Quote Originally Posted by niky View Post
The niche won't go away completely. Just because the iPhone and smartphone derivatives sell in incredibly huge numbers doesn't mean that traditional cellphones have died out. There will still be users who need a simple phone with a keypad... just as there are still users who need a simple portable device with an actual keyboard instead of a touch-screen.
The problem with netbooks, part of the reason why these devices are low priced is they are produced in volume. But if they become niche devices, the cost of R&D and production increases significantly. So future netbooks may not be as cheap today (as technology ages and gets replaced by newer tech) OR may have certain features not available to lower production costs. This is why netbooks with 10 inch screen size are more common than ones with 11 or 12 inch screen sizes.