People Want a MacNetbook, But Will the People Get One?
October 3rd, 2008 by Joanna Stern
Ok we get it, we get it. The people (or at least Apple fanboys) really, really want an Apple netbook (what we are calling a Macnetbook). The proof is in the puddin, as they say. One guy modded an MSI Wind to look like a MacBook. He went the whole nine yards too, by carving out an Apple shaped logo on the lid and placing LED lights inside. See the pictures after the jump. Installing OS X was the easy part. We admit that it looks pretty sleek and the Wind was definitely the right netbook to use since its keyboard and manufacturing quality is what we would even expect to see from the Cupertino based manufacturer. Then there are those, less impressive others that have now figured out how to put OS X on the Dell Inspiron Mini 9. But will we see an Apple netbook any time soon? Kevin Tofel of JKonTheRun thinks so. Tofel makes a few arguments about how a smaller screen Macbook is inevitable. Pretty well rounded arguments, but I think he leaves out one really important thing. That little thing called the Apple iPhone. One of the arguments that I hear consistently from netbook manufacturers is that netbooks hold a special place in-between smart phones and notebooks. People want a device that they can use on the go that gives them a full Internet experience and isn’t confined to a small screen, they all tell me. But that small Apple wonder of a phone gives you that full Internet experience, especially when the Adobe Flash support lands. I’m not saying an Apple netbook wouldn’t make sense and be totally awesome. However, Apple will have a harder time positioning its netbook in a line of products that includes a super phone with constant connectivity and a high end ultraportable like the MacBook Air.
Our Related Content
- Rumor: Apple Preparing An 11.6-Inch MacBook Air, iPod Touch With 3-MP Camera
- New Rumors: Apple Tablet Coming This Fall
- Rumor: Apple Tablet in Q1 of 2010
From Other Sites
- Acer Aspire One D270 Cedar Trail Netbook Available for Pre-Order in US, $279.99 (Netbook News)
- Acer Aspire One D270 Cedar Trail netbook up for pre-order (Liliputing)
- iPad 3 to Sport a Dual Core Processor (Netbook News)
Related Deals
- HP ENVY 14 Beats edition 14.5-inch Intel 2nd Gen Core i5 Laptop [Core i7 $949] $849.99 FREE SHIPPING (via LogicBUY)
- HP ENVY 14 Intel 2nd Core i5 2.4GHz Laptop [Core i7 $899] $799.99 FREE SHIPPING (via LogicBUY)
- HP Mini 210 10.1-in 1.6GHz Dual-core Intel Atom Netbook $299.99 FREE SHIPPING (via LogicBUY)
- Dell Vostro 3555 AMD E2-3000M 2.4GHz Dual-core 15.6-in Laptop $439 FREE SHIPPING (via LogicBUY)
- Sony VAIO VPCEH37FX/W 15.5-in Core i5 2.5GHz Laptop (Glacier White) + $200 MS Store Coupon $699 FREE SHIPPING (via LogicBUY)











October 5th, 2008 at 10:47 am
I think Apple is waiting for a dual core Atom chip from Intel.
October 7th, 2008 at 1:25 am
i don’t think apple will or can respond w/a macnetbook.
the pricing of netbooks are way too low for apple’s known areas. for example, take a look at a macbook pro vs an hp or dell of the same specs; a macbook pro is a good few hundred over any of the pc variants. apple likes to make money on hardware; they can’t w/a netbook. enough said.
imo, not enough money in the hardware for apple. plus, osx on non-mac hardware is still for us geek mainly (if you want all of the good things like integrated wifi working and drivers, etc) so apple is not really too threatened by osx being ported to non-mac hardware since the learning curve is still kind of higher.
however, these are my geeky .02..