The page lists the top netbook brands like ASUS, Acer, and HP, then with one click you get a full list of available models. They also have an area for new arrivals, sales, bestsellers, and discussion boards. While it probably won’t appeal to the seasoned netbook consumer who knows what he wants, it is a pretty efficient way of centralizing listings for someone who isn’t quite as netbook savvy.

Analysts at the company predict that netbook shipments will hit 35 million in 2009 and looking head, 139 million in 2013. They reckon that smartphones have just about jumped the sharks and that the day of the netbook is here — and judging by their forecasts for 2013, which is still four years away, the netbooks are here to stay.

The expected market explosion for netbooks in coming times is described as a “perfect storm” based on what the netbook offers: a low-cost, low-power alternative at a price point of $200. Considering the growth netbooks have enjoyed in just a year, those figures for 2013 don’t sound unfeasible and signal even more exciting times to come for the genre.

A study by the analysis firm has shown that despite immense growth in the netbook genre, customers are not overly pleased with what they are getting.

The main reason is low performance which suggests that consumers don’t realize thats why netbooks are so cheap — because they are equipped to do the basics, such as web surfing, and little more. Apparently, many believe that because a netbook looks like a laptop, only smaller, it should perform as well as one.

Matthew Wilkins, the principal analyst for computer platforms at iSuppli, said that the performance of Taiwan’s Acer, which shipped 3 million more notebooks in Q3 ‘08 than Q2 ‘08, had much to do with it, and the majority of those 3 million were Acer’s netbook products.

This surge is also bringing Acer closer to the number two manufacturers spot in the United States, currently occupied by Dell.

Source: CNET News

TVs are there of course, just as they always are on Christmas shopping lists, but netbooks have also stormed on to the top ten list, with no less than three models on a list that is comprised entirely of technology products. Acer’s Aspire One is the most popular of the three, ranking an impressive second on the overall top ten. HP’s Compaq 2133 and the Asus Eee PC 901 were the other two, ranking in the sixth and eighth spots respectively.

Source: Hexus.channel

Sales are booming and now new eyes are turning to the benefits of netbooks. If a netbook has sufficient resources for the worker and even if an extra investment is needed to increase its performance, it would still be a cheaper alternative than a laptop. Apparently, the tendency for netbooks to ship with Windows XP instead of Vista also might not deter enterprises from doing this, as many have refused to upgrade to the newer operating system.

It’ll be interesting to see if this report becomes a reality and if we see netbooks become commonplace in enterprises.

Pann’s most revealing and blunt comment was this: “If you’ve ever used a Netbook and used a 10-inch screen size–it’s fine for an hour. It’s not something you’re going to use day in and day out.” Well, he is talking for a lot of people there, but it just further casts doubts on Intel’s belief in the netbook genre. In short, Intel don’t buy into the concensus among many that netbooks could replace laptops and went out of their way to shoot it down. This comes after AMD chief Dirk Meyer said earlier this month that AMD is “ignoring the Netbook phenomenon” and marketing director Bahr Mahoney added, “There are a fair number of people that are not satisfied with the experience they’re getting on these mininotebook platforms.”

For netbook fans, the lack of faith by both Intel and AMD is a little disspiritng and casts doubt on whether this genre does in fact have a future, especially with many newer models becoming bigger — closer to traditional notebook size — such as the upcoming Acer Aspire One model that will be fairly bigger than its predecessor.

AMD Chief Executive Dirk Meyer set the record straight last week though with this very decisive comment: “We’re ignoring the Netbook phenomenon–just thinking about PC form factors above that form factor.”

Director of Notebook Product Marketing at AMD, Bahr Mahony, offered more clarification, saying, “We’re going to offer the Congo and Yukon platforms as an alternative (to processors and chipsets for netbooks). There are a fair number of people that are not satisfied with the experience they’re getting on these mininotebook platforms.”

Curiously enough, AMD, the alledged impact players in the netbook market a week ago, now seems to be on something of a crusade against the concept in an effort to assist its alternative plans, with Mahony also saying there is great dissatisfaction among netbook users, using high return rates in Europe as justification for the claim.

AMD’s plan is simple, to create something bigger than netbooks, but still small and able to load more firepower into it. In fact, the article reports that Pat Moorhead, Vice President of Advanced Marketing at AMD, talked about AMD’s upcoming Conesus CPU, which will use ATI’s RS780M graphics and offer better graphics and experience overall than the typical netbook can.

This again relates to the ongoing, persistent confusion over what exactly a netbook is, with definitions including models with screens as big as 14-inches lately. What AMD plans to release is probably what many are already coining “netbooks”, but which AMD and many others consider to be a thin notebook. The CNet article makes a good point that the netbook is by large is defined by its Atom processor, and that AMD (which is making a clear attempt to distance itself from the whole concept of a netbook) with its new platforms Yukon and Congo will be in the “thin notebook” category.

The article cites netbooks as the fastest-growing segment in the PC industry and claims that their emergence is eating into Microsoft’s profits. Windows sales fell short of forecasts in the last quarter, causing Microsoft to cut growth projections, and actually admit that netbooks are the main cause for this. Netbook manufacturers who do use Windows – still 70% of models (but significantly lower than the 90% of PCs that also use it) – tend to use old versions of the operating system.

Microsoft is taking this seriously and is already taking steps to ensure it is ready for the netbook boom. Windows 7, the scheduled successor of Windows Vista, will work much better with netbooks according to Senior Vice President Jon DeVaan. DeVaan said, “People will be pleasantly surprised and excited” by how Windows 7 runs on low-cost machines. We’ll do well on those kinds of machines.”

Despite Microsoft’s initiative to stop this growing problem, Bloomberg claims that Windows will still be a tough sell for PC makers trying to develop the cheapest machines possible. Jenny Lai, a Taipei-based analyst at CLSA Ltd., says that Linux costs just $5 to put on computers, compared to with $40 to $50 for XP and about $100 for Vista, a huge difference.