Mystery HP Smartphone is Touchscreen Only?

Is HP releasing a new Pre without the standard slide-out QWERTY keyboard?

Images have appeared online of what's reportedly an upcoming webOS-based HP smartphone that doesn't sport a slide-out QWERTY keyboard. The shots follow previous pics snapped of a supposed Pre3 "Mantaray" smartphone heading to Verizon featuring both 3G CDMA and 3G HSPA radios.

At this point, there's only speculation surrounding the unnamed device. Based in appearance alone, it may sport a 480 x 800 resolution and a front-facing camera. The smartphone could even be the "Stingray" device listed within the webOS code along with the Pre3 (Mantaray) and the HP Veer (Broadway).

The mystery HP phone is believed to be the Stingray device based on its similarities with the Pre3 (but without the sliding keyboard). If legit, the device would be the first non-QWERTY keyboard smartphone offered by HP, following the Palm Pre, Palm Pre 2, Pixi, HP Veer and HP Pre3, all of which sport the slide-out peripheral combined with a virtual keyboard.

Ultimately the submitted images could be snapshots of a legit HP smartphone, or simply a prototype that was previously discarded. Pocket-lint speculates that the device seen in the images could be a miniature version of HP's TouchPad tablet set to arrive in the States and the UK later this summer. But when placed next to the Pre3 (as seen in the pic to the right), the mystery phone seems more like the next generation of Pre smartphones than a mini-tablet.

Stay tuned for more later-- we're sure we'll see this gadget pop up again within the next few weeks.

Got any juicy, exclusive insider news or images of prototype gadgets? Send them to kparrish at bestofmedia dot com! You can also follow my daily barrage of tech and gaming tidbits on Twitter.