HP Looks for Second Chance to Take on Apple Tablets

Hewlett-Packard Company (NYSE: HPQ) thinks it can dethrone Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) in the enterprise tablet market. Seriously.

HP, which sold the failing TouchPad in 2011, will be releasing more information on the tablet soon, said John Solomon, senior vice president of Americas sales for HP’s printing and personal systems division.

“We will be very focused on the commercial tablet opportunity, which is completely under penetrated,”  Solomon told CRN recently.

Other companies that will manufacture tablets using Windows RT include ASUSTeK Computer Inc., Dell Inc. (NASDAQ: DELL) and Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ: MSFT) will also release its own tablet, Surface, on Oct. 26, the same day Windows 8 becomes available to the public. The tablet will have a 10.6-inch screen and an HD Display. Two keyboards, Touch Cover and Type Cover, will be available for the tablet.

Solomon told CRN he is not concerned about the competition between Microsoft’s and HP’s tablets, despite using the same platform.

“The keyboard that they showed for Surface is a great occasional use keyboard,” Solomon said. “But if you’re a professional content creator, there’s no way you’re going to use a keyboard like that for every day use.”

Samuel Weigley