Friday, May 8, 2009

Netbooks based on ARM useful?

Now it seems that there's another new trend for Netbooks. That is Netbooks with the Android OS, running on the ARM chip. The Netbook that is coming out is called Alpha 680. From what I read, it has a 7 inch screen with a resolution of 800 x 480 pixels, 128 MB RAM, and a 1GB SSD. The 2 cell battery last from 2 to 4 hours with WiFi enabled.

Regardless of the price, just by looking at the specs, I do not see the point of creating such a Netbook. Using the iPhone, I can use 3G for a day before charging. The iPhone is basically enough to check e-mail, browse the web, read some documents, play tons of games, etc etc. Why someone bothered to create a 7 inch netbook that only allows people to see a little clearer, type a bit better, but only last 2 to 4 hours? Just based on the battery life, I will not even bring the Netbook out. It's of no use. The battery life is too short.

Even if the Alpha 680 has a 3G option, the battery life will definitely be significantly reduced, based on my experience using the iPhone. Most probably the battery life for Alpha 680 will shorten to an hour or so using 3G.

Personally, I do not see any business case for it, or any market for it. I can't think of any reason why I would buy it over a laptop like the Thinkpad X200, or an iPhone/Android, even if it is sold cheaply.

Do you?

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