Netbooks doomed to oblivion by 2015; do you care?

[Bob Maxey]

It looks like netbooks are about to go the way of the dinosaurs. Personally, I don't care one way or the other. I never got around to buying one, nor have I missed having one. (I don't have a tablet, either.)

So, will you be sad to see their demise?

I still like my laptops and I use them daily. One for work and one for things like the AF. My work laptop will never see a net connection.

That said, I would see no decrease in my ability to earn an honest dollar if I were forced to use a tablet. I do think laptops will be with us for some time to come, however.

Fortunately, a ten year old laptop will do everything I need to do.

 

[Bob Maxey]

I had bought the Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 Student Edition, which came with a keyboard & USB adapter. You can also buy a keyboard to use with tablets also, USB or Bluetooth models.

I'm not saying it can take the place of a laptop but it can be just as convenient as one.

Take a look at the picture. You gots yer display, a CPU, some memory and storage. You add an external keyboard and you have a "laptop" or "Netbook." Same function, essentially the same form factor.

I bought my iPad for a special proect and it does everything I need to do.

 

[mikedt]

The laptop I use ALL the time is an HP dv7t (running Kubuntu Linux), which has a 17" screen and a full-sized keyboard. It is NOT heavy or bulky at all, and on the very rare occasions when I need to take it somewhere, it's definitely not a big deal. It has completely replaced my need/desire to use any of my desktops; they're now relegated to being used for backups over my network.

Sure it depends on your uses and situation Moody. See for me, a 17inch laptop would be too large, even a 15inch one is pushing it. Basically because I want to be able to easily use it on a plane, bus or train. Ever seen someone trying to use a 17inch laptop in economy? And the larger the laptop the less additional stuff I'm able to put in my carry-on. I try and avoid checking anything wherever possible. If I need a large screen, I've got a 21inch PC monitor sat on my desk at the office, and I can always plug a laptop into the TV at home.

For me, a tablet seems like an annoying, cumbersome toy. I'm correct, aren't I, that they don't have physical keyboards? With all the typing I do, I just can't imagine adjusting to the slowness that would go along with doing that on a touchscreen vs a real keyboard. I type FAST. Slowing down to a crawl wouldn't work for me.

@Nickdalzell will tell you he can type 100WPM on an iPad.

I posted earlier that netbooks and now tablets seem to be very popular with backpackers and travellers in Asia. From what I've seen when staying in hotels and hostels in Hong Kong, usually they only want do Facebook, IM, Skype and email.

 

[kevincott]

My personal take is that netbooks are not disappearing but actually evolving.

Companies are researching what consumers really want/need and product lines change as a result. Chromebooks are showing peeps that cloud storage and web-driven apps can be useful. 5-10 years ago could you open an Excel/Word document without M$ Office (or clone) installed and running? Login to Hotmail/Outlook and you can run an official M$ Office web-based editor.

In the same way that car companies only offered station wagons to consumers for around 50 years but finally evolved to minivans and family oriented SUVs; netbooks will continue to evolve.

 

[Speed Daemon]

If the line of reasoning [sic] is something like "keyboards are going away, like a vestigial tail", then I'd have to take notice of the fact that the #1 accessory for tablets is...a keyboard. :idea:

 

[Speed Daemon]

See for me, a 17inch laptop would be too large, even a 15inch one is pushing it. Basically because I want to be able to easily use it on a plane, bus or train. Ever seen someone trying to use a 17inch laptop in economy? And the larger the laptop the less additional stuff I'm able to put in my carry-on.

I think you're missing the point of the desktop replacement computer. These aren't made to fit into economy class; they're meant for 1st Class!

Actually they're not meant for mass transit. Their primary purpose is to offer desktop processing power in a AIO form factor. Some don't even have batteries. They're not supposed to compete with "clutch purse" style notebook computers. They truly are the inheritor of the laptop moniker.

I just got a 17" desktop replacement machine to take (on the road) with me for when I visit my mom. It fits nicely in a briefcase-sized transit case, and gives me most of the comforts of home for my 1-2 week stays, where it's my desktop on the road, where there is no 21" monitor waiting for me.

If I had to take an airline flight (something that's increasingly unacceptable here in the US), I'd probably leave my DTR at home, pack my thin laptop and carry on my tablet-with-keyboard if I wanted to use a machine at all while in coach seating. Usually I savor the time I get to spend without a telescreen staring back at me.

Speaking of transit cases, I actually have one of these:

A 4RU computer chassis on shock mounts. Although a keyboard and mouse could be stored in the back, adding a decent-sized monitor means another case. Adding a UPS/power conditioner means another case. For some reason I haven't gotten around to taking this form factor on the road. I'll take something like this across town to do live streaming from. I know that I can turn my back on it and it won't walk away like a laptop might do.

 

[SiempreTuna]

If the line of reasoning [sic] is something like "keyboards are going away, like a vestigial tail", then I'd have to take notice of the fact that the #1 accessory for tablets is...a keyboard. :idea:

Yeah - my missus really likes her new iPad, but I notice that whenever she needs to do any actual typing, she switches to her Air

Tis strange how things come back around: Bill Gates tried pushing tablets that had keyboards attached a decade ago and they sank without a trace. Apple do a tablet and suddenly MS rekindle the same idea - if with a more appropriate OS interface this time around.

 

[Speed Daemon]

Yeah - my missus really likes her new iPad, but I notice that whenever she needs to do any actual typing, she switches to her Air

So far I've been visited by two cousins (one from each side of my family tree no less) who spend every waking moment with their notmePads. One has a keyboard and uses it a lot. The other can't figure out how to e-mail more than one photo at a time. Six of one...

Tis strange how things come back around: Bill Gates tried pushing tablets that had keyboards attached a decade ago and they sank without a trace. Apple do a tablet and suddenly MS rekindle the same idea - if with a more appropriate OS interface this time around.

Gates wasn't alone. I've looked warily at all sorts of tablet false starts. Then when I finally concluded that Arthur C. Clarke's NewsPad couldn't be done, the hardware finally matures to the point where it's possible. (Apple just happened to be there with ample marketeering funds in a stalled economy, that's all that put them over the top first.)

 

[huh]

no...I don't care

 

[nickdalzell]

I actually like the Galaxy Tab 2 and plan on buying one. I thought about the Nexus 10 but seeing one in person really let my expectations down. It looks very flimsy cheap and I heard the battery life still stinks, plus a serious lack in apps optimized for its screen resolution.

I actually can type 100wpm+ on the ipad. Its a 4:3 tablet so in landscape mode makes a pretty darn good keyboard. The touch response is just dead on. Autocorrect helps and the corrections happen automatically without requiring me to tap a suggestion first as in Android (although SwiftKey comes dangerously close, but not there yet. Some words just aren't in its dictionary and it often corrects words I intend in using like slang). We will see how the Galaxy Tab 2 compares, but the in-store demo was very impressive...although the 16:9 makes everything, including keyboard, look 'squashed' in landscape mode, which is my preferred mode

 

[LoopyD]

I don't care. As a previous Asus Transformer TF300T owner, my tablet easily converted to a netbook style device with an extra battery in the keyboard keeping me a nice charge all day long.

I loved that thing....*sniffle* Me and my baby (Asus Tablet) had so much fun together. I got the tablet off of QVC and ordered the keyboard online, which comes with a touchpad for mouse support, it was nice, and had a bootloader unlocker.