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John Gapper: Little laptops snap at the oligopoly

July 16th, 2009 6:01am
by David Gelles

The FT’s John Gapper says the most influential piece of personal technology to emerge in recent years did not come from Apple, Amazon or Research in Motion. Instead, he points to the Asustek’s Asus Eee PC, which created the category now known as “netbooks”.

Few analysts grasped the significance of the Eee because they did not think that people in the developed world would buy a not-very-powerful device with a tiny screen and a small keyboard. Meanwhile, US companies from Dell to Microsoft and Apple gazed studiously elsewhere.

Yet, nearly two years on, evidence of the Eee’s influence is everywhere, from the weak outlook reported by Dell this week to Google’s announcement that it will build a rival to Windows in its Chrome OS operating system, and Microsoft’s move to offer a free web version of its Office software suite.

Continue reading “Little laptops snap at the oligopoly”

July 16th, 2009 6:01am in Consumer Electronics | Permalink | Comment

Lex: Netbooks

June 1st, 2009 4:27pm
by morning call

The FT’s Lex column says the netbooks segment should not be overhyped just because it is the only area of growth for the PC industry in a recession:

Light and, above all, cheap, netbooks are useful for casual travellers and children who are more likely to break or lose a computer and can live with less processing power. Business users, who buy half the world’s laptops, will still want something more capable.

Continue reading “Netbooks”

June 1st, 2009 4:27pm in Computers | Permalink | Comment

Microsoft shunning Arm-based netbooks

March 6th, 2009 10:15pm
by Chris Nuttall

Look out for a new range of lower-cost netbooks this year using Arm-based processors rather than Intel’s Atom chip…but don’t expect to see any of them running Windows.

Linux, yes, Google’s Android operating system, quite possibly, but Microsoft is not yet supporting the new devices, which is something of an irritation to Warren East, Arm chief executive. Continue reading "Microsoft shunning Arm-based netbooks"

March 6th, 2009 10:15pm in Hardware, Software | Permalink | Comment

The opposite of netbooks

January 9th, 2009 9:03am
by Chris Nuttall

Firebird@CES, Las Vegas - What are the opposite of small, cheap, modestly powered netbooks for the masses?

How about big, expensive, high-end PCs for gamers?

If netbook sales are going to grow 80 per cent in 2009, according to Consumer Electronics Association forecasts, as consumers become more budget-conscious in a recession, does this mean sales of $4,000 to 6,000 PCs will plummet? Continue reading "The opposite of netbooks"

January 9th, 2009 9:03am in Games, Hardware, Mobile | Permalink | Comment

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