netbook future?

theron

theron

theron

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interesting bbc article about the future of netbooks:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/8421491.stm

Code: 
"Rising prices and better alternatives may mean curtains for netbooks.

The small portable computers were popular in 2009, but some industry 
watchers are convinced that their popularity is already waning.

"The days of the netbook are over," said Stuart Miles, founder and editor of 
technology blog Pocket Lint."
 
Manufacturers want the death of netbooks, simply because the margins are razor thin. Manufacturers don't want people buying "just enough" computing power, with a small screen, running Linux because it's incredibly disruptive to their existing business models...

People seem to be happy to be led down that path, however, with the disappearance of "cheap" netbooks running Linux in favour of multi-core beasts with 3D hardware acceleration and multi-gigabytes of RAM running Windows 7 costing twice the price. :o

I'm not against an increase in computing power available in netbooks, but i am against the disappearance of choice - you should be able to choose a powerful, small computer if you want for more money, or you should be able to get a low power device capable of internet browsing, email and basic office tasks for less money.
 
I've noticed a slight turn around in netbooks. They started out very small, but now as you say they are becoming more powerful and expensive and are now getting bigger, like the Dell 13z.

It looks like they will just turn into laptops again if that makes sense. Laptops > Proper netbooks (small, 10" or less screen) > Big Netbook (11" screen +) > Back to laptops again.
 
Nymins said:
I've noticed a slight turn around in netbooks. They started out very small, but now as you say they are becoming more powerful and expensive and are now getting bigger, like the Dell 13z.

It looks like they will just turn into laptops again if that makes sense. Laptops > Proper netbooks (small, 10" or less screen) > Big Netbook (11" screen +) > Back to laptops again.
Click to expand...

Yep they appear to be gettin larger by the month almost. I find that 10" is the optimal size with the around 92% keyboard.
The N450 should be something of a leap later this month - with the lower power requirements. It would be nice if AMD got their finger out too! Great tool for work/Uni making internet calls via voip - much more useful than my 15" laptop.
 
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I think they should devolve them and make them smaller again. I have the Virgin Freedom netbook with a 10.2" screen, and would much prefer a smaller tablet sized device. Its a nice small size, but Id rather something around the size of say a Psion 5 series.
I can see the netbook dying, simply because mobile phones have small internet sccess and I dont really see a big market for them.
 
Lots of people forget that whilst smart phones get smarter - they're still smart phones running proprietary operating systems and weird and wonderful processors and other hardware.

A Netbook is an x86 compatible machine, capable of running practically anything and everything that you run on your desktop. It means that you can work seamlessly on documents, with no worry of conversion between formats, and it means you have all of your settings exactly how they are on your desktop.

Perhaps Android is going to blur this line, but I think there will still be a market for netbooks because what is good for a phone isn't necessarily good for a portable productivity device - that is to say - trying to be a jack of all trades whilst admirable will still leave room for specialised devices that do what smart phones do, but better.

Every phone available on the market today plays MP3s - but people still buy MP3 players... :)
 
Yup, I think netbooks will decline. I use my phone for on-the-run browsing now and a netbook is not powerful enough for other things I want to do with it. I think the Apple tablet (iSlate?) will shake things up a bit and we will see the industry move to:

* Phones for casual browsing and email, largely split between Apple and Android.
* Book readers expand to cover net browsing and video playback, effectivelyh becoming a converged tablet devoce (aka iSlate above).
* Thin and light 13"/14" laptops for more heavy work.
 
yeah i agree about the smart phones, i expect they will eventually completely fill the void that may be left by the netbooks.

but i like netbooks for their battery life and ease of use compared to current smartphones.
 
This is coming from ARM though who are a relative unknown and are restricted by not havig x86 compatibility so need to move people away from windows.


I for one really hope they do it though. Another chip manufacturer is good for the consumer. Not only that but they are British based.
 
Yeah they will decline, but for a good reason.

Prior to netbooks, there were 13-17inch laptops with 2 hrs battery that weighed a lot and there were small ultra-portables (11/12/13inch) from Sony/Lenovo et al that were slower, but had great battery life but cost a lot.

Netbooks meant that everyone who didin't want to buy a large chunky laptop AND who couldn't afford an ultra-portable, had a new choice. I went straight out and bought an EEE901 as soon as I read the review. I could have 7-8 hr battery life, watch divx movies, and have ultra portability.

Like any serious PC user who has a netbook, I soon discovered its shortcomings. Atom processors are just painfully slow. At first, I accepted this, but soon I began to crave more power.

The answer lied in the 11-12 inch ultra-portable range. But I still couldn't afford the expensive sony/lenovo models. Then Acer released the 1810tz and all my problems were solved. A highly affordable, dual-core CULV, 4GB ram, win 7 64 bit, weighing the same as most netbooks and having an 8-11 hour battery life.

Before this PC came out, I had no choice other than to have a netbook.
 
daz said:
Manufacturers want the death of netbooks, simply because the margins are razor thin. Manufacturers don't want people buying "just enough" computing power, with a small screen, running Linux because it's incredibly disruptive to their existing business models...
Click to expand...

Not sure I agree with this opinion, the fact they can produce Laptops for similar money means they probably make more money from Netbooks than from the entry level Laptops.

I would point my finger at MS. They were unhappy to see all the Linux Netbooks eating into their market share, so for a limited time allowed OEM's to install XP Home with limited hardware specs. But all good things come to an end so they now offer Win 7 basic. But no one seems to want that, so the hardware has to get better to cope. So that puts the price up into Laptop territory.

Having owned a MSI Wind clone for a while, I found the Netbook didn't actually answer my needs, the screen is too small and the fact that I had to have a dongle hanging from it to get on the net while mobile was another annoyance. So I got an iphone to keep in touch with email and basic web stuff while out and about, and use a laptop when I need a PC.

I can see that for students who are always in range of a wi-fi network the Netbook is more useful. Maybe I should have bought a Dell mini with integrated 3g card, but I really feel the 1024 x 600 screen means too much scrolling. The newer 12-13" Netbooks seems to show that others agree.

Just my 2p worth...
 
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