Research In Motion's
Tech blog Engadget reported over the weekend that Hewlett-Packard's
Did you think that the Slate was going to be a hot seller? I sure didn't, especially since it's not cheaper than Apple's
However, there's always something suspicious when a new product that doesn't seem to be hot is suddenly out of stock because of claims of "overwhelming demand."
Well, a tipster tells Engadget that HP only set out to make 5,000 of the gadgets. It was actually floored when it received orders for 9,000 units.
In other words, Slate isn't hot in a world where Apple moves a million iPads in less than a month. HP's Slate 500 may have been more than just a numerical moniker. It was almost an initial production run!
This is going to be an important lesson to keep in mind as Research In Motion's PlayBook and other tablets built around Google's
Don't fall for companies that blame shortages on demand, instead of their own production and fulfillment shortcomings. Don't buy into superlatives along the lines of "surpassed our internal expectations" unless those actual projections are being spelled out.
As a satisfied iPad owner, I'm not turning my back on the competition. There is certainly room for a spunky competitor to come in and either win consumers over on price or on specs. Dell
A serious competitor will emerge in all of this. I bet it will be the first one willing to take Apple's route and actually spill the beans on the actual number of tablets that it's selling.
Do you own a tablet? Which one are you looking forward to the most? Share your thoughts in the comment box below.