Although the new Touchpad tablet was the highlight of HP's press event this morning, the company also dropped some tantalizing hints about its future plans for the webOS platform. HP says that it plans to bring the operating system to a wide range of form factors and expects to eventually ship it on desktop and notebook computers.
One of the most intriguing innovations that HP demonstrated was the seamless communication between its webOS devices. For example, users can share a webpage URL between a Touchpad tablet and the Pre 3 by simply tapping them together. The prospect of being able to take advantage of cross-device syncing and communication across the full spectrum of mobile devices and desktop computers seems extremely compelling.
Although HP hasn't provided any specific details yet, it's not hard to imagine various ways that the company could start working webOS into its hardware products. It seems like an ideal platform for HP's all-in-one TouchSmart PCs, which have touch-enabled displays. HP could also potentially use webOS in future iterations of its tablet-toting printer products like the Android-based eStation. On conventional desktop computers, webOS might be useful as an instant-on companion operating system alongside Windows—a function that HP has historically served by shipping the Linux-based Splashtop environment.
It's not clear yet if HP is serious about making webOS a full-blown Windows alternative for the desktop. But as the largest PC hardware manufacturer, HP might actually have a chance of succeeding where previous efforts to advance Linux on the desktop have fallen short.
