WSJ Says HP Prepping New Consumer-Oriented Smartphone

The Wall Street Journal is reporting that that HP will soon introduce a new consumer-oriented iPAQ smartphone.

This Windows Mobile 6.1 device will include a touchscreen and keypad, according to the newspaper's unnamed sources. It will be released in Europe before the end of this year, but will later be available around the world.

Is It the HP Oak?

At the very beginning of this year, a product roadmap leaked out of the European carrier Vodafone. Prominently listed on this was the HP Oak, which at that that time scheduled for release in September. It seems likely that this is the device the WSJ's tipsters are referring to.

This smartphone will sport a numeric keypad on its front, with a slide-out keyboard behind its screen.

In addition to 7.2 Mbit HSDPA, this quad-band phone will include Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 2.0.

Other features will include a GPS receiver and a 1010 mAh battery that's listed as providing up to 3.5 hours of talk time and 360 hours of stand-by time.

Early this year, Vodafone was planning to charge £260 for this device.

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