Woe be the mighty HP. Retail giant Best Buy wants the PC maker’s tablets off its shelves after selling just 25,000 TouchPads. That’s not all, Walmart and others are also having trouble getting rid of the devices, according to a Wednesday report. Say it with us: there’s no tablet market, only an iPad market.
Best Buy has sold just 25,000 of 270,000 TouchPads — a tenth of the retailers inventory of HP tablets. Best Buy wants the devices out of its warehouses and off its shelves. Instead, the PC maker is asking for time and will send a “senior HP executive” to Best Buy’s Minneapolis headquarters to calm shaky nerves, the Wall Street Journal‘s All Things Digital reports.
But the nightmare for HP doesn’t stop there. Thursday, the company faces reporters to announce quarterly earnings. Look for the “channel sales” numbers and “sell through,” telling you the difference between the number of TouchPads shipped to retailers versus how many tablets actually walked out the door with consumers.
It also appears HP has shot itself in the foot trying to spur TouchPad sales by repeatedly lowering prices. Soon after its July release, the TouchPad price was cut by $100, an effort one analyst described as “wildcat pricing moves.” In the end, however, the price cuts only increased consumers’ reluctance to buy, instead waiting for the next discount.
How can HP dig itself out of the hole? Look for the PC maker to offer holiday bundles, where if you buy a computer, you get a TouchPad at a deep discount.
Ed Sutherland is a veteran technology journalist who first heard of Apple when they grew on trees, Yahoo was run out of a Stanford dorm and Google was an unknown upstart. Since then, Sutherland has covered the whole technology landscape, concentrating on tracking the trends and figuring out the finances of large (and small) technology companies.
33 responses to “Best Buy Wants to Yank HP Tablets Due To Terrible Sales”
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Never a good sign when your brand new product ends up on Woot VERY shortly after introduction!!!!
“damned if you do, damned if you don’t” HP are on a sticky wicket and then some.
Eww. Feel (doubly) sorry for anyone getting a pee cee with or without a TouchPad this Xmas.
I went to BestBuy the other day, and all the HP tablets were running a demo video and you could not get out of it to try out the tablet. That’s no way to sell these devices.
Then again, I went to h.h.gregg next door and they have all the tablets available to play with, but I noticed that people had a lot of trouble figuring out how to even wake them from sleep. With the iPad, there is a big friendly button in the front that wakes the unit and shows the “slide to open” screen. Even a toddler can figure it out.
All other tablets have tiny buttons around the edges. Some of them recessed, and it is not clear which button does what. Complete design failure.
I’d really enjoy it if the same thing happens to the HP Windows 8 tablet after all the Wintards claim that consumers are just eagerly waiting to buy them.
I honestly can’t see the average consumer buying an HP TouchPad which is an unknown quantity when Apple iPads are the best tablet out there and they’re selling like crazy. You’d really have to be an iHating ‘tard to do something that stupid. I could understand if you’re into tech devices and just wanted to buy a TouchPad to mess around with it, but for the average consumers to just throw their money away on some unsupported WebOS device, it really doesn’t make a hell of a lot of sense no matter how you look at it. It would seem to be a good deal if you are in the market to buy an HP computer and get a steeply discounted TouchPad for your pains. I mean, the HP TouchPad honestly can’t be that bad so that its unusable, right?
HP/Walmart/Best Buy should dump their inventory to Overstock.com and sell for $100 each. That way a lot of consumers will get their hands on a WebOS tablet for cheap and maybe that will create a market for it :-)
Of course the tablets are crap and I would not touch it with barge pole.
good point
I wanted the webos tablet to succeed. Frankly, webos is a nice operating system. However, I did not buy one…Tablets are sold based on the content, and that battle is being won by Apple, with Android a distant second.
Does HP realize that their HP touch pad is still catching up to the first iPad?
This is a pretty sad story. Don’t kick ’em when they’re down. After all Apple’s been down a lot too.
Wow, that’s just terrible news. It sucks to see HP struggling to sell WebOS. I hope they don’t ditch WebOS and dismantle Palm. I wish things weren’t so iOS-Android because everyone else who’s not these two are just struggling to survive. I mean, I could’t care less about some really cruddy OS’, but WebOS is great. Windows Phone is great too.
I want to buy a TouchPad but I have an iPad 2 and wouldn’t want to own another tablet unless it’s another iPad (iPad 3) or a little bit on the cheaper side. I mean, when you buy in to iPad, you have 90,000 iPad tailored applications. TouchPad has, what, 300-400? iPad had 3,000 out of the gate. That’s worth the $500 investment. If the TouchPad hits $300, I’ll buy one for sure.
The reason why its not selling that well is because people don’t know what webOS is. To the average joe who walks into the store, the HP/webOS tablet will look like a far inferior tablet (or device) than the rest of the tablets or devices out there. In reality, (it could be argued) webOS is like one of the best if not the best (mobile) OS out there. The only area it really lags behind in, is in the app world, but other than it, its right up there with the other OSes if not above.
I’m sorry, but people are lead to believe (brainwashed, whatever you want to call it) that Apple products are the best. Period. Basically, Essentially, NOTHING is as good as an Apple product. Again, Apple is the best, period. The problem with it, is that they are not. Are they the absolute best? No. But, are they great products? (One of the better company, or one of the best?) Yes.
The thing is, you have products out there that are as good as the Apple product, and in some cases better than the Apple product. BUT the general population is brainwashed (lead to believe) that basically anything with an Apple logo is automatically better than everything out there. That’s absolutely NOT the case. You have products that are as good as Apple’s if not better, but those products NEVER get the publicity like an Apple product. Matter of fact the article/review/whatever it may be, may bluntly say its a better product than an Apple product or is bluntly as good as an apple product, BUT those devices/things are not plasted all over the news/media like Apple products. So, basically you have a product that is as good, if not better than the Apple product, BUT, BUT, the Apple product is plastered all over the media/news which basically brainwashes (lead to believe) the people to believe that the Apple product somehow (must) be magically better than all the other products out there.
Thats why a lot of these other companies are struggling. (If you want to call it struggling) The thing is, they may already be making products as good, if not better than Apple, but the love for Apple by the news/media is causing people to believe that Apple must be magically better. Period. The reason why the Media/news has apple plasted all over is that it brings them the hits. And they want the hits. Which is going to make people believe that Apple must be the best out there. Which is going to cause them to want and read stuff about Apple, which is going to cause the media/news to write about Apple, to get the hits and readers, and the whole cycle repeats over and over. So, if a competitor makes a product that is as good, if not better, it won’t get the media attention because, it won’t attract the hits like an Apple product. So basically people won’t know this because the media/news won’t be telling them that. Or covering it as much.
And thats exactly whats going on with this tablet (or about any non-iPad) You have tablets that are (bluntly) as good as the iPad. Some people may even argue better. The only place that they may lag in is the amount of apps, but with all the disadvantages and advantages all tablets have, that most likely is balanced out. But, the news/media covers the iPad more than any other tablet, and probably more so than all the other tablets combined! So, what do people hear? iPad! iPad! iPad iPad! Thus, is going to have them lead to believe that the iPad must be the best tablet out there. Period. And the media/news will talk about the iPad because that is what people want to here and that is whats going to give them the hits/attention. So, these other tablets that are equally as good, if not better will NOT get the attention, or near the attention that the iPad gets. So, basically what happens? People will believe that those tablets are NOT as good as the iPad or far inferior.
And I’m sorry, but that has went to the laptops. Especially the air. You always here about the Air. How great it is, how there is no windows powered machine that can compete against it, and on and on and on. BUT once you start researching, there have been windowed (is that even a word?) powered machines for ages that were basically in the same category. There has been for years, and apparently much longer than the air has been out, these ultraportable laptops. Granted, they may not be as thin as the Air, but weight wise, weigh about the same. But you NEVER hear about them. Period. About the only time you would know that they even existed is if you stumbled across them on the manufacture website. Basically, nobody covers it. And what makes matters worst? Most of the time, these ultraportables flat out destroy the Air. Literally the ONLY advantage the Air has over them is thinness. Thats literally the /only/ advantage that the Air has over it. Performance and battery life? The Air cannot even come close to it. But, you never know that these devices exists if you don’t stumble across them on the manufacture website.
I have absolutely no problem if they want to cover Apple products. But if you cover Apple products much more than any of the competitors and quite literally more than all the competitors combined? I have a problem. Especially when the competitors have products as good, if not better than them. Basically you are flat out lying to them. Oh yes, you can say that they are not lying because they are not telling wrong information at all, BUT they are absolutely presenting the facts in the way that WILL make people think a particular way. Basically, you are 100% telling the truth, but you leave things out and/or present it in a way where in reality its completely false, BUT you can defend yourself saying I’m stating the facts! and indeed you are! But your not telling the whole story and/or presenting in a way to make them think wrong.I’m sorry, but that is whats happening. Apple products are some of the best (key: NOT the best) and the media/news hype on it soo much that the average joe (or sally) basically is brainwashed (lead to believe) that Apple is the best period and nothing comes even close. Thus (quite literally) destroying the competition because their products, which are as good, if not better than what Apple makes, appear to be vastly inferior to what Apple makes. And quite literally, the only way the other companies can “beat” this is buy making generation after generation BETTER than what Apple makes, and even then, they may not even sell near the amounts or have the demands as Apple.Oh hell yes, this is great for apple because all what apple needs to do is make a product and charge how much they want to, because the media is basically going to advertise their products FOR FREE and basically make the demand for their products. If you add all this stuff the news/media does with Apple, dear god, they probably EASILY give Apple the equivalence of billions of dollars worth of advertisement essentially FOR FREE. Now, do you know why Apple is doing so damn successful? Its because of the Media. They essentially GIVE Apple billions of dollars worth of advertisement for free, if not even higher.
The point being (I guess) is basically its all the media’s fault. (if not all, but a huge portion is)Apple makes great products, no doubt about it. BUT other companies make products that are as good and in some cases better than Apple. But the media, instead of covering things fairly spends their time on Apple because it gives them the hits. Which is going to end up causing the average joe to start thinking that the Apple products (which is equally as good as some other product) is so far superior than the other product because the media is always talking about it and not the others. So basically the media is the one who is created (or has created) the iPad world and not a tablet world. Basically they are the ones who are causing people to buy iPads in flocks and not the other tablets. Don’t believe me? Go around and ask people if they know what a Motorola Xoom is, Samsung Galaxy Tab, Asus Eee Pad Transformer, HP Touchpad. Most likely, the average Joe (or Sally) will probably have not heard of them and most likely probably dosen’t know what those are. Ask the average Joe or Sally about the iPad? Most likely they will know what it is. Why? Because of the Media/news. Because of the Media/news. Thats why. That’s why a lot of these other tablets are not selling as well as the iPad and are (essentially) as good as the ipad itself. Because the media/news make the iPad seem to be far superior than the other tablets. That’s why. That’s why people are gobbling up iPads, because the Media/news are essentially telling them that is the tablet. iPad is a great tablet, no doubt, but the Media/news is artificially creating demand for it, or lack of demand for the other tablets. Basically the Media/news has all that power in their hands. Don’t think so? Look at elections, prime example. You have countless of people who base their vote entirely on what the media/news tells them.
The media has a HUGE influence on people. What the media/news says will have an impact on people. a huge impact.As long as the news/media favors Apple (or in this case) sales will reflect it. If the media/news spent as much time on other tablets equally, sales of these other tablets would be (much) higher. But since, they spent most of their time and still are on Apple (iPad) the sales of iPads will be higher and other tablets, lower. Once, the media starts migrating to the middle, sales of the other tablets WILL increase greatly. But once again, as long as the media/news talk about apple all the time, Apple sales will be higher because they essentially giving apple free advertisement. That’s why.
I too was impressed with webOS. Saw it first at Verizon store but I was advised to keep away…rightfully so, since there is not content available for that. But tablets, HP really used the cheap materials really. The major plasticky feel with super fingerprint magnet back… should be 150 bucks or so. 400$/- ?? what were they thinking ? I hope this does succeed as I feel it is really better than Andriod anyway…once the apps are available. I would buy for 150 bucks if it is available today.
i think i speak for everyone who reads it in saying:
tl;dr
This is the comments, not essay section
First and best to market will stay best in market until they mess up. If you can’t come to grips with that, then go stab yourself in the eye.
First and best to market will stay best in market until they mess up. If you can’t come to grips with that, then go stab yourself in the eye.
Whew, I am glad that its the Media’s fault. I was beginning to believe that Apple is better. Thanks so much for your informational tirade.