Netbook Review – Acer, Asus Netbook Review

In the middle of September, Intel announced plans of launching an application store meant exclusively for Atom powered netbooks. Their idea is to mimic Apple’s Istore and have third party developer applications available for purchase. The financial model will also mirror Apple’s with developers keeping 70% of revenues with the rest going to Intel.

A lot of applications that are currently out there were originally created for desktop PCs running more powerful processing machines, and these become kind of redundant for netbooks. Sure, there are a few light-weight softwares that have been developed specifically for netbooks, but if the Intel application store comes into being, we may see a giant explosion in their number.

Spurring Innovation?

Intel plans on pre-installing the store application on their netbooks, and if they’re able to get the larger OEMs actively involved, it will drive a lot of traffic to the store. Also with a large chunk of the revenues devoted towards developers, they will have an incentive to create useful applications. A good place to start would be mimicking Apple applications, and you may soon see light-weight netbook programs that print wirelessly, find wireless networks, calendars and planners that sync easily between devices, games, multimedia and so much more.

The Good

• With the I(ntel)store, there will be a single place for users to find all the programs they need. If done right, this will pose competition to sites like CNET.
• There will probably be security and guidelines for developers to follow, which should ensure a clean base of applications. This guarantee of virus-free applications may drive a large chunk of netbook users to the store.
• The revenue sharing model will arouse the interest of a host of developers, from the large (EA, Microsoft, Adobe, etc.) to the small and ensure a large number of useful downloadable programs for users. They will probably also be cheaper.

The Bad

• The store will face competition from existing sites, the internet in general and illegal downloads.
• People may not understand that the applications are low-powered versions meant for netbooks, and this may create a negative buzz.
• There have been previously failed attempts at recreating the Apple store model – the Blackberry store, the Android market, Nokia’s Ovi, Palm’s Store and the Microsoft Windows Mobile Application store to name a few.

The Ugly

Well there is none, really! This is a good idea on paper and if Intel is able to translate it into the real world, it will be goodies all around. Developers will be happy with sales in a growing market (even with the recession), users happy with increased choice and Intel with a stronger hold on the Netbook market.

Filed under: Netbook