Editing Netbook (section)

{{short description|Class of small and inexpensive laptops}}
{{for|the Psion device|Psion netBook}}
{{pp-move-vandalism|small=yes}}
{{use American English|date=March 2021}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=February 2023}}
[[File:Samsung laptop nc10.jpg|280px|thumb|An [[Samsung NC10]] netbook computer]]
A '''netbook''' is a small-sized [[laptop|laptop computer]]; they were primarily sold from 2007 until around 2013, designed mostly as a [[Internet appliance|means of accessing the Internet]] and being significantly less expensive than regular-sized laptops.
[[File:Acer_Aspire_One_Netbook_first_impressions.jpg|thumb|An [[Acer Aspire One]] netbook sitting on a standard sized [[Toshiba Satellite]] laptop, demonstrating the size difference]]
At their inception in late 2007,<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://blogs.computerworld.com/what_was_the_first_netbook |website=[[Computerworld]] |title=What was the first netbook? |date=May 11, 2009 |access-date=January 19, 2011 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20110130085835/http://blogs.computerworld.com/what_was_the_first_netbook |archive-date=January 30, 2011 |url-status=dead }}</ref> as smaller-than-typical laptop computers optimized for low weight and low cost,<ref name="btwsj">{{cite news |title=Cheap PCs Weigh on Microsoft |series=Business Technologies blog |work=[[The Wall Street Journal]] |date=December 8, 2008 |url=https://blogs.wsj.com/biztech/2008/12/08/cheap-pcs-weigh-on-microsoft/}}</ref> netbooks began appearing without certain then-standard laptop features (such as [[Optical disc drive|an optical drive]]), and with less computing power than in full-sized laptops. They ranged in size from about 5" screen diagonal to 12", with a typical weight of about {{nowrap|1 kg}} ({{nowrap|2.2 pounds}}), and were often significantly less expensive than other laptops.<ref name="pricegrabber">{{cite book |title= Netbook Trends and Solid-State Technology Forecast |publisher=pricegrabber.com |page=7 |url= https://mr.pricegrabber.com/Netbook_Trends_and_SolidState_Technology_January_2009_CBR.pdf |access-date=January 28, 2009 |url-status= dead |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20090226214405/https://mr.pricegrabber.com/Netbook_Trends_and_SolidState_Technology_January_2009_CBR.pdf |archive-date=February 26, 2009 }}
</ref> Soon after their appearance, netbooks grew in size and features, and converged with smaller laptops and [[subnotebook]]s until the specifications were so similar that there was little distinction between the devices.<ref name="cnnogg">{{cite news |last=Ogg |first=Erica |title=Time to drop the Netbook label |publisher=[[Cable News Network|CNN]] |date=August 20, 2009 |url= http://www.cnn.com/2009/TECH/ptech/08/20/cnet.drop.netbook.label/index.html |access-date=May 20, 2010}}</ref> At their peak, the low cost gave them a significant portion of the laptop computer market.

When [[Windows 7]] released, netbook manufacturers had to increase specifications in order for their devices to run it. This had the effect of pushing netbooks into a [[Niche market|market niche]] where they had few distinctive advantages over traditional laptops.<ref name=":0">{{cite web|author= Charles Arthur |url= https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2012/dec/31/netbooks-dead-2013 |title=Sayonara, netbooks: Asus (and the rest) won't make any more in 2013 |work=The Guardian |date=December 31, 2012|access-date=February 10, 2015}}</ref> With these constraints and the increasing popularity of [[tablet computer]]s in 2011, it led to declining sales of netbooks.<ref name=":0" /><ref name="forbes-2011">{{cite web|last= Caulfield|first=Brian|title=The NetBook Is Dead, The iPad Killed It, Don't Buy One |url= https://www.forbes.com/sites/briancaulfield/2011/11/28/the-netbook-is-dead-the-ipad-killed-it-dont-buy-one/|work=[[Forbes]]|access-date=June 20, 2012|date=November 28, 2011}}</ref> By the end of 2012, few new laptops were marketed as "netbooks", and the term disappeared from common usage.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2012/dec/31/netbooks-dead-2013 |title=Asus (and the rest) won't make any more in 2013 |website=[[The Guardian]]|date=December 31, 2012 |last1=Arthur |first1=Charles }}</ref>