Why was courier cancelled

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According to sources familiar with the matter, Microsoft has cancelled Courier , the folding, two-screen prototype tablet that was first uncovered by Gizmodo. We're told that on Wednesday, Microsoft boss Steve Ballmer Microsoft execs informed the internal team that had been working on the tablet device that the project would no longer be supported.

Courier had never been publicly announced or acknowledged as a Microsoft product. It appeared from the leaked information last year that a Courier prototype was probably near to completion. The combination of both touch- and pen-based computing was compelling. Perhaps the strong launch of Apple's iPad, currently the only available "mobile tablet" from a major vendor, caused Ballmer to reassess the commitment of Microsoft in a soon-to-be-crowded market.

We contacted Microsoft, who confirmed that Courier will not go into production. At any given time, we're looking at new ideas, investigating, testing, incubating them. But the Courier never made it outside the pages of the blog. But now, a new generation of attractively designed and low-priced screens are looking to lure in consumers.

Apple's iPad is leading this category and Apple has sold more than , iPads. Meanwhile, other companies such as Dell and HP are working on introducing tablets.