Qualcomm didn’t want to get involved with all the discussion with the term “netbook,” so when they wanted to come up with a term to differentiate their platform they used the term “smartbook.”  Whether you call them netbooks or smartbooks Qualcomm is working hard to find new ways to make money.  In the process they’re teaming up with the biggest computer company in the world, Hewlett Packard.  

Barrons doesn’t mention any particulars, but they feel real strongly about the possibility of a Snapdragon netbook from HP.  HP has already shown that they’re willing to innovate and take chances as seen by their custom flavors of Linux on their netbooks as well as their touchscreen desktop.

There is also talk of Microsoft porting Windows to ARM based processors.  This makes a lot of sense.  Microsoft can no longer think that they can hold onto their monopoly by not innovating.  They started by using value to drive adoption and it looks like they’ll have to revisit those roots if the want to continue to profit.

1. Netbooks To Die Slowly In 2010….Get Reborn As Thin Notebooks

2. Qualcomm Snapdragon – Coming To A Netbook Near You

3. Netbooks To Keep XP Alive

4. Top 5 Changes To Netbooks In 2009

5. Why ITWorld Is Wrong About Windows On Arm Netbooks