SquareTrade divides notebooks into three categories based on price: netbooks (under $400), entry-level ($400 – $1000) and premium (over $1000) and, using data from the laptops they cover, show that over a year netbooks have a 20% higher malfunction rate than entry level and a 40% higher rate than premium laptops. They project that over three years, 25.1% of netbooks will malfunction while only 20.6% and 18.1% of entry-level and premium notebooks will.

Though this is not a complete surprise, it does make me wonder if netbooks have a steeper malfunction rate not just because they’re inexpensive and not as well made as premium notebooks, but also because people use and carry them around more. My netbook goes with me everywhere. And though I have a sleeve and I’m pretty careful, it gets jostled around far more than my laptop. It also gets used more on a daily basis than my laptop ever did.

When SquareTrade broke down which notebooks malfunctioned based on manufacturer, they found that Acer and Toshiba had the lower rate and HP, Gateway and Acer had the highest. It’s interesting, isn’t it, that the companies with higher market share make less reliable products? It’s also interesting that Gateway, which is owned by Acer, has almost exactly the same failure rate as its parent company. Sony, Apple and Dell don’t fare too badly, but we’re surprised to see Lenovo with so high a percentage.

This data also made me wonder if there was some correlation between good technical support and low rates of malfunction. I added the ratings from our recent Tech Support Showdown to the chart above (the letters in red) so you can see for yourself. Many of the lower-scoring manufacturers have higher failure rates, which is disappointing since apparently those users need that tech support more.

Does this data match up with your own experience? I’ve had an Acer laptop for going on three years and haven’t had it malfunction, so I guess I’m beating the odds so far. My first laptop, a Dell Inspiron tank of a machine, stood me in good stead for about 3 years before the The storage device that holds your OS, programs, and data.
Learn Morehard drive died, and then another 3 until I sold it. Anyone out there had a notebook for more than 3 years without a problem? What about netbooks? Anyone with an Eee PC 701 still kicking?

Image: “I could kill my laptop” by stuartpilbrow on Flickr

“They configure the phones to have multiple easily hit keystrokes to launch ‘Get it now’ or ‘Mobile Web’—usually a single key like an arrow key. [...] We cancel these unintended requests as fast as we can hit the End key, but it doesn’t matter; they’ve told me that ANY data–even one kilobyte–is billed as 1MB. The damage is done.”

The Verizon employee says that everyone at the company is aware of this problem but won’t do anything about it because it generates hundreds of millions in revenue. Even customers who have data blocked are still hit with the fee when they accidentally hit these phone keys. They’re charged for receiving the message that data has been blocked.

We asked a Verizon Wireless representative to respond to these accusations. Here’s the response:

Our phones have had many different user interfaces, buttons, keypad/boards and designs over the years. We’re constantly working to update and improve the phones with a goal of making them easier for customers to use. We also try to help customers understand the various options — Internet, apps, etc. — available to them on these phones. We know it’s important we get this issue right, regardless of how many customers it impacts (which appears to be very few), and we’ll always work with customers to credit any incorrect charges they may find on their bills.

It’s good to know that Verizon will refund customers in this instance, but if these charges appear every month for some users, how much time will they spend getting them removed?

Have you noticed $1.99 accidental data charges on your Verizon Wireless bill? If yes, and if you’ve called the billing department to have them removed, what was your experience? How often do these charges appear on your bill?

Pogue reports that at least one AT&T customer has also noticed $2 data charges appearing on the monthly bill. Anyone with Sprint or T-Mobile seeing the same?

In an economy so unforgiving, these ultra-affordable systems (most cost under $500) could provide some relief to IT managers, who might otherwise spring for pricier systems, or postpone purchases altogether. But do netbooks translate perfectly from consumers’ living rooms to road warriors’ lives on the road? While some companies are aggressively marketing to the business crowd, others (and presumably, their customers) are cautiously awaiting a more evolved second wave.

Subtle (But Important) Differences

So far, the main difference between consumer and business netbooks has been design; a business netbook is likely to have a more durable case than its consumer-friendly plastic cousin.

HP’s Mini 5101, which starts at $399, is targeted directly at the business crowd. This netbook has a brushed aluminum lid, while the deck and bottom of the system are made of magnesium alloy. In addition, the keyboard is spill-resistant and coated with a wear-resistant finish. To further differentiate the Mini 5101 from its consumer-oriented Mini 1000 ($349.00), HP also added Computrace LoJack for Laptops support, Corel’s lightweight, netbook-friendly productivity suite, and a fast 7,200-rpm The storage device that holds your OS, programs, and data.
Learn Morehard drive with a 3D accelerometer, which protects it in the event of a drop.

On the other hand, business netbooks tend to have the same guts—an Intel Atom processor, 1GB of RAM, and a 160GB hard drive—which means a road warrior’s 10-inch mini isn’t likely to be any more powerful than Joe Schmo’s.

“I don’t see a huge difference other than marketing and branding,” said Stephen Baker, vice president of industry analysis for NPD Group. “I’m not sure what you can do on a business netbook that makes it all that different than a consumer one.”

IDC analyst Richard Shim agrees, adding that the 5101’s added amenities are the exception, not the rule. “This market was not here two years ago, and so the [companies] have been like, ‘We have to get our products out there,’” he said. “There’s not a lot of differentiation; they keep pushing out the same box, only with different brands.”

Even Dell has to agree that there isn’t much of a difference between business and consumer netbooks right now. Its Vostro A90 netbook is available only in China. For stateside consumers, Vostro senior product manager Alison Gardner recommends the Inspiron Mini series across the board, whether the customer happens to be a consumer or small business user.

Targeting the Right Audience

One thing is certain: notebook manufacturers are billing both business and consumer netbooks as companion devices. Sarah Bussell, business notebook product marketing manager at HP, says that because of their low price and mobility, netbooks are particularly useful for mobile workers whose needs don’t warrant more powerful (and pricey) devices. Bussell also thinks netbooks are useful, and affordable for in-house training sessions.

NPD’s Baker believes that the idea of netbooks-as-secondary-devices will be especially compelling to businesses trying to save money. “The real value for a business in netbooks would be small size and low cost for road warriors looking to lighten their load, but who need more usability than a smart phone,” he said. “For execs and others who might have gotten a thin-and-light for $1,500 or higher, netbooks are much more practical and cost effective.”

Still, even with more durable designs and professional-grade amenities, it remains to be seen whether business-class netbooks create a strong value proposition. Shim says as long as the performance is lacking compared to a full-size notebook, business netbooks will be a tough sell. “On the commercial side, performance is still the main driver,” he said.

Dell’s Gardner agreed, contending that mobile salespeople, looking to create and play PowerPoint presentations, will do better with larger, more powerful systems. Baker, however, is not convinced that users need a dual-core machine to run an Office suite. “Who needs power for that?” he argued.

Missing Ingredients

In the meantime, Shim says netbook vendors would do well to follow HP’s example, and focus on business-friendly features. Synchronization software tops his list, particularly since netbooks have been marketed as secondary PCs. “If you make a change on your mini-notebook, it’ll be reflected on your primary system when you sync the two,” he suggested. HP will be rolling out its own QuickSync software as a download this September.

But manufacturers have to convince business users of more than just their netbooks’ durability and convenience: they also have to be secure enough. Toshiba, which recently released its first consumer netbook, is observing the business netbook market and evaluating the need for TPM circuitry and encryption—features business users have come to expect on full-size notebooks.

Windows 7 ($79.95) also has the potential to make netbooks more appealing. Up until now, they’ve run best with Windows XP, Microsoft’s reliable but aging OS. In our tests, we’ve found that most netbooks couldn’t handle Vista, a more bloated OS (and, to be fair, many IT managers have chosen not to deploy it anyway). But Windows 7, thanks to a more efficient architecture, runs more smoothly on netbooks, as we’ve seen in our labs.

Having a current OS that runs easily on modest hardware could be a boon for netbooks, but only if IT managers approve, says NPD’s Baker. Whereas consumers buying new notebooks will have no choice but to use Windows 7, IT managers still have the prerogative of supporting the OS of their choice. “For businesses, it’s not relevant until deployment starts,” he said.

The Waiting Game

Regardless of how compelling they are, IDC’s Shim believes that increasingly, IT managers will have little choice but to at least consider netbooks. “We’ve got screen sizes from 7 inches to 20,” he said. “The IT manager is starting to realize the days of the one-size-fits-all model are going away.”

For some of your workers, netbooks might actually be the best choice. If their needs are more mobility- than performance-driven (e.g., people who do just enough content creation that they can’t rely on a smart phone), your company could save hundreds of dollars for every worker to whom it deploys a netbook instead of a notebook (particularly comparably-small ultraportables). In fact, the idea of netbooks as secondary PCs might make more sense for businesses than for consumers.

But in exchange for long battery life and a lightweight form factor, netbook users must forfeit the robust security features they’ve come to expect in small business notebooks, at least for now. Until business netbooks evolve further, it will be up to IT managers and CTOs to determine whether these machines have what they need to make their workforce more productive in the field.

Why now? Michael Arrington of TechCrunch speculates that the negotiations between Apple and Google over the app broke down and Google has decided to use one of it’s “nukes” to embarrass Apple for telling a fib. Apple claimed that they had not rejected the Google Voice app and “continue to study it.” Google told the FCC that Apple did reject the app, flat out.

Apple responded by saying: “We do not agree with all of the statements made by Google in their FCC letter. Apple has not rejected the Google Voice application and we continue to discuss it with Google.”

The marketing language in play makes me very skeptical. If Arrington is right and Google is holding back the actual rejection notice for future use, then this fight could get even nastier.

All over an app.

An app that sounds wonderful, granted, and that many users want. But still.

I’m eager to see how all of this will play out. In the meantime, Google, I’ll ask again: how about you show Windows Mobile a little love and develop a GV app for its millions of app-less phones?

The lack of communication between Google and Brown’s CIS department caused some bad blood. Tom told the Brown Daily Herald that he’d “spoken very forcefully with the account (executive), my boss, senior administrators at Brown — including the president. (Google needs) to find a better way to communicate with us.”

Though Google has been pushing their services aggressively lately with the Go Google campaign, reports like this plus the recent Gmail outage may cause both individuals and IT managers to pause before handing over their document management or email to Google’s hands. As Sarah Perez at ReadWriteWeb correctly points out, once you bring in a third-party cloud service in addition to your existing I.T. department, users won’t always be able to get their problems solved by someone on site. Methods for facilitating communication and problem-solving don’t seem to be fully worked out — at least in this case.

Individual users of Google services are often frustrated when support issues come up as the forums and mailing lists set up to help often don’t. There may be other knowledgeable users who can speak to problems they’ve encountered and fixed, but on more than one occasion I’ve come across posts that are months old with no solution and no Google employee in sight. It only surprises me a little that communication is the issue even at the enterprise level.

As much as I would love to completely Go Google for all of my productivity and cloud service needs, I can’t until Google steps up. Service outages and bugs are inevitable in every system, but lack of communication is not. Instead of grabbing up every aspect of my online life, Google should focus on ensuring that this life isn’t filled with a lot of cursing because nothing works and no one will tell me why.

Users will have online access to a Web App version of Word, Excel, Powerpoint, and OneNote that should integrate seamlessly with their offline counterparts. This is great news for consumers and businesses — users can securely share and collaborate on documents internally or access them while traveling on a laptop or smartphone.

Obviously Microsoft already has competition from existing online office suites like Zoho and Google Docs. It’s true that many users will turn to Office Web Apps because of the familiar brand name and look. But existing users of GoogleDocs can be lured away if Microsoft’s offering proves faster than molasses-like speeds we’re used to. If Web Apps isn’t an improvement, then both companies and consumers are likely to stick with what they currently use.

However, the business sector has the same objections and faces the same challenges as individuals when faced with this argument. Which Linux distribution is the best for me or my business? Will my documents and data still be easily accessible? Are the applications I need included or available? Will it work with our existing hardware? There’s also the expense of training employees and finding people who can troubleshoot problems.

These issues aren’t unique to Linux, of course. If a small business owner wanted to switch from PC to Mac, she would have the same concerns. In that scenario she’d also have to consider the cost of new hardware, whereas switching to Linux will save money and likely extend the life of existing systems. Whether it’s worth the time and energy to make it work is another story.

Consulting firm Novacoast specializes in helping businesses cut costs and save money, and one of their particular specialties involves converting businesses from Windows to Linux. The firm made the move to Linux five years ago, not only for the financial savings, but also for the increased security. Fewer systems run on Linux, thus it attracts fewer hackers and targeted malware.

As with all operating systems, there are benefits and drawbacks to consider beyond the basics. One big consideration is archived data. “You need compatibility within your ecosystem, as well as your past,” said Roger Kay, president of Endpoint Technologies Associates. “That creates tremendous inertia, holding the incumbent [Windows] in place. Younger and smaller businesses would benefit from adopting Linux.”

But the FSF isn’t restricting its message to small businesses. They’ve sent a letter to 499 of the Fortune 500 companies outlining the dangers inherent in Windows 7 and Microsoft’s approach to security and functionality. They also encourage supporters to write to local and national governments, urging them to adopt open document formats, for example.

The Free Software Foundation may be a bit zealous in their approach and unyielding in their ideals, but the message is sound. And with companies like Novacoast willing to guide businesses through the process, making the switch can net businesses more savings and security.

Read our feature The Linux Debate for a profile of Novacoast and the benefits and drawbacks of Linux for business.

All hyperbole aside, today’s extended Gmail outage probably caused a fair amount of problems for heavy users and once again illustrates the trade-offs that come with relying too heavily on the Cloud. This incident most likely wasn’t serious enough to spark a mass migration from the service, but may increase usage of the Offline feature.

What did you do while your Gmail was out?

TrendMicro reports that it seems to be spreading through forum posts at the moment. Just remember to always go to the software, plugin, or browser’s official website to download updates. Also remember that even though Firefox isn’t as big a target as Internet Explorer, it’s not completely bulletproof. You should always be on your guard when downloading.

If you have something listed as “Adobe Flash Player 0.2” in your extensions, you’ve been infected. If your current malware/spyware protection didn’t detect it, try TrojanHunter or Trend Micro Internet Security. Both companies have blogged about this problem and can erase the malware from your system.

Twitter co-founder Biz Stone claims that the company isn’t looking to cut third-party developers offering similar services off at the knees. They will “continue to support the ecosystem with a whole new set of commercial APIs.”

This announcement comes on the heels of the geo-location API announcement. Brian Solis of PR 2.0 sees this as another potential revenue-generator, perhaps allowing business users to see where their followers are so they can plan hyperlocal advertising efforts.

Twitter will continue to be free, and business won’t have to use premium accounts. But if they can get detailed, useful data and guidance from the company on how best to utilize the services, it may be worth the expense. In the meantime, check out our feature on how businesses and professionals can successfully use Twitter to promote your brand and network effectively.