So, what, according to Amazon, in this winter of Windows 8 discontent has been the best selling laptop? It's Samsung's ARM-powered, Linux-based Chromebook.This coincides with no more netbooks being produced. Quoting “Sayonara, netbooks: Asus (and the rest) won't make any more in 2013” (by Charles Arthur for Business Insider):
… Asus, which kicked off the modern netbook category with its Eee PC in 2007, has announced that it won't make its Eee PC product after today, and that Acer doesn't plan to make any more …Paul Thurrot argues that netbooks helped Windows 7 achieve its excellent sales numbers and now can’t help Windows 8, any more. Quoting “Explaining Windows 8 PC Sales Over the Holidays” (on Paul Thurrott’s SuperSite for Windows):Asustek and Acer were the only two companies still making netbooks, with everyone else who had made them (including Samsung, HP and Dell) having shifted to tablets. Asustek and Acer were principally aiming at southeast Asia and South America - but of course those are now targets for smartphones and cheap Android tablets.
It’s not pat to say that the Windows PC market went for volume over quality, because it did: Many of those 20 million Windows 7 licenses each month—too many, I think—went to machines that are basically throwaway, plastic crap. Netbooks didn’t just rejuvenate the market just as Windows 7 appeared, they also destroyed it from within: Now consumers expect to pay next to nothing for a Windows PC. Most of them simply refuse to pay for more expensive Windows PCs.If all you do with your laptop is browse the web and read email then you don’t need a full-blown desktop operating system and might just as well buy a Chromebook. Or a tablet. Furthermore, Google’s office web apps are basic, but fun to use. And their collaborative features are incredibly useful.
Web apps are slowly getting better at offline, which is key if they want to replace native apps. In the long run, the app part of the web will look much like Android and iOS: app stores, installed apps and offline data. Things I’d like to see in the future are [2]: peer-to-peer sync (not just could sync), standard cloud protocols and better protection of privacy.
References:
2 comments:
The money quote is that these companies are now shifting to tablets, and the new Windows 8 interface was optimized for tablets/touch screens. Asus already makes excellent tablets, you just need to look at the Nexus 7 to see that.
The other money quotes are that consumers are now looking at cheap Android tablets, and that most of them simply refuse to pay for more expensive Windows. Checking the Best Buy website, the cheapest Windows 8 tablet I see is $499, double the price of the Nexus 7. Netbooks aren't gonna help Windows 8, but if Microsoft is aiming for market share domination and best-selling status, It's gonna have to match the price of the Nexus 7 with a good tablet.
Good points. Windows 8 is still a bit confusing, but it gets many things right [1]. Pogue, for example really likes full-blown Win 8 Surfaces:
http://pogue.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/01/10/microsofts-surface-pro-tablet-changes-the-game/
Price-wise, I’m not sure. Many people buy based on price alone, but to me, quality and usefulness are very important, too. Apple proves that you can be successful without participating in the race to the bottom. Exciting times ahead!
[1] http://www.2ality.com/2012/10/split-windows-8.html
Post a Comment