HP Plans a Return to the Smartphone Market

Hewlett-Packard (HP) is preparing to make its first attempt to enter the smartphone market following its ill-fated acquisition of Palm in 2010.

HP Senior Director Consumer PC and Media Tablets Asia Pacific Yam Su Yin told the PTI that the company is working on a smartphone, in addition to tablets and notebooks.

When asked if a smartphone is in the offing, she said: "The answer is yes but I cannot give a timetable. It would be silly if we say no. HP has to be in the game."

HP paid US$1.2 billion for Palm back in April 2010, as part of a major push into the mobile OS market, but later wrote off the stake and closed down the division. It's webOS platform was released as an open-source software, but failed to garner much outside support.

At this early stage, it is not possible to say whether HP will go with Android OS, but a comment by the HP director suggests that the company may choose to take a gamble on one of the smaller platforms in order to separate itself from the mass market.

"Being late you have to create a different set of proposition. There are still things that can be done. Its not late. When HP has a smartphone, it will give a differentiated experience." Yam Su Yin added.