Netbooks

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Google Unveils 'Chromebooks'
 Google Unveils 'Chromebooks' 

Google Unveils 'Chromebooks'

New laptops go on sale in June, priced from $349 to $499

(Newser) - The first laptops running Google’s Chrome OS will hit in June, the company announced yesterday, in an announcement it’s spent two years building up to. The first models will be manufactured by Acer and Samsung and priced $349 to $499, the Wall Street Journal reports. Google won’t...

How Much Is Your Computer Really Worth?

Economists try to put a value on PCs in America

(Newser) - You can scope out the price tag of a Mac or PC at any given electronics hawker, but how much are computers really worth to us? Economists at the Federal Reserve Bank in Atlanta actually tried tackling that question, and they came up with $500 billion—or, on average about...

These Predictions for 2010 Were Way Off

They said iPads wouldn't make it, but Google Wave would

(Newser) - The media gave us plenty of predictions for 2010, and plenty of them simply didn’t come true. AOL News lists some of the most glaring:
  • Job growth will begin again. Newsweek predicted it unemployment would fall “below 9%,” but it was never less than 9.5%.
  • Republicans
...

Google Releases New Chrome OS Laptop

...To the lucky few in its 'pilot program'

(Newser) - Google is giving out free laptops—but good luck getting one. The search giant unveiled its new Chrome OS yesterday, but announced that the public wouldn’t be able to buy netbooks sporting it until the middle of next year, eWeek reports. But in the meantime, Google is running a...

Got 37 Bucks? Have a Laptop
 Got 37 Bucks? 
 Have a Laptop 

Got 37 Bucks? Have a Laptop

The 7-inch eBay netbook really does cost under $40

(Newser) - Wired checks into reports of a $37 Ebay laptop and finds it to be surprisingly legit. The 7-inch netbook runs on Windows CE and has 2GB storage. "What's the catch (apart from the extraordinarily underpowered internals)?" asks Charlie Sorrel. "There appears to be none. These are factory...

iPad Wrecks Netbook Sales
 iPad Wrecks Netbook Sales 

iPad Wrecks Netbook Sales

44% said they bought tablet over netbook

(Newser) - Netbook mania has hit the wall hard, and Apple's shiny new tablet could be to blame. Digging through some recent Morgan Stanley research, Fortune found some interesting charts showing that the growth of netbook sales took an abrupt dive in January—a victim, the researcher concludes, of the iPad's much-hyped...

What Not to Buy on Black Friday
 What Not to Buy on Black Friday 
Farhad Manjoo

What Not to Buy on Black Friday

Netbooks, e-books and other bad deals

(Newser) - Step away from the gizmos. Even if you make it through the Black Friday crowds unharmed, you may do serious damage to your wallet, writes Farhad Manjoo in Slate , who runs down what to buy and bypass at the big box store: Don't Buy:
  • E-book readers: The market is heating
...

Nokia Challenges Apple With 3G Netbook

(Newser) - Nokia is charging into the mobile computing market with its first netbook, PC World reports. The phone company’s Booklet 3G features 3G connectivity for Internet access and packs a healthy 12 hours of battery life. The tiny laptop—10 inches—runs Windows and has Nokia’s Ovi mobile apps...

Toshiba's First Netbook Is a Step Up
 Toshiba's First  
 Netbook Is a Step Up 
tech review

Toshiba's First Netbook Is a Step Up

Boasts big keyboard and touchpad, long battery

(Newser) - Toshiba, late to enter the low-end but lucrative netbook field, has finally rolled out its $400 entry, and Walter Mossberg finds that it beats competitors by solving several key problems: It boasts an easy-to-use keyboard, a long-lasting battery, and a large touchpad with big buttons. “The keyboard design resembles...

As Netbooks Fade, Successors Await

Sales slowdown hides fact that low-cost laptops are taking over

(Newser) - You may not be able to buy a "netbook" in the not-too-distant future, but a new generation of low-power, low-priced laptops descended from the netbook are poised to conquer much of the PC market, experts tell Wired. Sales of the netbook—one of last year's hottest gadgets—haven't met...

Dirt-Cheap Netbooks Might Save Media Industry
Dirt-Cheap Netbooks Might Save Media Industry
OPINION

Dirt-Cheap Netbooks Might Save Media Industry

Paying for content, not hardware, is the key

(Newser) - There might be hope yet for the media industry, “because the tech industry is screwed too,” writes Simon Dumenco for Advertising Age. With light, cheap netbooks squeezing the profit out of the hardware, makers are partnering with media providers (ie, Acer selling netbooks for $100, plus 2-year AT&...

Apple Plans Cheap(ish) Wireless Tablet

(Newser) - Apple is preparing a foray into the “netbook” market, AppleInsider reports. The computer company has put out feelers to parts suppliers in a bid to create a web-connected, 7- to- 10-inch tablet one analyst thinks will retail for $500-$700. “It is increasingly clear that Apple is investing more...

$250 Google Netbook Debuts This Summer

(Newser) - The first netbook running the Google-backed Android mobile operating system could be available within 3 months for $250, ComputerWorld reports. The petite, no-frills Alpha 680 with a 7-inch wide screen will be the smallest netbook yet, weighing a dainty 1.5 pounds and meansuring 8.5 by 6 inches. It's...

AT&T Rolls Out $50 Mini-Laptops
AT&T Rolls Out $50 Mini-Laptops

AT&T Rolls Out $50 Mini-Laptops

For customers who sign up for a combined home-and-mobile broadband plan

(Newser) - AT&T is trying out a program that would make buying a laptop a bit like buying a cellphone. Walk into one of its Atlanta or Philadelphia retail outlets, and you’ll soon be able to nab a “mini-laptop” (or netbook, as the rest of the world calls them)...

'Gorgeous' Vaio P Frustrates
 'Gorgeous' Vaio P Frustrates 
PRODUCT REVIEW

'Gorgeous' Vaio P Frustrates

Sony's tiny new laptop is slow and has woeful battery life

(Newser) - Sony’s new netbook, the Vaio P, is about the size of "one of those plastic folders waiters use to bring you the check at a restaurant," but the pricey gadget is "very slow and has poor battery life," writes Wall Street Journal tech maven Walter...

Boom in Netbook Sales Powers New Features

At CES, the line blurs between netbooks and laptops

(Newser) - An unexpected 10 million netbooks—scaled down, lower-priced laptops—were  sold in 2008, sending tech companies racing into the market, the Wall Street Journal reports. At this week’s Consumer Electronics Show, market segments like cell phones and PCs seem to be converging faster than ever as they try to...

Laptop Sales Zip Past Desktops
 Laptop Sales Zip Past Desktops 

Laptop Sales Zip Past Desktops

Netbook drives up laptop sales

(Newser) - The demand for Acer Netbooks has pushed laptop sales beyond desktop PC sales for the first time ever, CNET reports. Notebook PC shipments rose almost 40% for the third quarter of 2008 to 38.6 million units, while desktop sales slipped 1.3% to 38.5 million. Hewlett-Packard remains the...

PC Makers See Big Trouble in Smaller 'Netbooks'

Web-focused computers, starting at $300, yield little profit, may forecast trend

(Newser) - Smaller and lighter than most textbooks, “netbooks”—the latest generation of computers used for light computing and surfing the web—are causing heartburn among PC manufacturers who see the low-cost innovation as a threat to already-slim profit margins, the New York Times reports. Perhaps more worrisome to giants...

Dell Jumps on Cheap Notebook Trend
Dell Jumps on Cheap Notebook Trend

Dell Jumps on Cheap Notebook Trend

Caters to emerging low-cost high-mobility market

(Newser) - Cheap, small notebooks look like the next big thing. Dell today announced it was jumping into the burgeoning segment, which doesn’t quite have a name yet—some call them netbooks, others mini-notebooks, still others ultramobile PCs or UMPCs. Dell’s machine will start at $399, and sport a wee...

Intel Makes Smaller, Cheaper Chip
Intel Makes Smaller, Cheaper Chip

Intel Makes Smaller, Cheaper Chip

Processor targeted at very low-end computers

(Newser) - Intel is working on a tiny, inexpensive microprocessor aimed at very low-end computers. Code-named Diamondville, the chip is for computers priced under $250, especially portable ones that Intel calls Netbooks. Manufacturers are creating such machines for emerging markets, as well as for industrialized countries, where they’re often bought as...

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