Microsoft and HP pip Apple to tablet post
Published: 7 January, 2010
READ MORE: Hewlett-Packard | Microsoft | Netbook | Windows Mobile
With all the buzz around Apple and Google launching tablet devices, we saw a rare instance of Microsoft outmanoeuvring both in PR terms and getting in first with its own slate-style device. Codenamed Natal, the product is being made by Hewlett Packard.
Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer showed off the touchscreen, tablet-style product, which is expected to signal the start of a wave of similar launches. The tablets fit into the same general category as new formats being pioneered by Qualcomm and Freescale, on the ARM side, and Intel in x86 - ultra-lightweight, with large touchscreens, instant-on functionality and long battery life, and fitting between a smartphone and a PC. Lenovo was yesterday the first to release such a device running on the Qualcomm Snapdragon.
The Natal will be available later this year, probably in the third quarter, and Ballmer also previewed similar Windows products in the wings from Archos and Pegatron. He will be keen to play down associations with former Microsoft tablet PCs, a form factor that failed to excite user interest - though the earlier incarnations, critically, lacked connectivity, and came before the rise of interest in a largely web/cloud based experience, for which tablets are suited.
Robbie Bach, president of Microsoft's entertainment and devices division, also stressed the multimedia appeal of Natal, in particular its integration with the Xbox games console.
Microsoft also said it had signed a new search distribution deal with HP that will make the company's Bing search site and MSN.com content portal the default options on new HP computers sold in 42 countries.
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