
| Photos & Videos | Viewer for photo and video content. |
| Amazon Kindle (Beta) | Provides access to Amazon’s e-book library. |
| Interface for accessing Facebook accounts. | |
| YouTube | Application for browsing YouTube videos. |
webOS
The TouchPad came pre-installed with the webOS platform, providing features such as video calling, wireless printing (limited to HP printers), email synchronization, ebook reading, internet browsing, document editing, and access to the "HP Catalog" for additional applications.
webOS utilized a "card-based" multitasking system that allowed users to arrange apps into "stacks." Notifications concerning messages, emails, and calendar alerts appeared discreetly in the upper right corner of the display and could be swiftly accessed with a swipe gesture. Version 3.0 incorporated Adobe Flash, with the last update being version 3.0.5 as of January 2012.
To encourage developer engagement, HP sponsored an open source initiative for webOS that focused on scalable architecture and simplified app creation. This open source release included standardized Java tools designed to facilitate rapid application development and porting. Although Open webOS did not natively support the TouchPad due to proprietary components, HP launched an open source webOS Community Edition compatible with the device.
Android
On October 6, 2011, some TouchPads were mistakenly shipped with Android instead of webOS. HP explained this was an internal build used for hardware testing during webOS development.
By October 22, 2011, an Alpha version of Android 2.3 (Gingerbread) was made available for the TouchPad. This port, derived from the CyanogenMod distribution, enabled native Android app compatibility and supported "multi-boot," allowing users to switch between Android, webOS, or other operating systems. Android 3.0 'Honeycomb' was not ported due to lack of source code availability.
An Alpha build of Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich) based on CyanogenMod 9 was released by January 7, 2012, with continuous updates enhancing both stability and functionality.
In February 2012, HP published the Android 2.3 source code for the TouchPad, enabling CyanogenMod developers to continue work on the tablet port. The Android kernel had initially been utilized internally by HP for hardware preparation related to webOS manufacturing and launch testing.
Stable CyanogenMod 9 builds based on Android 4.0.4 are accessible with full operational capabilities. Unofficial versions of CM10 through CM11 exist; their reliability varies depending on kernel versions—with Linux 3.0 kernels generally offering greater stability than 3.4 kernels. Although Android 5.0 can run on the TouchPad, it experiences diminished performance.
In September 2016, Android 7.0 was released via Evervolv (an AOSP ROM), delivering nearly complete functionality alongside enhanced performance compared to earlier iterations. By December 2016, 7.1.1 became available through Evervolv and LineageOS builds.
April 2019 saw the release of Android 9.0 for the TouchPad through Evervolv AOSP ROMs, extending the device’s lifespan with contemporary Android support.
Linux
Linux distributions compiled for the ARM architecture have been executed on webOS devices using chroot environments. The X11 windowing system—common across numerous Linux platforms—was also ported to webOS, permitting most Linux graphical applications to operate on this platform.
An Ubuntu port targeting the TouchPad was under development in early 2012, booting via the moboot multiboot bootloader, similar to the Android port approach. While functional in an initial alpha phase, development halted after 2012.
Furthermore, an alpha version of Arch Linux ARM became available in January 2012, featuring full touchscreen capability alongside GNOME 3 / LXDE desktop environments and Wi-Fi support; however, Bluetooth, camera access, and audio functionality were absent. This distribution also employed the moboot bootloader method.
LuneOS
LuneOS is a Linux-based operating system developed specifically for direct use on touchscreen devices.
Touchstone
The Touchstone serves as a wireless charging station that activates Exhibition mode on the TouchPad while charging. This feature enables users to showcase images as a digital photo frame, display upcoming calendar events, clocks, or other content through third-party add-ons. Additionally, it supports wireless data exchange between an HP Pre3 and a TouchPad via the “Touch to Share” function, allowing web links to be transferred by tapping designated areas.
Included with the Touchstone is a USB power cable featuring a USB Standard-A connector, which must be plugged into a high-output USB power adapter (for example, the HP TouchPad power adapter). HP recommends avoiding connection to laptop USB ports. In North America, the accessory is bundled with the same AC adapter used for the TouchPad.
Keyboard
This accessory is a Bluetooth wireless keyboard featuring a conventional QWERTY layout plus specialized keys tailored for TouchPad operations. It operates on two AA batteries and includes dedicated buttons for Power, Card View, Cursor movement, Volume adjustment, Mute, Brightness control, media playback functions, toggling the virtual keyboard, Just Type mode activation, and Notifications. Although compatible with other Bluetooth-enabled devices, some of the specialized key functions are exclusive to the TouchPad.
Power adapter
The power adapter converts standard wall AC power into USB DC output and consists of:
- A wall AC to USB power adapter with an input range of 100–240 Volts at 50–60 Hz and 0.4 Amp AC, delivering an output of 5.3 Volts at 2.0 Amp DC. The unit is cylindrical—approximately the size of a D battery—and features a foldable two-prong AC plug alongside a Standard-A USB port.
- A USB cable equipped with Standard-A and Micro-B connectors.
This accessory is supplied with the TouchPad (including both adapter and cable) and with the Touchstone (adapter only).
Case and sleeve
The protective case functions also as a stand suitable for video playback or typing. It includes cutouts for the microUSB port, 3.5 mm jack, internal microphone, and speaker. Raised areas over the power and volume buttons improve ease of use. The TouchPad can be charged while inside the case using either a microUSB cable or the Touchstone dock.
Reception
Initial feedback on the HP TouchPad was varied. David Pogue from The New York Times praised its multitasking features, describing it as "working beautifully" and delivering more information than the iPad 2. Jason Chen of Gizmodo remarked that despite its plastic rear panel, the device felt "deceptively heavy" but not excessively so. Matt Buchanan (also from Gizmodo) applauded the OS concept but criticized sluggish performance, suggesting it might improve within six months. The Verge characterized the user interface as "intuitive and natural," yet also "sluggish" and "unfinished," which made it challenging to recommend initially.
After the TouchPad firesale event, HP led all non-Apple tablet sales in the US throughout 2011. By December of that year, it ranked as the second most sought-after tablet with roughly 5% market penetration and about 903,354 units sold.
The aggressive pricing strategy of the TouchPad influenced subsequent Android tablet pricing; competitors such as the Kindle Fire and Nexus 7 adopted similarly low price points around $199, which contributed significantly to their commercial achievements.