Study: 60 Percent of Netbooks Never Leave the House. How About Yours?
Jun 22, 2009 04:37 PM EDT by Joanna Stern 
Netbooks have been by definition small and very portable computers intended for getting on the Internet from virtually anywhere. They have given new meaning to on-the-go computing. Or so we thought. You can imagine our surprise that NPD is reporting that 60 percent of netbook buyers said that they never even take their netbooks out of the house, especially given the fact that 60 percent of people actually bought netbooks because of their portability. Either way, more than half of netbooks don’t see the light of day. It is our guess that netbook recluses choose to use their netbooks as secondary PCs within the home, for surfing the Web on the couch or as an extra PC for children. But why buy a small and super mobile laptop if you aren’t going to put it in a bag or take it outside? Perhaps, those consumers who bought their netbooks to use out and about then realized they didn’t need a netbook for those tasks when out of the house? Let us know in the poll below and in the comments if your netbook is a pale and pasty shut-in or if it gets to see the insides of coffee shops or airports.
Only 58 percent of consumers who bought a netbook instead of a notebook said they were very satisfied with their purchase, compared to 70 percent of consumers who planned on buying a netbook from the start. The dissatisfied users aren’t just old people. Sixty-five percent of 18-to 24-year-olds said they bought their netbooks expecting better performance, and only 27 percent said their netbooks performed better than expected.
June 23rd, 2009 at 1:33 am
Hmm, if the netbooks never leave the house, the owners are missing some of the best parts of the netbook! It’s very handy in meetings, on the road and on trips.
Time to get those netbooks out there!
June 23rd, 2009 at 2:01 am
Thing is, most people don’t have meetings or take to the road much or ever go on trips.
Most notebooks don’t leave the home, either, so this is not big surprise. Its simply because for a lot of people, having a small computer makes sense. There is still a number of folks who don’t do much with PCs except write emails and watch Youtube now and then.
June 23rd, 2009 at 2:46 am
While I take my Wind with me all over the place, almost daily, I can certainly understand those people who don’t take their netbook out of the house. I also use mine heavily at home, and it moves from sofa to sofa, to desk to kitchen counter to dining room table–it’s everywhere I need it–oh, and in the garage, or out on the porch swing or picnic table–it’s everywhere. One need not take it “on the road” to take full benefit of its size and weight.
I’m not surprised that people expected notebook performance. In some ways, this is true–just don’t push it.
I’ve installed Leopard on my Wind, and it has become my primary computer. I’ve even done major photo editing, and video editing, audio editing and DVD burning with it. At some point, however, you have to recognize the weaknesses of these small guys, and work within their limitations. I’m very willing to do so. Ever since I traded in my Apple Duo 2300 for my Pismo, I’ve been longing for a tiny laptop to replace it. My Wind is my dream come true! 
It’s far less hamstrung than my Duo was. I’m happy, though I realize that not everybody could be happy with such a small computer. It’s the one for me–now if only Apple would get busy. 