$99 HP TouchPads Sell Off -- Are Cheaper Tablets on the Way?

Hewlett-Packard is offering their new TouchPad tablet computers for as cheap as $99 after announcing that the company is getting out of the tablet PC and smartphone business. The devices, which are normally priced at $399 - $499, are absolutely flying off of retail store shelves. Big online sellers like Amazon have already sold out of the powerful gadgets.

Americans and Canadians have jumped at the inventory-clearing sale. The devices cost about $300 each to produce so it's definitely an incredible deal... one that HP will lose a lot of money on. The company's actions have left experts wondering if any other big electronics maker will really be able to compete with Apple and their amazing iPad tablets.

The big problem seems to be price: how to create a really good tablet and sell it at a profit for less than the iPad 2. According to Noah Elkin, a mobile computing expert:

"One of the most revolutionary things about the iPad is its price... $499 is still a lot of money, of course, but it's cheap for a device that good and that polished. It's the single biggest challenge for Apple's competitors."

Over 90% of the tablet computer market is currently controlled by Apple. That's mainly because the best competitors -- such as Samsung's Galaxy Tab device -- usually have higher prices. Even when competing devices are priced equally, consumers tend to choose Apple products because of the "brand" advantage.

Experts say that Apple is able to sell a super high-end device at a reasonable price and still make big profits because they have huge advantages in the electronic components supply chain. It also has it's own direct retail channel (Apple Stores have exploded in popularity).

It's probable that stripped-down, lower-end tablets -- that still do the things most users want -- will soon be available. According to consumer surveys, $250 may the "magic" number to achieve big sales numbers. So while we might not see more 100 dollar deals like the current TouchPad offer in the near future, we might soon have a whole slew of under-$300 tablet to choose from!

Learn some mo': $99 HP TouchPads Magic Tablet Price Point