Privacy Concerns

The participation of Insight Online is opt-in, so it doesn’t automatically just start sending information from your servers to HP.  Insight Online has also been certified through the TRUSTed Cloud certification program to ensure sound data management practices.  In order to keep this certification HP has to work with TRUSTe to get re-certified annually and have to go through a strict listing of requirements for the program.

Interface

The interface of HP Insight Online is a breath of fresh air.  It goes along HP’s new design scheme where pages without a lot of text has a black background (which @mattvogt doesn’t like) but I think it was easy to read and to follow.  Very simplistic but it allows you to drill down on each server to gain more information. You can also add users to specific servers so they only have access to the servers that they need to manage.

Hardware Fails

It happens, even to the market leaders.  Hardware, especially the pieces that have moving parts, fail.  In the past, your monitoring system would send you an alert and you would investigate and then call support.  Then you would spend at least 30 minutes (if not hours, especially if they want logs) going through prompts and giving the technician the information.  Why can’t this be easier?  Well, with HP Insight Online it is.  If you opt in, your new Gen8 HP Proliant will communicate failures to your local CSM server that pushes the information out to HP (they are working on a direct connection for those instances where you do not have a CSM server).  It gathers the needed data, automatically opens up a ticket, emails you the information, and (depending on the problem) earmarks a shipment out to your location.  If you need to contact a technician about the issue, you already have an open case and HP has all of your information.

Not only will they detect problems, they can also detect trends with hardware failures.  If they see a lot of a specific type of hardware failing in mass they can cross check that hardware to see if it all came in on the same batch.  If they find a pattern they will automatically send out a replacement part to the clients that haven’t reported any issues before the part fails.

Warranty Tracking

This is a feature I am sure many HP fans will love.  In the same interface with your server status you can also see which service contracts you have and when they expire.  No more spreadsheets!  Something small, but it is a feature that is low overdue.

VAR Access

HP is very VAR friendly, and their Insight Online product is no different.  You can give your VAR permission to have a lot of the same information that you see in your portal.  They will see a similar interface but have all of their clients grouped in the main dash board.  This allows var’s to show their clients more valueadd as well as strengthen their relationship with the client.

Wrapup

You can tell HP put a lot of thought into this product before it was launched and went through the scenario’s from the system admins viewpoint.  This is a win-win for both the customer and HP.  The customer gets better service from HP and HP can take the information they get and use it to improve their products. This is one of the many solutions that came with Gen8 that is adding value to the Proliant line to differentiate the product from the competition of commodity based server providers.  I believe it is a welcome addition to any IT toolbox and will benefit you if you have 1 or 500 servers in your organization.

 Jeffrey Powers from Geekazine recorded the presentation by Jeff Carlat.  It is located below.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oduIu98vNzM

Disclaimer:  HP invited me to the Gen8 Blogger Tech Tour and paid for all accommodations while I was there.  I received some swag and a 32GB thumb drive but I was not required to blog anything good or bad about this trip.  My opinions are my own and cannot be bought.

Day 1 of the HP Gen8 Blogger Tech Tour is over and there was a lot of information I need to digest.  One thing is for sure, the face plate wasn’t the only major change that HP made to this generation of servers!  I will be going more in depth about some of this items but I wanted to quickly share what I thought was most important from the presentations and demos today.

Less Headache for the Customer

One of the biggest transformations was the focus on making things easier for the client and less time spent fixing the server when there is an issue.  When there is a hardware failure instead of your monitoring software notifying you, you investigate and then contact HP Support and answer questions/gather logs to send the server can (not a requirement, but the functionality is there) notify HP with all the pertinent information.  HP can already start processing the RMA for the failed part and getting your replacement into your hand.  This, to me is a must have.

Smarter Hardware

HP added “intelligence” to many components on the servers to allow each component to save logs about possible issues or operating conditions to each piece of hardware, instead of on each specific controller.  If a RAM chip starts failing, the Insight software doesn’t just show that the RAM slot has a bad chip but saves this information onto the RAM stick itself. This way if the stick is accidently placed in another machine it will show immediately as a failed chip instead of running and possibly causing problems.

This same functionality is also built into the new hard drives.  However, instead of just making the hardware “smart”, they also helped the end user from being dumb.   I have never pulled the wrong hard drive out of a working server, but I have pulled the wrong card out of a working PBX, and I am sure that is almost as fun (as in not).  This seems to happen a lot, afterall the majority of us are human and we make mistakes.  With Gen8 HP has put a “dummy” LED that gives the user a little reminder that bad things may happen if you pull this drive.  This to me is something small that makes a big impact.

HP has also re-designed the way the processesers are installed to the servers.  They even called it a “Smart Socket”.  This new socket allows for you to slip in a Intel CPU and install it without worrying about bending the pins on the system board.  This will not only help out for customer installed upgrades, but also with pins that get bent in the factory.

Firmware Upgrades

I am sure the majority of small to medium sized shops have probably never upgraded the firmware on their hardware.  When you are short staffed, don’t have the expertise and things are working properly you usually don’t want to mess with things.  This can cause problems down the road as well as security concerns.  With HP’s new Smart Update Manager, they make this a fairly pain free automated process.  It will download the updates, check dependencies, apply them in order and if one of them fails, roll back to the previous versions.  Instead of taking hours or even days to patch a few racks of servers, this can be done painlessly in minutes.

Mobile iLO

HP released a mobile iLO application back in Feburary for iOS/Android phones and tablets.  This brings iLO functionality to the mobile sysadmin.  Gone are the days of lugging that laptop bag with you everywhere and trying to find a corner and wifi to check on an alert you received from Solarwinds on one of your servers.  You can now perform these same duties from a very mobile friendly app and can be done on your portable tablet or phone.

I am looking forward to what HP has in store for us tomorrow.  We will be going more in depth with HP’s Automated monitoring and management, power and cooling ideas and also CloudSystem Matrix.

Disclaimer:  HP paid all expenses for my trip to Houston to experience the HP Gen8 Blogger Tech Tour.  I was not required in any way to write anything about the trip, good or bad.  I was given a reusable HP branded grocery store bag, a nice water bottle, a polo shirt and a Gen8 DL380 server (if you really think they gave me a server, then you must be drinking).  My opinions are my own and if I cannot be bought by a iPad2 I for sure can’t be bought by a re-usable grocery bag.

One hundred years from now, people will talk about Steve Jobs the same way we do of Alexander Graham Bell, Thomas Edison, Henry Ford and the Wright brothers. Perhaps, as my friend Chris helped pointed out, he was a mix of Edison and John Lennon. Maybe he was a bit like Walt Disney, or Jim Hensen, a man who was personally tied to the brand he created.

Regardless, he was an an inventor, a visionary, a man full of ideas. He was more than just any businessman, CEO to Apple, he personally held patents for many of the technologies used in their products. He was the perfect mix of creative genius and salesman. In the tech world, Steve Jobs was elevated to near deity-like status, but as cancer proved, he was still just a man.

Every CEO of every company on the planet should pay attention to this right now and ask themselves, “why won’t this happen when I die?” (@jayfanelli)

I tried to sit down and put together my thoughts on his passing last night, but couldn’t. I was too overcome with the emotions pouring out from people across the world on Twitter. I shared some of my own but it was interesting to watch the wake for a man happen in real time from people all across the world. People who loved and hated him all had emotions to share.

Even President Obama had something to say:

The world has lost a visionary. And there may be no greater tribute to Steve’s success than the fact that much of the world learned of his passing on a device he invented. Michelle and I send our thoughts and prayers to Steve’s wife Laurene, his family, and all those who loved him.

But I’m not sure those outside of the technology community could really feel the impact the way we all did. My wife didn’t understand last night why I was grieving for a man I’d never met, the founder of a company that now rivals ExxonMobil as the world’s largest. Without meeting him, Steve Jobs had a profound impact on my life. I credit him (and Bill Gates) for sparking my interest in technology… for making me what I am today.

The first computer I ever used was an Apple II when I was in kindergarden. Later, I learned how to do amazing things on some of the first Macintosh systems. I used to skip recess to go down to the elementary school library so that I could learn on devices that he helped create. And while my family can attest to later holding Apple and their products in contempt through much of the mid-90s, while pounding the drum of Microsoft, I later came back to the “distortion field” as Steve brought real innovation back to the industry.

The Apple II, the Macintosh, Pixar (who doesn’t love Toy Story), iPod, iPhone, iPad, iTunes. Disruptions to the status-quo. Disruptions that are all because of the leadership and creative mind of Steve Jobs. I don’t remember much about what computers were like before the Apple II or the Mac, but I know what movies were like before Pixar. I know what buying music was like before iTunes and the iPod. I know what phones were like before the iPhone, and I love my iPad. I wouldn’t want to go back to a world before the things Steve created, existed. Even if you’re a hardened Android fan, you have to remember what smartphones were like before the iPhone and thank Apple and Steve Jobs for setting a new trend. Even if you’re a Microsoft fanatic, you have to thank him for keeping Bill on his toes for all those years, and forcing each other to continue to innovate.

In my article last week, prior to the announcement of the iPhone 4S, I said this:

I still maintain that Steve Jobs will be present at the announcement, even after his recent retirement as Apple CEO. I think he will be there to hand it off to Tim Cook in some way, or perhaps participate in some FaceTime chat to highlight a new iOS 5 feature. At the very least, his presence will be felt.

There was an empty chair, in the front row of the hall, with a cloth wrapped around it marked Reserved. That was no doubt a chair for Steve, one he wouldn’t be in because of what we all now know. I think Apple knew this was coming soon, and probably played the announcement a bit low-key as to not attempt to overshadow what could have probably happened any day. That said, I have no doubt that Steve wanted to see one last keynote, one last product launch, before he passed on. His presence was felt. His presence will continue to be felt with every future Apple product.

At 56, Steve Jobs did more than most people do in 90 years. He was the original Apple genius, a master showman, and the original tech virtuoso. He will be missed.

For the record, I make no serious attempt to back these predictions up with any hard facts. Take it all with a grain of salt.

Prediction #1 — Steve Jobs Will Introduce the iPhone 5

Unless his cancer reaches a point which seriously prohibits him from doing so, I believe that he will do everything in his power to be the one on stage to show off the new iPhone. Rumors of his impending doom are being greatly exaggerated

I still maintain that Steve Jobs will be present at the announcement, even after his recent retirement as Apple CEO. I think he will be there to hand it off to Tim Cook in some way, or perhaps participate in some FaceTime chat to highlight a new iOS 5 feature. At the very least, his presence will be felt.

Prediction #2 — Hardware Updates

I’m going to go on record by saying that the iPhone 5 isn’t going to look drastically different than the iPhone 4. While the antenna design my be altered slightly, the dimensions are going to be the same. In my opinion the market isn’t ready for something drastically different, yet. That will probably come with next years version. Aside from the well documented attenuation problems, the design of the iPhone 4 is solid. My best guess is, Apple won’t alter it much except to correct that flaw.

On this I will 100% totally double down.

The iPhone X will be what most are calling the iPhone 4S. An upgraded version of the current device. There will be only one device announced, but it will not be a revolutionary new device. The larger, thinner version will come in 2012. What you will see next Tuesday will be an evolutionary upgrade, along the lines of the iPhone 3G to 3GS. Same form factor, better guts.

Expect the A5 dual-core processor, upgraded camera, more memory, and possibly NFC integration, reworked antenna. Don’t expect a lot more than that.

Prediction #3 – Networks

1. No LTE. It’s not needed, the chips that are out to support it are not mature, and suck a lot of battery life. Besides that, cellular networks around the world are not deploying it at the level where it’s even going to be utilized except by a few lucky few.
2. Support for fake-4G also known as “HSPA+” — although I really hope that Apple doesn’t ever call it 4G. Enhanced 3G is all it is.

Prediction #4 – Software

Obviously with the release of a new iPhone comes updates to iOS, in this case bringing us to version 5.0.

I’ve had AT&T’s U-verse service since October 2009, the day we moved into our house. At it’s heart, it’s really a fantastic service offering… IPTV, whole home DVR, advanced DSL, all wrapped up into a nice package. But for the last 6 months I’ve been struggling with a lot of different issues ranging from broken DVRs, freezing TV signal to Internet connections that go away at random. While the issues have not been persistent enough to track down an exact cause, they’ve been frustrating.

The other day, after watching Face Off on HBO (for the first time, I know) and getting right to the climax of the movie, the whole TV signal froze and wouldn’t come back. It was 1AM and my wife was already sleeping, so I muted by frustration and went to be deciding to look into alternatives the next day.

Monday, I called up the two traditional cable providers in the area looking for pricing. Then, I hit Twitter with my plan:

Thinking of dumping AT&T U-verse for Surewest, anyone in KC area have any experience with them?

I actually didn’t get any responses from Surewest customers. What I did get was a little more surprising.

1. A reply from Ron, a Surewest social media manager saying hi. Fairly standard stuff. (see here)
2. A reply from an AT&T social media manager, asking for my phone number. This was a little more interesting. (see here)

I decided to DM my number to the AT&T manager, figuring what could it hurt? A little while later I get a call from a Jessica. She asks me what my issues are, and then vows to take care of them if I can wait a couple days while she follows up on them. I said sure, halfway thinking nothing was going to come from it.

Today I get a call from Diane in the “office of the President” of AT&T. Diane has obviously been talking to Jessica, knows what my issues are, and asks if I’ll stay on the line while they get one of their engineers on the line. Right before Diane hands me off to him (I neglected to write down his name) she gives me her direct phone number to contact her to follow up, and then the engineer runs some tests to see whats going on with my service. He schedules a tech to come up the same day and tonight that tech comes out and tests every line and piece of their equipment in my house.

Rick the technician ends up re-terminating some connections, and replacing my “Residential Gateway” (modem/router) with a model that within seconds proves it’s light years ahead of the previous version.  We have a nice chat about networking, technology, etc. He leaves.

Where is this all going?

I’m consistently amazed with the level of customer service that a monolithic company like AT&T manages to provide for U-verse. Truth be told, this is not my first positive experience with them. Every time I’ve called their technical support for any type of issue, either with my setup or family who has the service, the people have always been friendly and helpful. They’re well trained, and for the most part seem to know what they’re talking about. Granted, they could invest in some better equipment, but I have yet to have an experience with one of their employees that put a bad taste in my mouth.

The fact that one of America’s largest corporations is monitoring their Twitter feed and pro-actively trying to correct issues that customers have, is really pretty awesome.

Customer service in America, on the whole, has gone to crap in the last 10 years. Ironically, it’s companies like AT&T with their advanced networks that can put an army of poorly trained and poorly paid people in call centers all around the world, that corporate America have used to reduce their bottom line. But thankfully AT&T themselves don’t seem to be following the trend they’ve helped create.

I need to call Diane back tomorrow and thank her. Now, hopefully the service will be stable enough that I don’ t need to even call for support again. If not, I know who to talk to.

Late winter, early spring… it’s that time of year where the entire technology world begins to wonder about what Apple has planned for the next version of the iPhone, which, come late June will be the device that sets the trend for mobile technology into the next year. Like it or hate it, the iPhone is the standard that all Android, WebOS, BlackBerry and Windows Phones must either match or surpass to be taken seriously.

So what will this phone feature? It’s impossible to tell until Steve Jobs takes the stage to tell us, and even then there will still be many unanswered questions until it gets into the hands of the consumer. Even though the release of the next generation iPhone happens like clock work, I’m still constantly asked questions like “when will the next iPhone be out” or “should I wait to buy it?” — This article serves to help anwser those questions right now.

By the way, if you thought I mistaken when I said Steve Jobs will take the stage, let me clarify:

Prediction #1 — Steve Jobs Will Introduce the iPhone 5

Unless his cancer reaches a point which seriously prohibits him from doing so, I believe that he will do everything in his power to be the one on stage to show off the new iPhone. Rumors of his impending doom are being greatly exaggerated, and unlike what the tabloids have said he’s well enough to have dinner at the White House (which I believe he’s doing as I’m writing this) so pending something that physically prohibits him from doing so, he’s going to introduce this device.

Why? Because the reality distortion field doesn’t function without him.

Do I think it’s a coincidence that the Verizon iPhone hasn’t taken off like crazy and that Steve Jobs was not the one to announce it? While there are many factors, some of which I’ve outlined in the past, that have led to the Verizon iPhone not being as exciting as what some in the tech press thought it would be, the fact that Steve wasn’t there to hock the wares didn’t help. Now don’t get me wrong, Apple’s chief operating officer Tim Cook, who is taking Steve’s place running the daily operations in Cupertino is a very capable person and did a fine job at the Verizon iPhone launch. You also have the very engaging Jonathan Ive, who I’m sure would give a fantastic intoduction, or Bob Mansfield who I’m sure could also take the stage.

But none of them are Steve Jobs. None of them really have the magic, none of them have the power to convince millions of people that the device Apple is selling is the best product on the market, even if it lacks some features that competitors have, or operates within Apple’s closed system. Regardless of your loyalties, at the end of the presentation Steve makes you want to go at least try his new device… if not stand in line for hours on end to please him.

Prediction #2 — Hardware Updates

I’m going to go on record by saying that the iPhone 5 isn’t going to look drastically different than the iPhone 4. While the antenna design my be altered slightly, the dimensions are going to be the same. In my opinion the market isn’t ready for something drastically different, yet. That will probably come with next years version. Aside from the well documented attenuation problems, the design of the iPhone 4 is solid. My best guess is, Apple won’t alter it much except to correct that flaw.

I don’t buy into the 4″ screen rumor that is going around the blogs. I also don’t give any credence to the prediction of an “iPhone Nano” — I just don’t think it’s going to happen this year, if ever.

Inside though, you’re probably going to see updates similar to that of the transition from the iPhone 3G to the iPhone 3GS. What does that mean this go round?

1. Dual-core processor, perhaps in the 1GHz range. Can’t you just see Steve on stage saying “it’s twice as fast!” If they don’ t get this, they’re going to be left behind in the power plant by almost any serious Android phone in 2011 who will all be sporting dual processor/graphics cores. NVIDIA is working on a Tegra 3 chip that has a quad-core ARM processor powerful enough rival an Intel Core 2 Duo, and with far better power efficiencies. This is one area I don’t think Apple cannot afford to let us down in, and I don’t think they will.
2. Improved rear camera, perhaps in the 8MP area, and with support for 1080p video recording. Honestly, as good as the camera on the iPhone 4 already is, rather than simply bumping up the megapixels I’d like to see them give the sensor increased sensitivity, faster focus speed, and better ISO/low light performance… and maybe they will.
3. 1GB of RAM. It’s cheap, and it’s going to be needed as mobile computing becomes more powerful to background more and more applications. I can see Apple sticking with 512MB here just as much as I can see them update, so I’ll give this one a 50/50 shot.
4. NFC, or near field communications. If you don’t know what this is, I’d suggest some research is in order. It’s too much to explain here, but it basically means using your phone for mobile payment and communication with other devices. I’ll be shocked if they don’t have this feature.

Prediction #3 – Networks

1. No LTE. It’s not needed, the chips that are out to support it are not mature, and suck a lot of battery life. Besides that, cellular networks around the world are not deploying it at the level where it’s even going to be utilized except by a few lucky few. This is an area where if you can get LTE now (or soon) and really feel like you need it, you’re going to be better off with Android anyway.
2. Support for fake-4G also known as “HSPA+” — although I really hope that Apple doesn’t ever call it 4G. Enhanced 3G is all it is.

The reason why I think Apple will support HSPA+ in the next version is the same reason why I think the iPhone 5 will be a unified GSM/CDMA device. I think it’s going to be launched at the same time on AT&T and Verizon in the USA, in addition to all the GSM providers around the world. The current iPhone 4 model on AT&T is a GSM-only radio made by a company now owned by Intel. The Verizon iPhone uses a radio that is both CDMA and GSM capable made by Qualcomm. If I could bet on it, I’d put big money on this same exact chip being in the iPhone 5. This chip currently supports HSPA+ but it’s not in the iOS firmware, nor does Verizon utilize this technology on their EVDO data network.

One chip both simplifies Apple’s SKUs and allows them to use the same device around the world.

I also think Apple is going to announce support for other CDMA providers around the world, including Canada and most of all… China. Although I wouldn’t be surprised if that doesn’t happy until after the initial launch.

Prediction #4 – Software

Obviously with the release of a new iPhone comes updates to iOS, in this case bringing us to version 5.0.

This is the area where my predictions are somewhat fuzzy. Because we’re still in the process of evaluating the soon to drop (like, within the next month, possibly with the iPad 2) version of iOS 4.3, that’s all many are focused on.

But I will say that I think Apple finally is going to get serious about the cloud, and wireless. While I don’t think that Apple will be switching to over the air updates from carriers (nor should they), I think they’re going to finally open up wireless sync for iTunes. The time is right, and their track record recently with things like Apple TV streaming, Air Play, etc, is leading them in that direction.

It would be fantastic if Apple would let you sync your device with iTunes from anywhere, but I have mixed emotions about if this will happen. Carriers are not going to want to allow them to do it, especially AT&T, so it’s possible it will be a Wifi only feature, which honestly wouldn’t be a horrible thing. I’m not sure I’d want to be syncing back over 3G, even at HSPA+ speeds and especially not on regular 3G or worse yet, Verizon’s slower broadband network. Syncing back to my home computer, or even better, Apple’s North Carolina datacenters, would be fantastic.

What I hope to see, but don’t think we will, is a better notification system in iOS. Despite Android, WebOS, BlackBerry and even Windows Phone having a superior notification system for new events, I think this is one of those areas where Apple doesn’t see major issues. Those that do, are going to continue jailbreaking and installing things like Lockinfo, Notifier, etc.

It’s my hope that some of the built in applications will finally get some love in iOS 5. I’m looking at you Calculator, but especially you Weather and Stocks… which have hardly changed at all since iOS 1.0. Most of all though, I think Apple is going to have to invest heavily in revamping their Maps application, which hasn’t changed much since the original version. Google Maps on Android is absolutely crushing iOS in this area.

Last, voice commands are going to be improved, hopefully to the point where it reaches the ability to run much of the phone without touch. If Apple could duplicate the text-to-voice functionality of Android, it’s be all over.

Prediction #5 – Most of this will be wrong

In all five of these areas, I’m probably going to be wrong more than I’m right. Predicting what Apple will do is like predicting the weather in Kansas on the day they announce the iPhone 5. It could be sunny, we could get a dual-core, or it could be stormy and we get only minor improvements. Hell, it could snow in June and we get nothing. The world honestly won’t know until later this summer.

I will say this. After the end of February, if you are reaching the point where your iPhone 3GS contract is about to expire, and you’re not considering a switch to Android or Windows Mobile (which you should, there are some great alternatives out there) then don’t buy an iPhone 4 right now. Not on AT&T, Verizon, or any other network. We’re quickly reaching the point of no return where you’re going to be kicking yourself for investing $200/$300 and two years of your life in a contract for a device that is soon to be last generation.

But, perhaps my #6 prediction is that many will not see or heed this warning, and do so anyway.

It’s been somewhat disgusting to watch tech blogs and Twitter today discuss Steve Jobs’ health based off rumors and unconfirmed photographs. Let the guy get better and give him some privacy. I’m not going to lend more space to this because aside from what the shareholders and consumers need to know about the absence in his role as CEO of Apple, what happens in his personal health is his business.

Why give credence to grocery store check out stand trash?

Can we all agree to leave the rumors to the release of the products, and the facts to the health of a human being?

Today was an interesting day in the tablet world. We learned that what was left of Palm has now officially been smashed into HP, and that HP is serious about really building on the momentum that Palm had started to build with webOS. HP announced a plethora of new things today (which you can read more about over at Engadget, who I stole/borrowed the wonderful chart above from) but the most interesting today was their new tablet, the HP TouchPad.

I have been getting a lot of crap from people for talking a lot about Apple on this site recently. If you’re bothered by this, feel free to stop reading now, or write your own articles. Fact of the matter is, they’re key to a lot of the technology I’m interested in right now and they execute it better than anyone else.

Apple created a new market last year when they unveiled the iPad. Now I know that Microsoft had been doing tablet PC’ long before that, but they sucked. It should be obvious by now, that even if you hate Apple, you have to pay attention to what they’re doing because they will set the trend for consumer technology in the next year.

That said, you now have three competing platforms that are looking to take a notch out of Apple’s belt. HP and their webOS platform, RIM and their new PlayBook and all new BlackBerry Tablet OS, and Google with Android 3.

I’m aware that there are already Android tablets out on the market, but even Google will tell you they wished they didn’t exist, because they’re running versions of Android that Google has actually come out and said are not designed for a tablet. So I’ll give Google and the Android platform a pass on the lackluster Galaxy Tab or the Dell Streak, which are something short of giant phones you can’t make phone calls on.

There is a lot of excitement about the three major contenders to take Apple down a notch. However, here is why they won’t make a huge dent, at least not yet.

HP TouchPad

I’ll start off by saying that of the three contenders, this is the one I think has the best chance of success, but the hardest road ahead. It strikes me as the one that is most like the iPad, but as of yet we have no pricing or firm release date. Like Apple, they are in complete control of the operating system and all of the hardware. Palm has had years of experience building phones and other mobile devices, and HP is the leader in PC hardware, the combination gives HP a major leg up on their competition.

But for HP to be competitive they’re going to have to price this device at or below the retail cost of an iPad. Otherwise, consumers are going to go with what they know will work and what is going to give them the best bang for their buck.

It’s also not due out until summer, chances are at least a month after the release of the iPad 2, which should set the bar even higher than it already is. If HP wanted to really make a splash, they should have released this device soon after announcing it. Otherwise it’s still hard-vapor-ware.

What is also missing from this is a solid community of developers who will make applications for this device. There are already webOS developers, making apps for the Palm Pre, but it remains to be seen if they’ll rally around this device, especially if HP sinks it in advance by not pricing it right.

Motorola Xoom

Of the three, this is the one I’m the most disappointed with. It has awesome specs, and Android 3.0 looks incredible and really looks and feels like a solid tablet operating system. However, Motorola has priced their hardware starting at $799, almost $200 more than what you could buy an iPad equipped with a 3G radio. (or $300 more if you’re not interested in cellular data networks)

The second kick to the family jewels is that Verizon is holding the WiFi connection hostage on this platform. In order to use WiFi, you have to pay for at least one month of their EVDO service. If you’re interested in doing that, then it’s no big issue, but if you’re like me and want to use Wifi or already pay for a personal hotspot through Mifi or another phone, it’s just an added cost to an already inflated price tag.

(BTW, Motorola is already on my list for inflating the pricing of the Atrix laptop dock, $500 for a netbook without any guts is insane.)

Motorola, Google and Verizon should rethink their strategy with the pricing of this device before it’s too late. The Xoom is due out at the end of this month.

BlackBerry PlayBook

This is by far the most confusing of the three devices. It’s the smallest of the three (and the iPad) and has the lowest resolution. It also has the lowest battery size (although that can be made up for by more effeicent usage) and runs an operating system that no one has actually seen yet. According to RIM, it’s not based on their current BlackBerry OS 6, but a brand new platform.

It’s hard enough for me to use BlackBerry OS, or find good applications for it as it is. I just don’t see this device really taking off in the consumer space. While it has the same advantages that Apple and HP hold in terms of controlling the hardware and the software, I’m just not confident in RIM’s ability to deliver a solid product. The other three are building on years of already existing software and RIM is writing a new platform from scratch. Maybe it will work to their advantage, but it all depends on if they can really match the other three feature for feature and deliver regular updates.

And of course, developers have to embrace the platform to motivate consumers to buy into their platform.

Pricing is still just rumors, although I did read today that Office Depot is going to sell the 16GB WiFi only model for $499 (same as the iPad) — so maybe RIM won’t do as horribly as I expect them to.

Apple iPad 2

If I were a betting man, this would be the horse I’d be rooting for. As with any unannounced Apple product, it’s all up for rumor, but the ecosystem that Apple has already built combined with the technologies that are expected to make its way from the iPhone 4 into the next version as well as a faster processor and more memory, make this the one the three contenders really need to beat.

It’s not enough to play catch up to a product that is a year old. HP, RIM and Google need to beat the next thing Apple has up their sleeve. Not an easy task, especially when they will struggle to beat the year old product.

The boys who cried wolf (AKA The Wall Street Journal, et al) are all indicating that Tuesday will be the announcement of the long awaited iPhone 4 on Verizon. I hope they’re finally right.

Not because I’m going to switch, no, I’m actually pretty satisfied with my AT&T service, having been a customer for a long while before the launch of the first iPhone. I’ll just be glad when the noise makers and complainers can have another option. I hope that Verizon’s network works better for them than AT&T (although I kinda also hope it’s just as bad) so that they’ll shut up. I also look forward to another network getting some of the load so that my service will be even more reliable than it already is.

I can’t be alone in this thinking, if AT&T’s network is so god damn horrible across the entire country as the people in San Fransisco and New York make it out to be, no one would use it. Fact is, myself and millions of other subscribers made the choice to use it long before the iPhone. I even used to live down the street from the world headquarters of Sprint, and still used AT&T because I got better service.

I’m not discounting that there are people with horrible AT&T service. I’ve been places where that is the case, I know people who have this problem on a regular basis. It sucks, but chances are no has one forced you to use an iPhone this whole time.

I’ll also be glad when this golden phone finally does arrive, so we can stop obsessing about it. The phone will come out, AT&T’s subscriber numbers will slightly decrease, Verizon will see an increase, Apple’s profits will go up. The sun will still rise in the east and set in the west. Choice is good, but the tech world needs to stop treating this like we’re awaiting the second coming of Christ, and treat this like what it is, like what happens all around the world with the iPhone on multiple carriers. The same phone, on another network.

(Image credit to Gizmodo, from back in 2005, proof people hated them before the iPhone)