By We’ve hear SO much about Android Netbooks over the past year, often courtesy of Acer. They joined the Open Handset Alliance in June and the world is waiting for the unannounced Acer A1 Android Phone and an Acer Android Netbook for August Launch. The latter of those won’t happen in August… and might not EVER happen.
According to DigiTimes, demand isn’t high enough:
Although Acer had originally announced plans to launch a dual-OS netbook with both Windows XP and Android in August, further evaluation has found demand for an Android netbook is not strong enough, and it has therefore decided to postpone the launch of the model.
With Google announcing Chrome OS for netbooks next year and Windows 7 perfectly capable of running on netbooks this holiday season, I agree that an Android Netbook might miss its mark. It might do perform decently well, but why put the effort into an Android Netbook when right after you’ll have to rework your line for Chrome OS?
This is disappointing and certainly blurs the line of Android/Chrome OS even further as manufacturers struggle in knowing what to adopt and when. Where will each of these projects overlap and how will it all end up when all is said and done?
Don’t get your hopes up for an Android Netbook from Acer anytime soon… if ever. And don’t count on other manufacturers working on an Android Netbook. At least until we know more about Chrome OS and I’m guessing Android will be a part of that somehow/someway.
Discuss.
I think this is actually a good thing. I’d much rather not have an Android netbook out there than have a failed Android netbook tarnishing the Android name.
Hopefully, Chrome OS will not have to compete with Android for the netbook market.
“This is disappointing and certainly blurs the line of Android/Chrome OS even further as manufacturers struggle in knowing what to adopt and when. Where will each of these projects overlap and how will it all end up when all is said and done?”
Why is this blurring the line? Seems to me that it’s DEFINING the line. Android is for mobile phones and handheld devices. Chrome OS is for netbooks, laptops, and desktops.
When you see a netbook that your going to hold up to your ear and make a call, then talk to me about “blurring the line”.
This is very unfortunate. Android adapted to bigger screen and VOIP for phone-calls would be a much better platform for Netbooks – than Google’s pie-in-the-sky Chrome OS. I mean we already have thousands of working Android Apps written in java, which can install on your machine – rather than a kludgy JavaScript/Html/NaCl/Online/Offline mumbo jumbo of Chrome !!!
As Jason wrote, it’s also about the apps. Having mobile-optimized apps on a mobile-optimized device, with identical experiences, cloud synchronization (one would hope), and licensed to the same account (paid once) is a major selling position.
If Chrome OS can run Android apps, then maybe this is just a small setback. If it cannot, then this is a large setback for Google moving beyond phones.
Consumer expectations are also a problem. A netbook is supposed to be the “in between” device. Personally, I think it should compliment the mobile experience, but consumers think of mobile devices in black and white: it is either a phone or a desktop replacement.
With many signs indicating that Apple will release a netbook sooner rather than later and Windows 7 RTM’d (it really is a great OS), Android just isn’t quite there.
I don’t envy any manufacturer’s decision. Don’t get me started on Chrome OS.
Fear not. Acer is on track for an Android Netbook Q3 release: http://www.engadget.com/2009/07/30/acer-reaffirms-that-android-based-netbook-still-coming-in-q3/
If the Thundersoft s latest progress on Android can be included ,Acer s netbook will be a good surprise!