Netbooks Continue To Fill A Niche
May 25, 2009 2 Comments
A few months ago, I purchased a Netbook for my own personal use. My expectations were tempered by the fact that it was a little smaller than a conventional laptop, and had a smaller processor, etc. than the regular computers I have been used to. However, it is great for taking on the go, checking E-mail, doing on-line banking, and even blogging. The extreme portability and long battery life make it fantastic for doing about 90% of what I personally do with a computer.
At the time, I remarked to my wife that it seems as if cell phones and computers are on converging paths, where they will ultimately be indistinguishable. As the smart phones get smarter, e-mail, banking, and blogging can be done from cell phones. There is still a distinction between a cell phone, and a computer; but it is becoming less and less all the time. In addition, cellular companies are starting to sell more data services, with voice calls generating a smaller portion of revenue on their networks.
While recently surfing the Radio Shack website, I stumbled upon a Netbook being marketed with AT&T 3G Internet service included. This got my attention!
(Full disclosure here: although I used to work for AT&T, I am no longer employed with them. I am not endorsing this product, nor am I being paid to discuss it on this blog. I have no current affiliation with Radio Shack, Acer, or AT&T. I do not own this brand of Netbook, nor do I currently have any phone or data services with AT&T.)
- Acer® Aspire® One AT&T® 3G 8.9″ Netbook at Radio Shack
Until stumbling across this product listing, I had no idea that it was available. It takes the Netbook, which has been out for a little while now, and expands its networking capability by having the 3G Internet card built into the computer! This means a user would not be committed to only being on-line in a wi-fi area, dramatically increasing the areas where it could be used. On a park bench, with a mocha, perhaps?
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Jason, as an IT Consultant, I am seeing a lot of clients move to this solution; I would like you opinion on the keyboard though, for those of us who were taught traditional “home row” typing it seems to me that this would be a problem, I have seen you typing away in Council and Planning Commission meetings, has this been an issue for you, especially after using your netbook device and then going back to a full keyboard ony your desktop or other laptop?
Jim,
My netbook is a little bit larger than the one mentioned in this post. It has what they call a “big” keyboard. It is still not a standard size, however. It was hard to get used to at first, but now that I am used to the smaller keys, it gets the job done. Still, at home, I have a wireless, full size keyboard that I prefer to use, even with the netbook.
Radio Shack suggests on their site that netbooks should be considered as a second computer, and are generally not well suited for using more than 1 hour at a time. I would agree that it is not something you would want for your primary computer, but some may use it that way because of cost considerations. I have found I can use mine more than 1 hour at a time, but if given a choice, a larger screen on a regular computer is better for longer term use.
The main advantages of netbooks continues to be their light weight, energy efficiency, and ease of portability. Using a netbook to log on to check with the “home office” would be great for someone in the field. However, I would think that in the office, they would still like to have a standard computer.