Final batch of HP Touchpads will be for US only

MAKER OF EXPENSIVE PRINTER INK HP has announced that the limited quantity of Touchpads it is making will go on sale only in North America.

HP will be making an unknown number of Touchpads that will be available before the end of the year. These will strictly available only in North America and at a cut price like previously.

HP said, "We are pleased by the response to webOS and look forward to customer feedback so we can further enhance the platform. A limited quantity of TouchPads will be available in the coming weeks in North America only. In EMEA we are discontinuing the webOS hardware operations and will not offer any additional products beyond what might be currently available in selective outlets."

We learned earlier today that the company will build a last batch of its tablets, with HP spokesman Mark Budgell saying in a blog post, "Despite announcing an end to manufacturing webOS hardware, we have decided to produce one last run of TouchPads to meet unfulfilled demand."

We don't see what will stop customers outside the US from buying cut priced Touchpads unless the tablets will be on sale only in stores rather than online.

It is still unclear whether HP's Pre 3 smartphone will go on sale or not. The company told us, "We don't have any further information on the Pre 3 apart from the fact that it has been discontinued."

Surely there are manufactured units of the handset sitting around somewhere that would be better off being sold than used as paper weights or chopped up for recycling. µ