HP PCs to dual-boot to webOS in 2012

Hewlett-Packard

When HP announced its new webOS smartphones and tablet in February, it also very briefly indicated that webOS was also headed to PCs. In an interview with Business Week, HP CEO Leo Apotheker revealed some new details.

Starting next year, all HP PCs will ship with the ability to run webOS as well as Microsoft Windows. For example, webOS could be used as an instant on OS that could be used for simple tasks (web browsing, email, etc) without having to resort to waiting for Windows to boot up.

Apotheker hopes that this move will broaden webOS’s exposure and create a “massive platform,” spanning mobile devices, PCs and peripherals such as printers. Doing so will hopefully translate to more developers creating software for the platform.

Today, webOS with its catalogue of about 6,000 applications trails badly trails Apple with some 350,000 in its App Store and Google with its 250,000 Android Market apps.

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