Posted on Mon, May 19, 2008 @ 11:33 AM
Internet-optimized mini-laptops known as “netbooks” – which are emerging as attractive, low-cost devices that have drawn interest from such IT bigwigs as Apple and Verizon – likely will be deployed “on a selective basis” within the workforce, a Boston-based market research and consulting firm is reporting today.
Officials with Chadwick Martin Bailey say their survey of IT professionals showed that the compact size and portability of netbooks has fueled enterprises’ interest in the product, and that those features will continue as its key selling proposition.
“Despite the expected growth of enterprise-oriented internet applications, IT professionals we spoke with indicated that access to these applications and Netbook devices are only likely to be demanded by select groups (39 percent) rather than across the enterprise (11 percent),” officials at the firm say.
Here’s a look at how IT professionals characterized netbook deployments, according to Chadwick Martin Bailey:
That’s somewhat surprising, given the emergence of Web-based communications tools that more and more large companies are employing, and the rise of mobile workforces among enterprises as a flexible and cost-saving alternatives to traditional offices.
Whatever the firm’s research shows, netbooks appear to have the market’s wind at their backs.
As TMCnet reported, says it will start selling Hewlett Packard Mini 1151NR netbooks at its stores. The company joins other players from the technology space, such as AT&T, that are jumping into the still-growing market to boost sales. The HP Mini 1151NR will sell for $200 after a $50 mail-in rebate and a new, two-year activation on a Mobile Broadband plan, starting this week. Customers will receive a mail-in rebate as a debit card, which can be used anywhere debit cards are accepted.
Already in this young month of May, we’ve the introduction a new netbook model that leverages the open source platform Android from Internet search and ad leader Google Inc., even as Apple Inc. tries to keep the tech media world guessing about its own rumored netbook or larger-size iPod Touch.
Meanwhile, netbooks – probably to the chagrin of the Taiwanese company that invented them less than two years ago – are emerging as a singular bright spot in the struggling consumer electronics industry. The success of the devices, which typically sell for about $400, even have led to earnings drops and lay-offs at IT stalwarts such as Microsoft Corp. and Lenovo.
As TMCnet’s Amy Tierney reported today, IT giant Dell is launching a new netbook just for kids. The company unveiled its new Latitude 2100 at an event today in Australia. The kid-friendly netbook is designed for students in kindergarten through eighth grade. And from its appearance (see above), youngsters will be hard pressed to turn away from them.