According to eMarketer, certain spec sheets were obtained from an unnamed source by Fox News, which detail that Hewlett-Packard is planning to launch a tablet running on a new version of Palm’s WebOS mobile operating system. Three models of this tablet, the PalmPad, running on a webOS version (2.5.1) are expected to be showcased at the Jan. Consumer Electronics Show. A fourth model, aimed for the education sector, will be unveiled as well.

“The PalmPad will weigh 1.25 pounds; boast a form-factor “slightly thinner than the iPad, with rounded edges closer [in design] to the Amazon Kindle”; and include front- and rear-facing cameras for video conferencing.”

HP has forecasted a consumer-oriented webOS tablet launch for early 2011 for quite some time now, which is positive in light of expectations of a next gen iPad launch around this time by Hewlett-Packard competitor Apple. HP should also expect some fierce competition for the PalmPad coming from the RIM front, with its upcoming PlayBook, as well as other Android devices. Apple’s iPad domain accounts for an impressive 95.5% of the tablet market, with the rest occupied mostly by HP competitors, meaning it has a long way ahead of it towards gaining some market share.

We’ve been following HP’s big plans for its acquired mobile OS for a while now. It has dropped the Windows Home Server from its support line-up in favor of webOS efforts, for which it also showcased its new and upcoming, tablet-friendly JavaScript framework Enyo. See here for details on the earlier  launch of webOS 2.0, as it’s clear the company is aiming for some serious catching-up with the competition.