I watched that, not a sign of Pison or (R) anywhere -
If Pison (legal reps) are going after 'for-profit' use – send them that link.

Netbook or Mini-Laptop either or, these little computers are great. I myself own a Acer Aspire One I am a I.T project manager and have been in the I.T. business for over 10 years so I think that might qualify me as somewhat of an expert in some areas of technology. Netbooks or mini-laptops can be used for all basic computing needs as well as some advanced usage, this means that yes! It can replace a main computer if the person does not have an issue with typing on a smaller platform which is really not a bad trade-off for the ease of mobility. I ran into a guy last night at the local Starbuck’s and he was a programmer for a local company and he was writing code on his EeePC 901 so don’t tell me these are not real computers. If Psion wants to behave like “the kid who takes his ball just because he was not pick to play”, over the use of the word “Netbook” then let them. We can all start calling them what they really deserve to be call and the “Ultra portable laptops” by using a different name for these wonderful devices will not add to Psion profit share. Now on to Best Buy, I have on several occasion been browsing around in the computer section of my local BB and have overheard sales associates providing customers with incorrect information about products in the store. I usually allow the sales person to complete there spill and often pull the customer to the side and provide them with the proper information need, so it does not surprise me to see a marketing scheme like this from BB. Not only is it untrue they it ridiculous. There is no supporting information that supports the claim BB is presenting. As a matter of fact most of the I.T. professionals that are truly professionals think that netbooks are GREAT especially for everyday use. I myself would believe someone who has been in the I.T field for 10 plus years over some marketing group who stands to benefit from the misinformation.

I actually like the term netbook, and once people have one or see one they won't think it is a dumb terminal for long.

What would be the best new designation?
1) Abacus (Austere Backup Computer User System)
2) Handbook
3) Litebook
4) NOTbook
5) Frigate (It is about time we had a modern usage for this great word)

I vote for Frigate, and then subdivide this segment of computers into classes
- 11″ screen Constitution Class
- 10.2″ screen Corvette Class
- 9.2″ screen Cutter Class
- 7″ or less screen Sloop Class

It's not like Best Buy is a center of technical excellence.

Hey, can my Sloop run Frigix?

The computer manufacturer's positioning reminds me of old shampoo commercials, which always told you to “lather twice” when washing your hair. Why? Use twice as much shampoo…

Regardless of their motives, I think that presentation does help the average consumer understand that a netbook isn't going to be as powerful as most full-sized laptops. I love my Aspire One, but I would never consider it a replacement for my MacBook Pro.

I agree that the presentation is a bit limiting in its representation of what a netbook can do, but then again, many of the netbooks depicted in that presentation were early models with 7″ screens. Those devices were under-powered, and the screen resolution alone makes them much more limited than a model with a 9″ or 10″ 1024 x 600 screen.

As this market evolves, I think it will become much more difficult to keep these products separate items from full-sized laptops. If nVidia is successful with its ION platform, and Intel moves forward with dual-core Atoms, the capabilities of future netbooks and nettops will surely increase significantly!

The word “netbook” is ok – it's short, easy to remember, and it's no more misleading than “notebook” or “laptop”.

With a notebook you can do more than just take notes, same as you can do more with a netbook than connect to the internet.

And just look at all the monstrosities which are sold as “laptops” nowadays – ever tried to work with one of those 18″, 8 pound, gorillas on your *lap*? Not to mention that I also don't carry such huge and heavy paper-*notebooks* with me – if you can even carry these “luggables” more than a few meters.

The word netbook is as good a compromise as any other, and it is already well established, so let's get over this naming discussion.

Brad:

I couldn't agree with your point about “netbooks” more. So my question is why don't we start calling these little notebooks “notebooks” instead of “netbooks”?

The small notebooks labeled “netbooks” are simply notebooks. At this point, all the defining characteristics of netbooks are fairly amorphous. Is it the price that defines the “netbook” line? Should the S101 be included? Is it the screen size? Should the Sony TT series be included? Is a truncated keyboard part of the deal? Should the HP Mini 1000 be included? With so much uncertainty surrounding the term “netbook”, it's probably best to leave it by the wayside.

It seems like the word “netbook” has become associated with the idea of a small computer that is really portable and cheap, but can't handle the daily grind of what a real laptop could do. That's patently false and it truly disturbs me that B&M stores are advertising these “netbooks” to be inferior and other websites claim that “netbooks” are security risks. So regardless of whether how one feels about whether Psion should be able to enforce its property rights or not, it seems like the term “netbook” should be phased out in favor an old term: notebook.

The term “notebook” conjures a far more accurate image of what these computer can do. As is well-documented on this site (and others), little notebooks work just as hard – if not harder – than normal-sized notebooks, they work longer than normal notebooks, and they cost less while having a smaller environmental footprint. Conversely, some folks (e.g., salespeople and uninformed commentators) employ the term “netbook” to conjure images of crippled midget computers that don't work well because of their shortcomings and, as such, need to lean on bigger, “real” notebooks.

Please. Let's just toss the category and call them what they are – notebooks.

OK… Since “netbook” is established, we could call them “4P netbooks” for six months or so to get the two terms associated. There would naturally be some use of “4P computers” and “4P PCs,” and these would at times be shortened to simply “4Ps.”

If a Taiwanese motherboard company can get the whole world talking about EEE PCs, pronounced “EPC,” then anything is possible Hey, maybe we should call them PPPPs, pronounced “P”

Brings a new meaning to: “That Frigging Computer”

I wonder when we'll see 5″ pocket devices like the pandora, that device is neat, with great quantity of the mini laptops capabilities and they fit on a pocket.

Also, I've seen on other blog what could have been Apple's 'response' to netbooks, and it seems to be a giant-sized iPod touch with a 7″-9″ screen. That means no much different than a tablet pc, while they not make it too much 'innovative'.

“Save the Netbooks” campaign launched to fight impending trademark threat

The “Save the Netbooks” campaign is fighting the impending trademark threat from Psion Teklogix, who have given until the end of March 2009 to cease using the term citing trademarks relating to a line of products discontinued over 5 years ago.

For more information visit http://www.savethenetbooks.com/.

PS “Netbook” is a portmanteau of Internet and notebook – size is irrelevant (why would it be?). If you want to talk about sizes then follow Psion's advice and adopt subnotebook or ultraportable.