Best Buy is marketing netbooks as companions to your primary computer — which just goes to show how poorly understood these miniature devices really are.
In a long-winded Flash presentation, Best Buy stresses that netbooks are low-powered computers meant to be purchased "as a companion for your laptop."
That’s a pretty outdated generalization. Maybe before our economy got thrown into a bag of hurt, Best Buy would be reasonable for trying to sell netbooks as complementary devices. But with consumers tightening their spending in a recession, we can expect them to turn to netbooks as their next primary computers.
Likewise, we can expect manufacturers to market netbooks as serious devices for business users. (Think bigger screens, longer battery life, better keyboards.) MSI is already getting a head start with its next version of the popular Wind netbook, which sports a sharper, more professional design than its predecessor.
I myself am a Wind owner, and though it took me a little bit of time to get used to the smaller keyboard, I find I’m using the netbook more than my MacBook Pro. When I’m doing work at home, I simply attach my Wind to an external display. And when I’m on the go, I bring along a wireless mouse.
Liliputing’s Brad Linder spotted the Best Buy ad and quibbled a bit about why he doesn’t like the word "netbook." I definitely agree with him: Netbook is not only kind of a weird word; it just doesn’t do these devices justice. I prefer the term "mini notebook," but I use netbook more often now that it’s become a mainstream word.
See Also:
- Tiny Notes Net Big Gains: The Netbook Revolution
- Using the Word ‘Netbook’ Could Get You Sued
- Cheap, Easy-to-Mod NetBooks Are a Hacker’s Paradise
Photo: Brian X. Chen/Wired.com
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