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When your average consumer spots a netbook in the store, do they really know what they are buying, or do they just think it is some tiny, cheaper notebook of some sort?  Aren’t these the same folks that bought into “The Great Megahertz Wars” for years buying computer systems only on processor clock speed?  At any rate, I would have bet the majority of them had no idea of what netbooks exactly are, what they are good at, and what their weaknesses are.

The folks at NPD did a recent survey to flesh this all out.  Here are some highlights:

• 60% of consumers that purchased a netbook thought it would have the same functionality as a notebook.
• Only 58% of consumers that bought a netbook after intending to buy a notebook were satisfied with their purchase.
• Among the 18 to 24 year olds, 65% of them expected better performance from their netbook.
• Amazingly while portability was listed as a reason to purchase the netbook, a full 60% of them admitted to never taking the device outside their house.

Needless to say, it is safe to say that consumer expectations are not being met by the devices.  While manufacturers have focused on increasing battery life and portability, consumers are really asking for more performance.  Will devices that stray from the Atom processor and standard netbook formula answer that need?

[NPD]