Netbook loses its identity

The netbook was originally considered a low-cost, lower-priced notebook. But recently the netbook has lost its difference. This is evident in netbooks launched in the recent CES electronics show in Las Vegas, USA.

Examples include the Sony Vaio P netbook or the Dell Inspiron Mini 10. This is good for consumers, but the demarcation between netbooks and notebooks can ruin the business model of computer manufacturers.

Three models of Dell netbooks: Mini 9, Mini 10 and Mini 12 are evolutionary steps in size. Losing the difference between netbooks and notebooks will become clearer when the Windows 7 operating system comes out, it is expected that in the next 9 to 12 months it will appear in the new computer. The new Microsoft operating system is designed to run on netbooks, giving users the opportunity to access the latest technology applications. This raises the question of whether there is a difference between netbooks and notebooks in the future.

Last year, laptops with screens smaller than 10 inches, Atom chips and under $ 400 were called netbooks. After more than a year of appearing from the end of 2007 to the end of last year, the global market has consumed about 10 million netbooks, according to IDC. Netbooks currently account for about 7% of the laptop market share, a spectacular growth in just a short time. But how will netbooks play in the near future is the big question.

IDC's computer analyst said that 'it is difficult to predict what the netbook market will be in the future. This is a diverse market, spread in many different directions and absorbing a variety of different technologies'.

What is netbook?

Intel is the originator of the netbook with the launch of Atom chip, a small chip in size and power but much cheaper than other chips. Intel is also the initiator and sponsor of One Laptop Per Child Initiative (One Laptop Per Child) to bring low-cost computers to developing countries. But Asus is the company that made netbooks accessible to consumers by the end of 2007 with the Eee PC, equipped with a 7-inch screen, small keys, SSD solid-state hard drive and an alternative Linux operating system. Windows.

But there have been many changes since Asus launched the Eee PC product. Within a year, most major computer manufacturers had netbooks. Each company defines netbooks differently.

Acer and Asus consider the Netbook to be a low-end notebook with a 9-inch screen and cost $ 300-400. These computers are not the most important means of surfing the web. Meanwhile, Dell's netbook screens are getting bigger and bigger. In the middle of last year, the company launched the Mini 9 with a 9-inch screen, two netbooks launched at CES 2009, the Mini 10 with a 10-inch screen and the Mini 12 with a 12-inch screen. Different from other brands, Sony recently launched the Vaio P netbook with a touch screen and a non-mass device when its price is up to 1000 USD.