HP Sells PC Division, Shelves WebOS Devices

Hello. Goodbye.

Boy does it ever suck to be right sometimes.

It turns out the rumors of HP selling their PC division were spot on, and now HP is seeking a separation from Personal Systems Group (PSG).

Along the way, they’re also shelving their mobile department, which means no more Veers, TouchPads , and don’t ever expect to see a Pre3. This makes the soft launches of the EU Pre and 64 GB TouchPad make much more sense as they were actually non-launches.

That makes the TouchPad’s official shelf life under fifty days. I can’t help but wonder if that’s a record for a tablet.

WebOS fans have been taking it to Twitter and venting, some holding out hope that HP would be willing to license WebOS to another hardware maker. I don’t exactly see that happening. Indeed, it feels like the small but hardcore group of fans who were calling for Apple to license NewtonOS for ages.  Or as a friend recently said to me, “It’s the new Dreamcast!”

Dreamcasts still go for decent green on eBay

There are plenty of unanswered questions left. Like, what happens to the WebOS devices in the wild? Will HP continue to support and maintain the App Market? While HP did mention the cost of shutting down webOS devices, CEO Léo Apotheker responded to a question about the future of WebOS as saying that the software was well received by developers and users, and they would be investigating options including third party partnerships and licensing.  This is exciting news, but it’s not a promise of anything.

Will Staples and Woot see a sudden spate of returns from their big sale that happened less than two weeks ago ? I’m thinking “hell yes.” The software may be well received, but I think people are going to be miffed at buying a device that was almost instantly End of Lifed.

In answer to all the people emailing and messaging me: no, I don’t regret buying my TouchPad. With the homebrew community and dedicated programmers, I think I’ll still have enough apps to use (again, reminiscent of the NewtonOS scene).

A quality device, the Newton was.

In fact, I strongly suggest keeping an eye on deal-a-day sites and local retail outlets for closeout deals on TouchPads. My guess is you’ll be seeing them for $299 or less soon. Just be prepared to self-support.