Work on Android for the TouchPad began almost immediately after HP announcement they would be discontinuing the tablet and sell the remaining stock at a bargain basement price of $99 for the 16GB model and $149 for the 32GB version.
The two models previously sold for $399 and $499 respectively. That was already a$100 price cut from the original price when the tablets debuted in July.
Almost two weeks ago, a CyanogenMod developer showed off a rudimentary Android installation running on a TouchPad.
Even at $99 there is a distinct lack of value for a TouchPad running its native WebOS. Although it showed a lot of promise, the lack of apps and general unfinished feel of the OS were among the primary reason for the poor sales which plagued the TouchPad from the beginning.
On the other hand, once a fully realized Android ROM is available, those same tablets become arguably the best bargain in the tablet world.
HP plans to produce another 200,000 TouchPads to fulfill the terms of their contracts with suppliers. They are expected to be available by the end of next month.
Written by: Rich Fiscus @ 7 Sep 2011 10:50
