Netbooks should be getting bigger, not smaller. That’s what users want.
Isn't a bigger netbook just a notebook/laptop?! I don't think users really want that. Users want something in between a notebook and a handheld/smartphone.
He's trying to justify the crunchpad. Sadly he fails. Users certainly do not want bigger netbooks. The whole point of a netbook is that it's portable, can fit in your bag etc
The point of a netbook is not a single point, it's multi dimensional.
A netbook:
- is affordable
- is small enough to take with you
- is light enough to carry with you without being a burden
- should be able to use any kind of internet connection that you can find and should have a backup 3G network in case nothing else is available
This makes the target market range from schoolkids all the way to business people. It's a pretty good concept.
I had one of the original compaq aeros, I absolutely loved that machine and then that whole form factor was discontinued. I had to wait for many years until something comparable came up (the libretto series just wasn't), and I can tell you I'm very happy with my little acer+3G option.
Wherever I go in europe when I get a page I can do whatever it takes without searching for an internet connection. The thing even fits inside the glove compartment of my car.
I took a trip to Europe, first trip in years without a laptop. All I had was my iPhone and at no point did I feel disconnected. Was able to follow the Wimbledon final, check out webcams to see mountain conditions, keep tabs on places I usually keep tabs on (including this one). My laptop is where I do things in bunk (everything from recording music and editing video to writing code and crunching through 100's of emails). Of course, everyone is different, but just as "stay connected" devices, I've always wondered where netbooks fit in. That description you just provided, easily fits a top notch smartphone today. Heck you can even ssh into running machines and check their state.
There's a good number of ssh apps for the iPhone, the one I use is fair bit nicer than putty :/ , or obviously you can just install a web based ssh client on your server if you feel brave about security.
Not really for me, if netbooks were cheap, but only come in 15", I wouldn't bother with one. They'd be a very cheap underpowered laptop.
Price obviously plays a part. Before netbooks, there were mini laptops that looked pretty much the same, but they were more expensive than laptops. Which made little sense.
Low-end laptops are already pretty cheap (sub-$500), more so due to a threat from the netbook market. High-end laptops will never be cheap, comparatively, because there's more under the hood.
I think non-technical people are easily distinguish between a 10 inch and 12 inch screen, but do not understand that resolution is also important. The Mini 10 (not the 10v!) has the option for a 1366x768 screen, while the Mini 12 has 1280x800 screen. Resolution-wide, the Mini 10 is "bigger."
Part of this confusion might be because of Dell's pricing. When I was looking earlier this summer, the Mini 12 cost more than the Mini 10 (with the high-resolution screen), despite having similar hardware specifications.
I sometimes use a netbook to code (specially in a library), and it works just fine (9"), VIM runs great on it :), and a browser like Chrome really saves a lot of screen, so I check email and everything...
That makes absolutely no sense, since it requires no additional hardware horsepower to power a 12-inch netbook v. a 10-inch netbook. The only difference is power usage from the bigger screen. And the two extra inches more than makes up for the shorter battery life or slightly heavier device from packing in more batteries. It only costs a few more dollars to build a 12-inch v. a 10-inch netbook, and users get a bigger screen with the same performance.
Is coding on a netbook comfortable? What if you wanted to code for more than a few hours? Does the lack of screen space get to you or have you figured out an efficient configuration? (If you have, could you please post a screenshot?)
I already have a MacBook, but I rarely take it out because I rarely do any coding outside my place and lugging the whole thing through the Metro and bus system is not exactly my idea of fun. Having a netbook that I can easily lug around the city might actually encourage me to take my code with me wherever I go.
Of course I don't think you'd enjoy coding on a small laptop (netbook), if you don't follow some recommendations (which I think are good recommendations anyways):
* limit your code to 80 cols
* limit your code to less than 400 loc
Actually on my main laptop I get 34 loc full screen (I try not to use full screen), on my Dell mini 9 I get 31, not bad at all!
It's probably for profit reasons, but I thought it might be because having a 12" netbook in Dell's lineup would be blurring the lines between notebook and netbook too much, potentially confusing consumers. Does anyone else think that a 12" screen on a laptop gives people the idea that this could be their main machine? I've certainly had non-tech-savvy friends ask why they shouldn't just buy a netbook to replace their main machine (it was actually the Dell Mini 12, in one case).
I'll take a guess and say in their head first dive into the world of ultra cheap PCs they found no there there. The margin on those things are so small, one phone call can turn that money loser into a real money loser. It was one thing when bloggers and geeks were buying them. They figured it was a cheap toy you could do serious work on. But then they went mainstream and people only saw the price and not the shortcomings. Somebody gets the bright idea to blow away their partition table. Calls tech support to figure out how to restore their data, profit loss. Hardware failure, profit loss.
What people want is netbooks with good keyboards. The Workpad z50 was a joy to type on, the problem was that it only had 32mb of memory and ran windows ce. I want that with a modern cpu and more ram.
I was looking for two things when I got my netbook: 1) great keyboard, 2) great battery life. By virtue of it being a netbook I figured it would already be relatively small, light, and cheap. I think the Samsung netbooks have the right formula.
My NC120 has an awesome keyboard, battery life that seems to stretch forever (8 hrs, and I have a second battery!), and it was only $400 at Amazon (+ $90 or so for the extra battery). It's not ridiculously light like some of the other netbooks out there, but light enough that I put it in my bag and forget it's there. Light enough that I can carry it around town like a spiral notebook and not feel fatigued.
Really the only issue I have with it is that the screen is glossy and I personally prefer matte. Also the windows key is on the right side for some reason. Whatever, it's still great - the screen doesn't bother me that much (still would prefer matte) and the windows key thing is totally invisible to me now. Also I've found that when I'm out at a coffee shop or something people stop me left and right to ask about it. It's interesting who asks - retired folks and middle age folks.
My wife and I took it on vacation and watched movies and TV the entire flight off of iTunes. It was the slightest bit jerky at times but certainly not enough to be bothersome. As a random addition, the NC120 contains a subwoofer. Ha! Not that you can really tell.
I know I'm gushing. I'm going to stop. I don't work for Samsung, but the NC120 is truly great (I'm sure it's sister models are good too). It hits the magic keyboard/battery life/weight/cost sweet spot that makes it just feel awesome!
And yes, I can totally code, write long reports, and respond to emails, browse HN, etc on it to my heart's content. I got a little portable mouse which I rarely use, but sometimes pull out when I'm using it for a long time.
Ok, I'm stopping now. Hope it's helpful to someone out there!
From experience (my sister-in-law and a couple of other family members), they have a high return rate. People expect them to behave like a full blown laptop but they don't.
I would be very happy with a 768x1366 10 inch screen. Currently, I use an Acer Aspire One with an 9 inch screen as my main computer. The thing is that, when at my home office, I connect it to a big monitor, a nice mouse and a keyboard.
The only part I dislike is the 600x1024 pixel screen. It's a bit on the small size and lots of programs (and websites) seem to think 768 lines is the minimum.
