Those New iPad Commercials Won’t Change Anything

But that relationship is limited when it comes to tablets. Hewlett-Packard Company (NYSE:HPQ) offers Windows-based tablets, but none of them run Windows RT. Instead, they come with full Windows 8 — that gives them the ability to run the enormous library of programs written for traditional PCs, but they’re expensive ($600-800) and still limited when it comes to touch-enabled mobile apps. Instead, Hewlett-Packard Company (NYSE:HPQ) is warming up to Google‘s mobile operating system when it comes to tablets. Its $170 Slate 7 remains one of the cheapest devices in its class, while its recently released SlateBook x2 is a capable, full-size Android tablet.

Priced at $480, the 10.2-inch SlateBook x2 is a worthy competitor to Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)’s iPad. Like the Surface RT, it was even designed with a custom keyboard. Yet, unlike the Surface RT, it has access to a multitude of apps — all those available on the Google Play Android app store.

CEO Meg Whitman has emphasized a new Hewlett-Packard Company (NYSE:HPQ), one built around “multiple operating systems.” It can’t be good for Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT)’s mobile strategy when Hewlett-Packard Company (NYSE:HPQ) opts to go with Android for its would-be iPad killer.

If the dogs won’t eat it…
No matter how much Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) spends on advertising, it isn’t going to change one simple truth: Windows 8 lacks mobile apps.

Given how important apps are to tablet users, Windows RT’s non-existent app ecosystem makes it a non-starter when it comes to consumers. Microsoft may not have realized this, but its hardware partners sure have: Hewlett-Packard Company (NYSE:HPQ)’s embrace of Android suggests that Microsoft has its hands full when it comes to turning around its mobile strategy.

The article Those New Microsoft iPad Commercials Won’t Change Anything originally appeared on Fool.com and is written by Sam Mattera.

Sam Mattera has no position in any stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool recommends Apple and Google. The Motley Fool owns shares of Apple, Google, and Microsoft.

Copyright © 1995 – 2013 The Motley Fool, LLC. All rights reserved. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.