HP launch date for WebOS netbook

Hewlett-Packard has revealed that WebOS, a touch-screen operating system currently only used in smartphones, is to appear on one of its tablet computers in the next five months.

Palm's WebOS technology will be transferred from the mobile arena, where it was first used in the Palm Pre, to the larger format after HP announced a deal to buy Palm for $1.2 billion (£829 million) in April which is expected to complete later in the summer.

HP's head of its personal systems group in Taiwan, Marty Wong, said: "The HP Slate will hit the market before the end of the fiscal year ending in October, and consumers could see a wide range of software and application support at launch."

HP had already announced it planned to put WebOS on tablets, smartphones, and web-connected printers and there were rumours it could use it on HP netbooks. But Mr Wong appeared to put paid to the claims, saying: "Since netbooks are more similar in functions with traditional computers, the company will not offer such WebOS-based devices."

At present, HP netbooks run Windows 7, Windows XP, and a version of Linux.

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