CIOL:Will HP do a UMPC?

Shashwat Chaturvedi

SHANGHAI: Over the last few years the thin line between PC and mobile phones has been blurring. Increasingly, PCs have taken on mobile features (like Internet access through Sim cards or even the ability to make VoIP calls), while the mobiles of today let you do everything that a PC does. Well, almost everything that is.

So, after PDAs and mobile laptops, a new hot category has appeared on the computing landscape, it is known as the UMPC or simply stating, Ultra-Mobile PCs. UMPC is a specification for a small form factor tablet PC, jointly developed by Microsoft, Intel, Samsung, and others.

While an UMPC might be as big as a PDA, the basic difference is that a UMPC can do anything that your PC can. Thus a software running on your desktop should run on your UMPC without a hitch, while a PDA usually has a customized OS (Symbian, etc.) and applications.

Quite many makers have evinced interest in this market segment, like Sony, Samsung, Nokia, Asus and others. As the world’s largest IT corporation, Hewlett-Packard (HP) is also taking a keen interest in the mobility market, specially the handhelds, will it release a device in the UMPC space.

“Not at the moment,” says Todd Bradley, executive vice president, Personal Systems Group, HP, adding, “To be honest, we do find the space interesting and are evaluating how things turn out in the coming time.”

Bradley considers the biggest hindrance is cost as most of the devices are pretty steep on the wallet. “The challenge is to produce inexpensive devices and when the time is right, HP will also look at offering a solution in that space,” he said.

HP recently launched the mammoth 20-inch HDX laptop, dubbed as the Dragon at the ‘Making Connections’ event held in Shanghai, it would be nice if it went at the other extreme and launched a UMPC device.

For the moment, however, the executives at HP are keeping their cards close to their chest.

(The correspondent was in Shanghai on HP's invitation)

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