It looks like the HP Pre3 is finally packed up and ready to hit the market, at least in some countries, but to the disappointment of all webOS fans Stateside, the US will likely not be among the places where the smartphone will debut. HP Germany has put the Pre3 up for pre-order and is promising to start shipping the device to customers in about 1 to 2 weeks.

The HP Pre3 is currently priced at 350 Euro (about $500), which, of course, buys you an unlocked device with no strings attached. In comparison, that is considerably cheaper than what Amazon was asking for the device when it was listed online for pre-order back in May. In terms of hardware, we will probably disappoint you, but do not expect finding a dual-core 1.2GHz processor under the Pre3’s hood. The smartphone packs a single-core 1.4GHz Qualcomm MSM8×55 chipset, 3.6-inch WVGA display and a 5-megapixel camera capable of shooting 720p video.

As far as the Pre3’s Stateside release goes, however, rumors suggest that we might have to wait until September 18 before the device finally sets foot on US soil. But will the wait be worth it and will the webOS flagship have what it takes to compete with the ranks of the iPhone 5 and the team of Android heavyweights? Feel free to place your bets in the comments section below.

Thanks, Ahmad!

source: HP Germany via PreCentral

Digitimes reports that in order to boost sales and clear inventory due to weaker than expected demand, Android, webOS and QNX tablet makers are planning across-the-board price cuts by the end of September.

We don’t see it as much of a surprise that the tablet prices will be falling about six months after launch, and the process had even started with some manufacturers. HP recently made the $100 price cut for its HP TouchPad permanent, and now we are seeing the Toshiba Thrive appearing for $368 at Walmart, and the Acer Iconia Tab A500 $322 at Amazon.

The sources believe that prices will gradually slide to $350 on average by October, and go down to $300 in time for the holidays.

If quality Android slates, like the Asus Eee Pad Transformer, or the Acer Iconia Tab A500, which used to command pretty decent $399 price tags already, get slashed 25%, this will certainly increase the market share of Android’s tablet OS, which is still quite low compared to the iOS slates.

source: Amazon & Digitimes

Across the Atlantic, Orange UK has turned on its support page for the upcoming HP Pre3. Before Orange customers get terribly excited, the site offers nothing in the way of a UK launch date for the webOS device. On the other hand, it does confirm the specs on the device like the 1.2GHz dual-core processor, the 3.6 inch WVGA screen and a 5MP camera that captures video at 720p. Pre-installed is webOS 2.2 and 512MB of RAM is aboard. The HP Pre 3 comes with 8GB of internal storage but has no microSD slot.

As we recently reported, the US launch of the HP Pre 3 has been pushed back to September 18th, according to a leaked internal document, from an earlier September 4th release. At the same time, the document notes that HP’s Palm unit said that the UK division has had delays receiving the final product from its supplier. This probably explains why there is no launch date posted on Orange’s web site.

The launch delays for both the US and UK versions of the HP Pre 3 are just the latest in a series of missteps that has prevented this model from ever reaching its true potential. From the moment it was introduced at CES in January 2009 and appointed the heir apparent to the Apple iPhone, to its current position as a smartphone afterthought, the Pre has been about missed opportunities, miscalculations, and marketing mistakes. While the bump up in specs is really nice, is it enough to get Apple iPhone and Android users to drop their current touchscreen phone and replace it with the HP Pre 3?

source: OrangeUK via Engadget

Orange UK has gone live with its support site for the HP Pre 3

Order the Wi-Fi version of the 16GB HP TouchPad from Radio Shack.com and grab a $75 price cut from the retailer. This is on top of the $100 discount already in place from HP and takes the tablet down to a price of $325. Note that the 16GB Wi-Fi HP TouchPad is currently out of stock, but you can sign up to receive notification via email when inventory of the webOS flavored device has been replenished.

It isn’t a simple matter of ordering the tablet and getting the price break. Radio Shack.com is offering an instant $50 discount. To obtain the remaining $25 price break, use the coupon code AFF25250APR. It’s a great deal from Radio Shack.com, getting a big time Major League tablet for such a great price. But you can’t sit back and admire the deal for too long as the discount goes bye-bye after September 10th.

source: RadioShack.com via Precentral

From now until September 10th, Radio Shack.com is giving you a total of $75 off the price of a 16GB Wi-Fi HP TouchPad tablet

The HP Pre 3 may come later than initially planned, but the launch is approaching as an internal document points to September 18th as the release date for the webOS-powered handset, “a credible source with contacts inside of AT&T’s supply chain in the U.S.” spilled the beans for tech blog webOSroundup. Now, even though it looks credible, we would take this with a pinch of salt, at least until we hear an official confirmation by tight-lipped HP.

Earlier, the Pre 3 had reportedly been planned for in-store release on September 4th, but was pushed for unknown reasons. Earlier, HP’s Palm unit mentioned that “there has been a delay from our supplier” for Pre 3 orders in the UK. The internal document also reveals the codename for the Pre 3, but in order to protect their source webOSroundup couldn’t disclose it.

The HP Pre 3 was initially expected this summer. The slide-out QWERTY phone is expected to ship with a single-core 1.4GHz chip, a 3.6-inch screen and a 5MP camera capable of 720p video recording. But it’s webOS that truly makes it stand apart in the Android and iOS crowd. The phone has already got a separate listing with all of its specs over at HP, so feel free to check it out for all the details.

source: webOSroundup

The FCC appears to have leaked some details regarding the 7-inch version of HP’s WebOS tablet which may be called the TouchPad Go and sport a 1.5GHz processor as well as support for AT&T’s HSPA+ network.

The 1.5GHz processor on-board could be the same dual-core Qualcomm Snapdragon chip that will be powering the HP TouchPad 4G. The current version of the HP TouchPad has a dual-core processor as well but it is only clocked at 1.2GHz.

If the product labels are to be believed, then the TouchPad Go will come in 16GB and 32GB variations. There will be a WiFi model offered as well as one with support for AT&T’s HSPA+ network.

The 9.7-inch TouchPad hasn’t seen much success as evidenced by the permanent price drop that we reported on just a couple of hours ago. If the

7-inch model can improve on the build quality as well as performance then perhaps this can be a good choice in an expanding tablet market. There is still no word on the release date but it is possible it could hit shelves in a month or two. Tell us what you think in the comments below.
source: Electronista

The HP TouchPad hasn’t seen much success which has led to several sales and price cuts at retailers everywhere, but now HP has dropped the price of their WebOS tablet permanently for both the 16GB and 32GB models.

The HP TouchPad launched at a familiar tablet price point with the 16GB and 32GB models costing $500 and $600 respectively. The new pricing will see the tablet’s pricing slashed by $100. There are surely going to be other sales depending on the retailer, like when Woot offered the TouchPad for $379.99.

The 4G version of the HP TouchPad is still set to launch for $700 although a price cut isn’t entirely out of the question. Now that the first WebOS tablet has seen its price drop, anybody out there going to pick one up soon as the new pricing goes into effect? Tell us what you think in the comments below.

source: Electronista

The HP Veer 4G and HP TouchPad have already been out for a while now, but there is still that particular webOS family member that the fans of the platform are eagerly expecting, namely the HP Pre3. Fortunately, rumors have suggested that the Pre3 is not that far from hitting the market, at least in some countries, and today, we have come across another hint pointing in that direction.

The UK HP Palm website has been updated with some new information regarding the release of the Pre3, which is now expected to ship at some point this month. However, the Devil hides in the fine print – a disclaimer clarifies that the smartphone’s estimated launch timeframe is still “a subject to confirmation.”

Perhaps, HP is simply waiting for the right time to launch the Pre3 and wants to make sure that the App Catalog has plenty of software tailored to run on the device. Or could there be another reason that we have yet to find out about preventing the smartphone from launching in a timely manner?

Whatever the case may be, those of you who wish to pre-order an HP Pre3 can do so right now and be among the first who will get their hands on the webOS-powered smartphone. As for the Pre3’s arrival to the US, it still seems like we will most likely have to wait until later this fall. Until then, we will probably get plenty of Pre3 video previews to tease ourselves with.

source: Palm via PreCentral Forums

It seems that now is the best time to buy the HP TouchPad – HP has rolled out the much anticipated big update fixing most of the issues with the tablet and it’s dropping the price on the 9.7-incher. Now, web discounter Woot.com has joined in and slashed the price of the 16GB TouchPad even further to $379.99. The website puts out a single product on sale for one day, so you’d better hurry. The tablet isn’t even refurbished – it’s brand new, so there’s no catch if you don’t count the additional $5 for shipping.

The HP TouchPad will ship with 1 year warranty from the manufacturer and all the standard contents in the package – a wall charger, a microUSB cable and a cleaning cloth. Woot’s offer beats HP’s own $100 off promotion which brings the price of the 16 gig TouchPad to $399.99, while the 32 gig version sells for $499.99 from August 5th to 7th. What do you get for your money? We’d only hint at webOS 3.0 with its brilliant card-based multi-tasking and unobtrusive notifications, but you can get all of the details if you want – just check out our in-depth review of the HP TouchPad.

source: Woot.com

If you are after the HP TouchPad webOS tablet, this week might persuade you to pull the trigger. After a $50 off price move by HP, and Amazon selling the 32GB version for $539.51, we are now going even lower, and one promotion is coming straight from HP.

HP will run a discount campaign August 5-7 to sell the 16GB TouchPad for $399.99, while Staples has a coupon right now that slashes prices with $100 on both the 16GB and the 32GB versions of HP’s webOS slate. Makes you wonder if they just have excess inventory, or HP is working on an update for later in the year.

Not bad of a deal at all for a brand new HP TouchPad, although first generation tablet prices are guaranteed to fall off a cliff anyway when the next wave starts hitting the stores later this year.

source: FatWallet & PreCentral