The market for netbooks or mini-notebooks is still expanding, with shipments expected to reach 58 million units in 2010, as consumers and business users continue to look for low-cost computing alternatives, according to a report from research firm ABI.
In 2009, netbook shipments topped 36 million units, which was higher that ABI’s original forecast of 35 million.
Now, in 2010, ABI is calling for netbook shipments to hit 58 million units by the end of the year. However, the research firm does see the emergence of media tablets, such as the Apple iPad and the so-called “Hurricane” from Hewlett-Packard, as having an impact on the netbook market.