To take on the almighty iPad, is it just a question of price?
LONDON - Hundreds of thousands of TouchPads have been sold worldwide in days after HP announced it would stop manufacturing its would-be iPad competitor.
The sudden desirability of the device was, of course, due to heavy discounting. For example, in London, some retailers were selling their stocks off for just £89 (S$176), down from the original retail price of £399 (S$790).
Today understands that HP will make a decision "within a matter of days" on whether it will similarly slash prices of the TouchPad in Singapore, according to a source within the company.
Ms Bryna Corcoran, HP's social media manager, summed up the firm's mood in response to the TouchPad's sudden popularity on Twitter.
"All this clamouring for the TouchPad, kind of bitter-sweet," she tweeted.
According to component analysts, each of the gadgets cost HP at least S$350 just to build, so selling the Touchpad for half the cost would never have been considered until the firm decided to abandon it.
The HP TouchPad is now sold outBut the success of HP's firesale may provide clues to others hoping to loosen Apple's stranglehold on the market.
The main Google Android tablets, made by Samsung and Motorola, are pitched at around the same S$800-ish price point as the iPad.
But, put together with all the other Android tablets, it is estimated they are outsold by Apple's devices by a ratio of eight to one.
Given Android makers' weaker marketing and, crucially, the fewer number of supported apps available, that ratio seems unlikely to change significantly. So the problem becomes circular: The user base is too small for app developers to invest in, so users buy an iPad because there are more apps and the user base gets even smaller relative to Apple's.
In part, this phenomenon is Apple's reward for getting to market first but makers of Android tablets must find a way of breaking the cycle to avoid the TouchPad's fate.
There is no doubt that Amazon is acutely aware of this as the company is rumoured to be preparing to release an Android tablet this autumn. Like Apple with the iPad, it has built and dominated a market for itself with the Kindle, its hugely successful e-reader.
Essential to the Kindle's success is its relatively low price of US$139 (S$168) - or US$189 (S$229) for the 3G version. To challenge Apple, it could significantly undercut the iPad to attract a viable user base.
Amazon has massive cash reserves and could afford to sell its tablets at break-even or a small loss.
Its online retail empire and the Kindle brand mean Amazon has the marketing clout to take on the iPad, but on the evidence of HP's successful TouchPad sell off, the question is whether it has the courage to put its money on the line.
Via: http://www.todayonline.com/TechandDigital/Digital/EDC110826-0000282/In-death-of-the-TouchPad,-a-lesson-for-Android
References:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/news/8723949/HP-UK-reaffirms-commitment-to-supporting-TouchPad.html
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/apple/8720272/What-HPs-TouchPad-fire-sale-tells-iPad-rivals.html
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/mobile-phones/8711050/HP-TouchPad-crushed-by-Apple-iPad.html
http://www.asiaone.com/News/Latest+News/Science+and+Tech/Story/A1Story20110824-295913.html
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