HP TouchPad is staying, I am in it for the long haul

Since picking up the HP TouchPad on launch day I have been swamped with one question: am I going to keep it or return it during the grace period? It's a legitimate question as many folks buy a new gadget with the view that if it doesn't blow them away out of the box they will just return it. There's nothing wrong with that, money is tight and gadgets are expensive. My reason for buying the TouchPad was to see not only how good it was out of the box, but to see how HP develops the platform going forward. I planned to keep the TouchPad when I bought it, and it is definitely staying with me.

I believe there is great potential in the webOS platform, depending on how well HP handles things. They have a huge investment ($1.2 billion) in it, and I think they will make a serious go with webOS. That will include keeping webOS evolving rapidly, and stimulating the developer community to write good apps for it. How well will HP handle this? It is too early to tell, but I am in it for the long haul. Will I ultimately regret that decision? Absolutely not, as the ride is as fun as reaching the journey's destination where gadgets are concerned.

See related coverage:

• Freedom Pro Bluetooth Keyboard: Good for use with any tablet
• HP TouchPad homebrew community is already alive and well
• What happened to Kindle on the TouchPad?
• Top 5 free apps for the HP TouchPad: Easter egg bonus
• HP TouchPad: Hands-on impressions
• BlackBerry PlayBook vs. HP TouchPad: A tale of two failures