Netbooks and media tablets are
neck-and-neck in terms of consumer interest. Media tablets are slowly killing
the netbook market, and that both device types are cannibalizing” sales of
personal computers, according to ABI Research.

Around 25 percent of respondents rated
themselves as either extremely” or very” interested in acquiring a netbook,
while for media tablets, the number was 27 percent. Purchases of these
companion devices are likely to result in a prolonged PC lifecycle and delay
replacement.

Nearly half of those surveyed, however,
report that they are either ‘not very’ or ‘not at all’ interested in purchasing
a media tablet. The most common reason for the lack of interest is -I
don’t see the need,’ selected by 60 percent,” said Jeff Orr, director, mobile
devices group, ABI Research.

Although media tablets are grabbing today’s
headlines, they still face some challenges to adoption. What activities can
media tablets perform that are not already well-addressed by laptop/netbook PCs
or smartphones. This remains the single largest barrier to consumer interest,”
Orr added.

A little more than half believe that the primary
use for the media tablet will be entertainment. In line with this result,
entertainment-related applications are the ones that most people report they
would likely use on the media tablet.

By Telecomlead.com Team
[email protected]