Netbooks put the squeeze on notebooks

NPD ANALYSTS at DisplaySearch reckon sales of netbooks will grow by 65 per cent, this year.

The great thing for anyone except a notebook or chip maker is that folk may be buying netbooks instead of notebooks.

Netbooks sales are growing rapidly in China and the Pacific Rim states, although demand in in  Japan is very low. North America is also expected to be a low growth area.

John F Jacobs, director of notebook market research and author of the report calls netbooks mini-notes. He said: “With the lone exception of Apple, all of the top 15 PC brands have entered the mini-note market, initially as a response to competitive threats posed by Acer and Asus, but also to satisfy demand for low-priced, entry-level PCs.”

He highlighted the fact that teclos around the world were bundling the cheapo computers with expensive phone calls. "Telecom providers in almost every geographic region are providing subsidized mini-notes, lowering the street price by bundling it with a data plan,” said Jacobs.

He noted that 39 OEMs in 29 countries have joined Intel to ship a million units in 2008 and are expected to ship two million units in 2009.” µ