The smartbook concept is only a couple of years old but the number of devices is set to grow dramatically. ABI Research reckons there'll be 163 million smartbooks shipped worldwide in 2015.
Jeff Orr, the company's senior analyst, defines a smartbook as "a low-powered device running a mobile operating system that is always connected, either via WiFi or (more often) using cellular or mobile broadband. Smartbooks can take many different shapes. They are a subset of MIDs (mobile Internet devices) and netbooks, and address the same potential users, usage, pricing, and market needs. The difference is that they don’t use x86 processors."
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James Rosewell writes:
Apps (defined as games, information services, social networking video and web content among other things) dominated MWC10 with debate focused on the provision of radio network capacity to support them, the technologies used to create them and the methods for Mobile Network Operators (MNOs) to monetise them. Given the fragmentation in technology and the investment needed from MNOs to provide capacity coupled with a lack of reward for MNOs, we would be forgiven for thinking the App as we know it is not long for this world. However new technologies offering broader platform support, plus smart network investment coupled with new business models, mean the App will evolve and come of age ready for 2011.
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