Essentially people use netbooks for web browsing, a bit of email, and occaisional doc editing. The first 2 can be done happily enough with an iPhone.

For this reason, I’ve been advocating a convertible/tablet/netbook form factor based upon the iPod Touch/iPhone. Have a 9″ display in the same 3:2 proportion as the iPhone, and same glass covering/capacitative touch panel. You can also run it in ‘laptop’ mode with the keyboard swivelled out. No need for a cramped touchpad, as you’ve got the screen. The keyboard API for the iPhone can just take input from the hardware keyboard — maybe a little recoding to the OS, and none required from the apps (they’re all Cocoa Touch, so properly OO). The App Store can deliver all the apps you’ll need for your new netbook — Apple just need to release cut down versions of iWork to do the doc editing.

The current iPhone hardware can cope with the netbook just fine. The current ARM processor is underclocked as it is, maybe they could ramp this up (room for a bigger battery in this form factor). If the screen res increases, you might need a separate GPU, but again, this won’t break any of the apps.

Syncing can be via MobileMe/iTunes — does anyone have a netbook as their only computer? You won’t really need any interface ports other than a dock connector. Webcam: who cares, but Apple could turn around the iPhone camera. GPS would be pretty much a 1st in the netbook market, and may be included. What else would you need a USB port for? A mouse? You’ve got multi-touch. HSDPA? Built in. Flash drive? Sync to iDisk. Printer? Maybe… but my printer can use Bluetooth and wifi!

A netbook with an iPhone core will have WAN access, and will be a godsend to mobile network operators to sell their lovely mobile broadband (laptops with mobile broadband are certainly the current big thing in the UK).

I can’t see Apple doing a cheap full OS X netbook. You simply don’t need full OS X in a small ‘cheap’ computer.

I would like to see Apple produce a sub £500 netbook that is a 10″ shrink of the new MacBooks. Essentially half the price and half the features of a MacBook, no DVD so it’s super light and durable with an aluminum unibody case.

What puts me off netbooks at present is the slow Atom chip, Apple should wait for a more powerful version before doing a netbook. If Apple did a netbook, I would buy one and I bet many Mac fans would opening a new revenue stream for Apple, so I don’t see why Apple shouldn’t do one when the technology is right.

My speculation is that Apple is focusing on 2 main alternatives:

1. the long-rumored Apple Tablet. This is likely a 7″ touch-screen running minimal osX, would be sold as part of the iPod platform, mostly as a WiFi-media player. The iPod Touch grows up, in other words. Surf the net with bigger screen, also pick up your iTunes movies and tv shows anywhere in the house. My further speculation on this one would be that it will run on the new-gen PA Semi CPU for which, it is said, Apple bought PA Semi.

2. a netbook. This would likely be 9″ or even 10″ screen, as the 7″ netbook variants garner a lot of complaints. This one runs full-on Mac-style OSX, and so it will need to wait for two tech developments: ’snow leopard’ which Apple promises will be smaller, more compact, and nimbler than Leopard; and the soon-to-be-released dual-core Atom chips from Intel (once Intel manages to fix their QA testing facilities to make Atoms more available).

So, I wouldn’t expect either of these before Spring 09 at the earliest. By then Apple should have a better idea on how bad the economy is and how receptive it might be to new ‘toys’ of this nature. (Netbooks in general seem to be feeling some pressure to lower prices, which means lower margins; and Apple won’t jump into any market where that’s the case!)

–the capabilities of a 4-8 core desktop, 1T+ of storage
–AirPort Express Base station
–goosed-up Xgrid that handles multiple simultaneous users
–AppleTV done right
–functionality of Tivo done better

IHome does all but the simplest work of the whole family’s computer needs, who each accesses it through a thin client–netbooks, freestanding wireless keyboards and monitors, iPhones, or remotes. The family cloud brought close.

When family members are away they use the cloud itself, but it’s primary disadvantage, speed, remains.

It’s your family computer workhorse; iPod-iTunes central for music & video; your telecommunications hub; your cable, satellite, or Tivo box.

And it’s all available today. (Alright, the goosed up Xgrid needs work, but other Unix systems have simultaneous user capabilities.)

The whole family of Apple users: one $3-4K iHome plus several hundred apiece for the thin clients.

Which multi-user household would not want one?

This might make real money for Apple.

I’d like to see a variant of the iPhone which mimics the old Sculley Navigator idea – it is thicker but opens up to show a touchscreen twice as large as the iPhone with 32/64GB storage and a USB port at a mobile network subsidized price of $4-500. Pocketable but not too much bulk. It worked for slim diaries so why not for iPhone+

On another note, I’ve always wondered if Foleo would have been successful if Palm had chosen to market it as a netbook instead of as a Treo peripheral.