Acer: Tablets will not replace netbooks (updated)

Emil

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Update: Acer has issued a press release saying that tablets will not be replacing netbooks. "According to recent statement from Sales Manager based in Taiwan, Acer Inc. confirms that the company will not phase out netbooks in favor of tablets. Acer recognizes that the computer market is changing. As PCs are no longer only used to create content but are more and more becoming consumption tools, new devices and new form factors are appearing. This means the range of devices available to users is getting wider and tablets are just another piece of the mosaic. Therefore, they will find their space next to netbooks and notebooks." The original article is below.

Taiwanese computer maker Acer is phasing out its netbook computers with the forthcoming release of its tablets, which are due in the first half of 2011. The move is particularly significant for Acer, given that the company saw very rapid growth and profitability mostly thanks to its various netbook offerings.

Acer's upcoming tablets will begin a gradual replacement of its netbooks, in line with market demands, Taiwan sales manager Lu Bing-hsian told Computerworld. "They are aimed at phasing out netbooks," Bing-hsian said. "That's the direction of the market." Acer will keep making netbooks, adding to its millions sold to date, but the company will stick to simple models and manufacture fewer than in previous years as tablets gain popularity, he said. The company sales manager also confirmed that the tablets will use Intel's new Sandy Bridge four-core processors, will run Android, and will have 7-inch or 10-inch screens.

We've known for a while now that the company was pushing tablets, but it was never clear that netbooks would be left by the wayside. New Acer tablets shipped two months ago, starting at just $300. That same month, the company outlined plans for even more tablets, in Android and Windows flavors.

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Never thought about it until it was mentioned in this article. It seems like a good idea to phase out netbooks in favour of tablets. So the basic 'hierarchy' of personal computing should be Desktop, Notebook, Tablet, Smart Phone.
 
I can't think of anything I can really add that Tim hasn't already said. Netbooks need to be phased out one way or another, and this is the best way to do it.
 
Phasing out netbooks wow thats ambitious, I guess tablets really are the future. Its still way too early for laptops to be phased out though, it would be way too impractical to replace my work laptop with a tablet, especially considering the specialized software i need to run.
 
They're not phasing out all laptops. Notebooks are very safe. It's just those pointless, little netbooks that are being phased out.
 
Just to be clear what i meant to say was, netbooks are being phased out not laptops. Phase out laptops = bad idea, phase out netbooks = good idea
 
Here's the product I want.

A tablet with a kickstand that has a bluetooth or wireless keyboard. I want the two pieces to snap together to "close" the tablet and protect the screen. You can un-hook the tablet and use it with or without the keyboard. That sounds like a pretty fair compromise and a neat product.

And while I'm dreaming, how about we not make it a gimped piece of crap? Put a 2.+ ghz processor in the sumb*tch 2+ gigs of ram, US****ingB ports and and HDMI out. Maybe a card reader and front/rear cameras. Price it at about 600 bucks or less, and I'll jump on the tablet bandwagon.
 
LOOOL seefizzle



P.S. I enjoy my little 10 inch mini-laptop tablets......I don't like the touchscreen idea,way better keyboards in my Internet navigation style
 
Netbooks will cost half as much as a Tablet. They are more powerful, you can work with them because they have real keyboards. Price and usage outweighs chic.
 
I prefer my Acer Netbook over my Apple iPad.

The functionallity of running Windows on a similar sized device to a tablet is what get's it for me.
 
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