The introduction of the Apple ipad took the mobile computing world by storm earlier this year.  The Apple ipad is the first slate computer to really catch on.  A slate computer is a scaled down version of a tablet touch screen laptop.  Slate computers are a fairly new version of  a touchscreen notebook and offers advantages in portability and battery run time.

The ipad has been amazingly successful with over two million units having already been sold.  HP is hoping to capitalize on Apples overwhelming success with their answer to the ipad.  HP was expected to release their first slate computer, the HP Android tablet in June of 2010 but for unknown reasons, they pulled out.  They haven’t announced a new release date or given any reason for the delay.

Most likely, HP is taking this time to study the slate computer market.  Relatively little is known about how consumers like to interact with their slate computers.  It’s likely that HP is closely studying what consumers have to say about the ipad.  As popular as the ipad has been, there are some things that people don’t like about it.

HP has already hinted of some features that Android might have that might make it better than the ipad.  There is rumored to be two cameras on the Android tablet.  A 3 megapixel camera for taking still photos and a VGA camera for taking video.

It’s rumored that it will cost less than the ipad at only $549 for the 64 gig version.  If you want to buy a 64 gig ipad, expect to pay $699 for the WiFi version and $899 for the 3G version.

It’s also expected to be equipped with a USB port, an HDMI out port, and a docking station for charging.  It’s also rumored to be equipped with a SD card slot.  The ipad has none of these features.

If HP plays their cards right, the will be able to ship a unit that consumers will like better than the ipad.