Smartbooks
Smartbooks are the newest book on the block, taking several star turns at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas this year, including the introduction of HP's Slate and Lenovo's Skylight. Smartbooks combine features of both a smartphone and a netbook computer in a device that's mobile like a phone, yet comes in a laptop-style body with a screen that's 5 to 10 inches in size. Other features include extended battery life, 3G connectivity and GPS capability.Qualcomm, the world's largest cellphone chip supplier, has a lot invested in the smartbooks game. Its Snapdragon line of chipsets power the new Nexus One smartphone by Google as well as Lenovo's new smartbook.
"A smartbook melds together the best of a netbook and the best of a smartphone," said Mark Frankel, VP of product management for Qualcomm CDMA Technologies. "It's always on, always connected." And it has long battery life, 8 to 12 hours, according to Frankel.
Aside from the early adopters, who rush to retailers when any new tech product is released, Frankel thinks that smartbooks will initially win over the consumer side of the market.
But he thinks that business users will be converted soon, too. "If I'm a lawyer and have a 150-page contract to develop, I'll probably do that at my desk," he said. "But when I have to go across the country to negotiate it at my client, I'd much rather have a smartbook with me."
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