HP TouchPad sells out in US, still no UK discount

HP has massively reduced the price of the TouchPad in the US, with the doomed tablet selling for just $99 (£60). But there's no sign of an equivalent UK price slash.

Last week HP announced it was giving up on webOS, the operating system that powers both the TouchPad and the Preline of smart phones, leaving both devices dead in the water.

A price-drop followed soon after, and now Best Buy in the US has sold out completely, stating that it has run out of stock -- "both in store and online and will not be receiving more inventory". HP's online shop and Best Buy are refunding the difference to anyone who bought a TouchPad at the more expensive pre-abandonment price.

While American gadget fans have been able to scoop up a bargain, however, there's no sign of an equivalent sale in UK shops yet. Amazon.co.uk is charging £312 for the 16GB version of the TouchPad, while Play wants a whopping £349 for same capacity version.

That's frustrating for two reasons. Firstly, continuing to flog a tablet that's already been abandoned at full price is nigh-on irresponsible, and will seriously annoy any customers who shell out without realising it's been ditched.

Secondly, we want a super-low clearance price for the UK because buying a TouchPad extremely cheap doesn't seem like such a daft idea. Of course, you'll be invested in an operating system that's going nowhere fast, but you won't be very invested if you've only splashed out £60.

We weren't amazed by the TouchPad, awarding it a mediocre two and a half stars in our review. But that was with a price that put it in the same bracket as the fabulous iPad 2, or the promising Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1. If you're after a slick tablet for Web browsing, you could do worse than grabbing a discount TouchPad if and when the price-slash hits Blighty.

Or of course you could buy it, frame it and hang it on your wall, as a sorry monument to its own failure. But that would be depressing.

Would you touch up a cheap TouchPad? Or would you not touch the thing with a bargepole? Say something touching on our Facebook wall, or in the comments section below.