Netbooks are good because they are small but not too small. That’s it. They aren’t magical and there’ll always be bigger sized notebooks.

Outside of developing countries, netbooks are the Nintendo Wii of the computer world. Vast numbers of people are fine with a machine that is to computers as a Wii is to a PS3. Let the various sites and super-techhy people rail about how slow and limited netbooks are; I took mine up to 2 MB of RAM, can do some photo editing while I stream video, have Word open, have the Net going.

Oh by the way, I’m writing this on a 10-in Asus–sort-of. I am using a USB-connected keyboard.

(I got decent at using the smaller, built-in keyboard and use it while traveling, hope someone can engineer a really clever way to make some sort of unfolding keyboard that fits within the 10 inches.)

I wonder if the extra couple of inches for the 12-inch netbooks will have a significant impact on how willing people are to tote them around, how easy they’ll find it.

I have a large powerful desktop which I couldn’t live without. As an IT pro I need the ability to run virtual machines, run professional software and of course play games(!). So why would I need a netbook? Wow, well I use it all the time. It really transformed the way the net is used in our house. Suddenly you can log in and check something out in 30 seconds, no need to go upstairs and fire up the beast just to check a train time. You can have it in the kitchen, living room, even the ..ahem.. bathroom.

The Mrs will check out rightmove on the sofa, I’ll check my emails whilst she is cooking, etc. It just allows us to integrate the net into our lives in a cool new way. It’s less of a solitary activity. Sure you can do that with a laptop too, but why limit yourself to shorter battery life, a heavy weight and greater cost if you just want to use the net.

It also allows streaming radio and movies without having to buy an internet radio or expensive HD video recorders, runs Office, plays older games, allows me to develop PHP and MySQL software, etc.

Don’t underestimate the modern netbook, check out the NC10 :)

I agree with the comment above that the low price of netbooks “make you comfortable taking it places and doing things with it that you’d be worried about doing with a full-priced notebook”.

I expect there always will be a place for small cheap netbooks, but that 12 inch netbooks will have a huge impact on the overall laptop market. At that size there are very few compromises and the price is right, for what you get. They will be judged good enough for a large percentage of users.

As to the consumer reports review of netbooks, it’s lacking in many ways, which I wrote about on my blog
What Consumer Reports didn’t tell you about netbooks
http://blogs.computerworld.com/what_consumer_reports_didnt_tell_you_about_netbooks

When you compare a netbook with something like a MacBook Air, Dell Adamo, or the 12-13″ thin-and-light notebooks, it’s easy to dismiss it. Compared with those devices, its screen is smaller, its graphics capabilities abysmal, its processor anemic, etc. But you’re comparing a $1000+ device with a $250-350 one. Would you be comfortable leaving your new MacBook Air in a bag in your car? Would you feel better seeing someone drop your $300 netbook on the floor or your new Dell Adamo? Unless you’ve got lots of disposable income or an incredible faith in your notebook manufacturer’s build, you’ll appreciate the fact that a netbook (relative to a full notebook) is a commodity device that you can almost consider “disposable”.

Those, in a nutshell, are the netbook’s advantages… It’s small and light like a higher-end device from Sony, Apple, or Dell. It’s powerful enough for the things most computer users spend their time doing. Its battery life usually bests much larger devices. And it’s cheap enough to make you comfortable taking it places and doing things with it that you’d be worried about doing with a full-priced notebook. If you can live with the compromises (smaller screens, lower resolutions, less 3D graphics power, slower processors, etc.), it’s a great device. If you can’t, or you can afford something bigger and better, then a netbook may not be for you.

I love my netbook and carry it almost everywhere I go. I find it very fun and useful. At the same time, however, if I could pick up a more-capable device like the Adamo or Air for “just above” a netbook price, I wouldn’t bother with a netbook. (For example, a $500 Air/Adamo would be enough for me to ditch the netbook and move on.) I figure a couple of years out, netbooks will be in serious competition with used thin-and-light notebooks from today… although advances in netbook performance, graphics, and battery life might keep them in the lead.