iPad Stealing One-Third of Netbook Market
The iPad has significantly impacted the netbook market by charming away 30 percent of potential netbook buyers, a new survey finds.
Retrevo, an electronics site, surveyed more than 1,000 people across gender, age, income and location demographics in the United States. The survey asked people interested in a netbook purchase if they held off buying a netbook after the iPad was announced in January. While 30 percent just bought a netbook, and another 40 percent ended up buying a netbook after considering an iPad, a full 30 percent of people shopping for a netbook decided to go with an iPad instead.
Now that the iPad is available, it's having an even more dramatic effect on netbook sales. Of survey respondents currently trying to decide whether to buy a netbook or an iPad, 78 percent of them are leaning towards an iPad purchase over a netbook. That's a significant loss of potential revenue for netbooks, and this disruption in sales is due to a single device.
The Retrevo survey painted a bleaker picture for the netbook by revealing that the laptop is returning in popularity over the netbook as laptop prices continue to drop. In the past year, a majority of consumers (65 percent) considering whether to buy a laptop or netbook decided to go with a laptop. The same goes for people currently weighing the options between laptops and netbooks.
Retrevo asked respondents what was most attractive about netbooks. Fifty-four percent said it was the small and light form factor, 20 percent said it was price, 19 percent said battery life and 7 percent had other reasons. While netbooks have had advantages in all three main features, ultrathin and budget laptops have been getting lighter and cheaper, and most laptops have seen an increase in battery life. The iPad scores high in terms of size and battery life as well.
These results show that the netbook, which has seen massive growth in the last few years, is being squeezed on both sides and may see its market dominance slide further as laptops get cheaper and tablets become more popular .
