HP and AT&T to launch new touch-screen phone

AT&T and HP have announced that a new HP iPAQ Glisten will soon be available in the US. The device is AT&T’s first smartphone featuring an AMOLED (active-matrix organic light-emitting diode) screen. It also has Windows Mobile 6.5 operating system, a full QWERTY keyboard and a 3.1 mega-pixel camera. It has been designed to help meet the demands of its business customers. As such the device features several Microsoft Office applications including Excel, Word and PowerPoint. The device also features a touch-friendly interface as well as mobile email capabilities, built in Wi-Fi and GPS functionality. The device will also be able to connect to over 20,000 AT&T wireless hotspots as well.

Furthermore, users will be able to manage single contact lists and synchronise them wirelessly or with a PC using a supported e-mail account. It also comes with an integrated inbox that summarises recent emails, calls, and texts. The device will be available in the coming weeks for $229.99 (£180) through AT&T business services, HP corporate sales, small and medium business and consumer websites at AT&T.com and HP.com as well as through third-party e-commerce sites. Nevertheless the phone faces tough competition. HP will definitely find it tough in the market.

BlackBerry has a huge market share in the US, around 50% and Apple accounts for around another 25%. HP has been trying in the market for a number of years and all other vendors have had the same issue – how to break the market dominance of the two leaders. The handset will also have problems competing on price he said. BlackBerry is currently running two for one deals that bring the price of some handsets below $100, less than half the price of the new handset.

While HP may be able to leverage its existing enterprise market position it faced a rough ride. The situation is complicated by the new device using Windows Mobile as an operating system. Windows Mobile has lost a lot of market share but also mindshare. It's still playing catch-up and the smartphone operating system market is fragmenting rather than consolidating. There's the Palm webOS and LiMo phones out next year and a host of other platforms.