When HP said it would kill off the TouchPad in Q4, there was some confusion about which Q4 it meant — would the company attempt to sell the fated tablet for several more months, or drop it cold turkey? We think the image above says it all. PreCentral discovered that HP intends to cut the price of the tablet by up to $350 this weekend, at least in Canada. You can actually order a 16GB TouchPad right now from FutureShop for $99.99, or a 32GB model for a cool $150. (Best Buy Canada lists the same prices, but claims that it’s out of stock at the moment.) Good luck finding them for that price, though — even if the reports are true that hundreds of thousands of the slates are stockpiled in warehouses right now, that’s quite the steal. We imagine even those who purchased at the Staples discount are liable to feel some buyer’s remorse at the news.
Update: The mythical white 64GB TouchPad has also appeared at HP’s US website today, for $599.99. Something tells us you won’t be buying one at that price.
Loading...
Comments
- Weigh In
- Corrections?
Update 2: Looks like you won’t need to visit Canada to get a $99 TouchPad after all: astute dealhounds discovered that if youclick on the right links at HP’s US websitewhile logged into a corporate or academic account, you can get the sale prices to show up right now. If that sounds like too much of a chore, you could also give HP a call. Some forumgoers are reporting success getting phone representatives to refund the several-hundred-dollar difference onto their credit cards.
Update 3: Don’t try picking one up at Best Buy, the big box retailer has pulled the TouchPad from the shelves and is apparently sending them all back to HP. It is extending the standard return window, however, and has a page up detailing those policies here. Finally, webOSroundupreports that if you purchased a TouchPad earlier, you can call HP (or your own retailer) to get a refund for the difference.
Update 4: If you thought this webOS fire sale weekend couldn’t get any crazier, think again. Best Buy has made an about-face and is now selling the TouchPad, limited to one per customer. See its updated FAQ here. Meanwhile, reports on Twitter and our tipline suggest that some of HP’s servers are starting to buckle under the load of new TouchPad activations.
Update 5: HP’s online store for Germany has reportedly dropped TouchPad pricing down to €99 (16GB), €129 (32GB), and €179 (64GB). The Veer and Pre 3 are also said to have seen their prices cut to €59 and €79, respectively. We haven’t yet been able to verify these numbers as the German store has been down all morning, potentially suffering from a similar deluge of demand as its American brethren. Thanks, David!
Source: FutureShop and Best Buy, via PreCentral
This article was orignally published on Thisismynext.com — “HP drops TouchPad price like a stone, find one this weekend for $99 (update: get one now).”
