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Follow UsFrom its humble origins the notebooks have come a long way. In the heydays of
the computing boom it was a gadget for a few globetrotting executives, and with
time its user base expanded to mid-level management. While notebooks offered
computing on a form lesser than a desktop, it was only in 2003 that a
technological breakthrough in terms of processing power and mobility in the real
sense happened-chip major Intel launched its Centrino mobile computing chip with
embedded wireless functionality. This made the notebooks truly mobile and
ushered in anytime, anywhere access to the Internet.
In the mid-2000, the notebook market became more defined and segmented across
low-mid-and-high end ultra portables. The ultra portable segment was
characterized by ultra low power consumption processors (ULVs) that offer longer
battery life packed in a small form factor, mostly having screen size of 12.1
inch. But prices of these machines were exorbitant and only a few were able to
afford it. But conventional mid-end laptop users have always adored machines
that weighless, cost less and churn out computing tasks while serving the need
of mobile computing.
Enter Netbooks
In 2008, Asus realized this need and launched Eee PC-mini-notebooks now
called netbooks or sub-notebooks, as a segment in mobile computing. It was a big
hit and leveraged Intel's new age Atom processor. The company has launched
another model to its netbook portfolio recently, the Eee PC S101. According to
Stanley Wu, Country Head-Notebook Business, Asus India, “Looking at the changing
customer preferences, the Eee PC S101 combines style with substance to suit
fashion conscious travelers and business professionals. We are confident that
with this latest offering from Asus, customers will be able to enjoy a computing
experience with a unique sense of style.”
The market in 2008 heated up significantly with the leading vendors plunging
into this space. Acer entered the market last year with its Aspire 100 netbook.
Said S Rajendran, Chief Marketing Officer, Acer India, “Our foray into the
netbook space came after careful study of the market. We studied all aspects and
launched a fully functional machine. Even the keypad on our netbooks was
designed after studying the finger sizes of a diverse user sample across the
world and as a result our keypads are almost fully-functional.”
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| Pic credit: www.slashgear.com |
Impact
In the recently concluded CES show in Las Vegas, netbooks were one of the
most sought after gadgets with visitors thronging the stalls. The Asus Eee PC
was rated by Amazon.com as the most wanted Christmas gift. The popularity of
netbooks has surprised many analysts. For instance, a smartphone costs more than
a netbook which offers much more functionalities. At the heart of netbook is the
Intel Atom processor. This processor is unique because of the architecture and
design built to consume lesser power. According to Sean Maloney, Intel's
Executive VP, “This is our smallest processor built with the world's smallest
transistors. The processor is based on an entirely new design, built for low
power and designed specifically for a new wave of Mobile Internet Devices (MIDs)
and simple, low-cost PCs. This small wonder is a fundamental new shift in
design, small yet powerful enough to enable a big Internet experience on these
new devices. We believe it will unleash new innovation across the industry.”
The processor has opened up new vistas in mobile computing and costs. It has
the potential to make way for pervasive computing through mobile Internet
devices which is being manifested in the netbooks. At a time when companies are
talking about green and energy efficient computing, the adoption of netbooks
looks promising. Today most vendors are trying to position netbooks to
commercial customers as well. They observe that netbooks are seen as a second
notebook which people use while commuting.
Said Acer's Rajendran, “We are totally surprised at the kind of response we
are receiving for our netbooks.
| 'Atom'izing the Netbooks |
| The sub-10 inch notebooks are called sub-notebooks and as a market it is defined as netbooks. The hallmark of the netbooks is the very small form factor, mobility and good battery life. Depending on the models and the battery type netbooks have a battery life of 3.5 to 6 hours; it comes with good hardware ecosystem like 1GB RAM, 160GB hard disk and an SSD option too. The OS bundled in it is either Linux or XP Home and priced sub Rs 25,000. Acer's Aspire One (its netbook brand) is the cheapest, priced at about Rs 20,000. The key to such small form is the newly designed processor from Intel-the 45 nm Intel Atom processors which packs an astounding 47 mn transistors on a single chip measuring less than 26 mm, making it Intel's smallest and lowest power processor. All this while delivering the power and performance one needs for full Internet capabilities. The Atom processor can be manifested and offer as:
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Market Potential
The netbook market is just about a year old, and already big names like
Acer, HP, Lenovo and others are vying for a share. For vendors it is a big
opportunity as both consumers and the commercial buying segments are being
targeted. “We are seeing segments like insurance giving netbooks to the field
agents; similarly many companies will provide these for their sales team,” said
Rajendran.
Given the current gloom in the IT space, many companies are looking at cost
effective IT. With netbooks providing the Internet and email-the two most
accessed on-the-move applications-companies will look to provide netbooks for
the staff instead of notebooks when the refresh cycle happens. While analysts
say that it's too early to gauge the exact impact of netbooks, even vendors are
not positioning it as a full-fledged notebook nor do they say it will
cannibalize the ultra portable niche segment of high end notebooks.
Said Amar Babu, MD, Lenovo India, “We forayed into the netbook space late
last year and believe that it will add significant value to our notebook range.
We are bullish about its adoption in the Indian market.”
The emergence of netbooks is indeed a disruptive development. It's about
technology minimalism and offering what is needed for specific apps-light,
day-to-day applications on-the-go. While it is not an alternate to power
notebooks, it makes for complimentary computing and gives a simple option to
mobile computing. 2009 will see further firming up of the netbook segment with
vendors launching more innovative models making it one of the hottest segments
in computing.
Source: Dataquest