Hewlett-Packard to End Mobile Businesses

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Hewlett-Packard has just announced that it will no longer sell tablet computers and smart phones and it may sell or spin off its PC business as well. :eek:

In a dramatic reshuffling, Hewlett-Packard Co. said Thursday that it will end its tablet computer and smartphone products and may sell or spin off its PC division, bowing out of the consumer businesses. It's one of the most dramatic makeovers in the company's 72-year history and signals new CEO Leo Apotheker's most transparent move to date to make HP look more like longtime rival IBM Corp.
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That has got to be the stupidest move I've seen in a while - unless they are going to spin off the PC and Mobile units to another name / division to not affect the bottom line.

WebOS has great potential. Give it good hardware and optimize it for that hardware and you have the best multitasking mobile OS out there - developers just needed a reason to make apps for it.
 
Buy Palm and write it off? I doubt that will happen, this is going to be a reorg or pr stunt
 
As a serious webOS fan, I just don't understand this. They started selling a new webOS smartphone (HP Pre3) in Europe YESTERDAY and announced a new white 4G Touchpad 64GB THIS WEEK.

It sounds like HP's really trying to become IBM in being a software/services/cloud company. IBM flipped it's PC OEM part to Lenovo and HP is trying to flip their's as well. Hopefully they flip the Palm division rather than keeping it for the patents.

Good news is that Touchpads will be the most affordable tablet at 100~$ in the next few weeks! :p
 
I predict Acer will end up with their mobile and PC groups.

Acer Probook
Acer Elitebook
Acer Pavilian

Acer Touchpad


awesome
 
I got a new Pre 2 really cheap a couple of weeks ago. Maybe pick up a really cheap Pre 3 in a few months.

WebOS really does work a treat!
 
Mathemabeat said:
I predict Acer will end up with their mobile and PC groups.

Acer Probook
Acer Elitebook
Acer Pavilian

Acer Touchpad


awesome
Click to expand...

Acer already has eMachines and Gateway. They would literally start competing with themselves at that point.
 
HP makes a lot of their current revenue through IT outsourcing same as IBM does. IBM got out of the consumer computing market altogether and spun off what business it had left to Lenovo who was already manufacturing their laptops. IBM still handles hardware in the server markets, but nothing on a consumer level. HP probably sees this as viable given they've already laid the ground work to head that direction. The fact is their future isn't going to rest in the desktop or even laptop markets and they've not had the best products in the mobile market space either. They've lost a lot of ground to their competition. They might simply cut their losses now rather than later.

Until there is some kind of desktop / laptop resurgence I don't think there is a lot of money to be made in those markets for HP. So spinning off or selling it's PC business while it still has some value makes sense.
 
So this is what they meant by "number one plus" in tablets?

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technolo...ad-will-be-better-than-number-one-tablet.html
“In the PC world, with fewer ways of differentiating HP’s products from our competitors, we became number one; in the tablet world we’re going to become better than number one. We call it number one plus.”

This is a prime example of clueless management blowing in the wind.
 
Well, the last HP Windows tablet sucked in design, anyways. Looked more like a toy wannabe tonka truck, or something. Or better yet, someone was taking a surf in the "wave" on the bottom of the laptop.
 
I guess instead of improving the product it's easy to just take your ball and go home.
 
I don't think anyone should be surprised by this. webOS device sales have never really made HP any significant amount of money. It was good software on amateurish hardware. The whole TouchPad sales blitz before cutting the price and pulling the plug is no different than what happened with the ill-fated Microsoft Kin. I expect the software will be retained by HP and licensed out, and the mobile device division will die a quiet death.

The difference between HP and IBM selling their computing divisions is IBM had a buyer already lined up when they announced the sale. HP is dumb for doing the exact opposite, and the fact that their timeline of 12-18 months before making the actual sale will devalue the division. In desperation, HP might split up the manufacturing arm into smaller pieces, making them easier acquisitions for companies like Acer or Dell, assuming those companies have the cash on hand to do so (right now, they probably don't).
 
yojimbo said:
The whole TouchPad sales blitz before cutting the price and pulling the plug is no different than what happened with the ill-fated Microsoft Kin.
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I don't think that the Kin flop is anywhere near the scale of this in terms of cost and reputation. It would be more like Microsoft shutting down XBox and selling off Windows.
 
heatlesssun said:
I don't think that the Kin flop is anywhere near the scale of this in terms of cost and reputation. It would be more like Microsoft shutting down XBox and selling off Windows.
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Yeah, because in the end, Kin still provided one stomping ground for WP7's predecessor... hell, Kin is now back on the market :eek:
 
And, Best Buy thought it was tough to sell HP tablets before. :eek:

Buying Palm was a dumb move (so was buying Compaq).
 
Dan_D said:
HP makes a lot of their current revenue through IT outsourcing same as IBM does. IBM got out of the consumer computing market altogether and spun off what business it had left to Lenovo who was already manufacturing their laptops. IBM still handles hardware in the server markets, but nothing on a consumer level. HP probably sees this as viable given they've already laid the ground work to head that direction. The fact is their future isn't going to rest in the desktop or even laptop markets and they've not had the best products in the mobile market space either. They've lost a lot of ground to their competition. They might simply cut their losses now rather than later.
Click to expand...
Yea but WTF is HP going to do to make money? Ok sure, they'll get into the server IT stuff, but what exactly are they going to do, make milk and cookies for the IT staff?

HP is a historic icon for bringing the personal computer to peoples homes. Not that their products were any good anymore. I can't count how many bad laptops I had to fix from HP or Compaq.
Until there is some kind of desktop / laptop resurgence I don't think there is a lot of money to be made in those markets for HP. So spinning off or selling it's PC business while it still has some value makes sense.
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They're also removing their tablet and smart phone business too.
 
yojimbo said:
I don't think anyone should be surprised by this. webOS device sales have never really made HP any significant amount of money. It was good software on amateurish hardware. The whole TouchPad sales blitz before cutting the price and pulling the plug is no different than what happened with the ill-fated Microsoft Kin. I expect the software will be retained by HP and licensed out, and the mobile device division will die a quiet death.

The difference between HP and IBM selling their computing divisions is IBM had a buyer already lined up when they announced the sale. HP is dumb for doing the exact opposite, and the fact that their timeline of 12-18 months before making the actual sale will devalue the division. In desperation, HP might split up the manufacturing arm into smaller pieces, making them easier acquisitions for companies like Acer or Dell, assuming those companies have the cash on hand to do so (right now, they probably don't).
Click to expand...

Well, the funny thing is, the kin got a minor software update, and is now back on sale...
 
What the hell man. All I read in the media everyday is how the PC is dead, and the tablet is the king.

Oh.

You didn't mean THIS tablet?

When the general public looks at my Android tablet and says "oh is that an iPad" you have to wonder is there actually any hope for the other vendors at this point.

Serioiusly, this is not a surprise.

Spinning off their PC division. Well, the PC is dead anyway, so why not...right? (4 years down the road they'll rebuy the PC division for a 180% markup on what they sold it for, and then fucking shoot holes into that boat too)
 
Ashbringer said:
Yea but WTF is HP going to do to make money? Ok sure, they'll get into the server IT stuff, but what exactly are they going to do, make milk and cookies for the IT staff?

HP is a historic icon for bringing the personal computer to peoples homes. Not that their products were any good anymore. I can't count how many bad laptops I had to fix from HP or Compaq.

They're also removing their tablet and smart phone business too.
Click to expand...

Well they were getting killed by more popular smart phones and tablets.
 
something tells me Microsoft's trying to get them on the phone to persuade them to hang tight and not give up their tablet department until Windows 8 come out.
 
Azhar said:
something tells me Microsoft's trying to get them on the phone to persuade them to hang tight and not give up their tablet department until Windows 8 come out.
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Maybe. Maybe.... maybe.....!!!! Maybe they will mirror Google, and buy the cursed thing off :cool:

That would be awesome. We might actually see the Courier live again :D
 
From NPR:

PCs are HP's biggest revenue generator, but the business is also HP's least profitable, a result of falling prices for computers and brutal competition.
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Sort of puts this decision in perspective.
 
No secret that PC hardware has razor thin margins. Why they didn't release a better phone in the time after they acquired WebOS is beyond me. The hardware is pitiful for a wonderful OS.
 
jeremyshaw said:
Maybe. Maybe.... maybe.....!!!! Maybe they will mirror Google, and buy the cursed thing off :cool:

That would be awesome. We might actually see the Courier live again :D
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As interesting as it could be to see Microsoft make PC hardware I just don't ever see it happening. The margins are to thin and Microsoft just doesn't want to compete in this area with their partners.
 
honestly their tablet had real potential, I was about to buy one, they don't need to give it up, just improve a lil bit and boom, problem solved. and give up their PC division? that is just stupid.
 
This battle was lost when 1). Palm released a great OS with a sucky phone, and 2). when HP took over and didn't change the aforementioned sucky phone. With a better phone they could have been what WP7 is now.
 
dyzophoria said:
and give up their PC division? that is just stupid.
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It makes sense to become an enterprise services company ala IBM as it's much more profitable but there's no guarantees that's going to work for them and it is a bit unimaginative to just try to be like IBM.
 
kirbyrj said:
With a better phone they could have been what WP7 is now.
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Irrelevant?

It is rather weird they would kill it so quickly after entering a market. IMHO RIM should buy WebOS, as they are already trying really, really hard to copy it anyway.
 
heatlesssun said:
As interesting as it could be to see Microsoft make PC hardware I just don't ever see it happening. The margins are to thin and Microsoft just doesn't want to compete in this area with their partners.
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True, though I guess the same could be said of Google. Though I understand Googles situation is more of patent protection.
kllrnohj said:
Irrelevant?

It is rather weird they would kill it so quickly after entering a market. IMHO RIM should buy WebOS, as they are already trying really, really hard to copy it anyway.
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Well, I had completely forgotten Palm even had phones, lol... saying that, I recall my old Palm VII. Celluar data access, 5usd? iirc a month. Even had a flip up antenna. Even when the original team jumped ship to start Handspring, it was still folded back into the company :cool:

Then the later models, I remember those as a kid, looking in the Franklin Covey windows...

Oh, well. Not they are not irrevelent. They are completely forgotten. Hell, palm had a tough time (even in the Treo launch heyday) vs Windows Mobile... and that sucked horribly in it's own rights.

At least WP7 is still in people's minds. MS just needs good HW to make it revelent again. Something like the epic HD2 (and no the HD7 wasn't worth a damn over the HD2).
 
jeremyshaw said:
At least WP7 is still in people's minds. MS just needs good HW to make it revelent again. Something like the epic HD2 (and no the HD7 wasn't worth a damn over the HD2).
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MS sets some very strict requirements about HW for WP7. The lack of good HW is MS's fault, and it doesn't look like that will change. Perhaps Nokia with their special deal will have non-standard HW that will be better, who knows.
 
kllrnohj said:
MS sets some very strict requirements about HW for WP7. The lack of good HW is MS's fault, and it doesn't look like that will change. Perhaps Nokia with their special deal will have non-standard HW that will be better, who knows.
Click to expand...

well, qualcomm did recently seem to get a certification for a nice dual core in WP7 :D

But yeah, I'm also hoping on the Nokia phones. As nice as Android GB is, I already have 3 devices using that, and I want to see what an overpowered Zune HD can be :D (piss poor reason, but still... I liked what I saw in Asia with the Mozart? I believe it's that). I think there is a launcher replacement for android that emulates WP7, just a bit buggier.
 
Ashbringer said:
Yea but WTF is HP going to do to make money? Ok sure, they'll get into the server IT stuff, but what exactly are they going to do, make milk and cookies for the IT staff?

HP is a historic icon for bringing the personal computer to peoples homes. Not that their products were any good anymore. I can't count how many bad laptops I had to fix from HP or Compaq.

They're also removing their tablet and smart phone business too.
Click to expand...
They'll 'get' into the server IT stuff? They're already neck deep in it. Walk into any hospital IT room in the country, and you're likely to see it full of HP.

HP is a historic icon for the home PC, but they're not just shutting it all down and tossing it away. They're 'selling' that portion of their business. And they're not going to sell one of the largest home computer manufacturing and distribution lines in the world for chump change.

IMO, this is a good change for HP. Their consumer products are a hassle for them, and this will allow someone to buy that branch off them and actually innovate.

The fact of the matter is that the PC market isn't dying, it's just stagnent. People aren't buying PCs so much any more, simply because they already have one. And since the majority of consumers aren't power users, all they need is something powerful enough to suft, check email, and play solitaire. So until there's a software shift that actually requires more powerful hardware, AND has something that every consumer needs, the PC business is going to continue to slump.

On the other hand, the one thing that really is changing is the server/networking/infrastructure market. This is exactly what HP is targeting, and it's exactly where they need to be to make money.
 
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