Compaq/HP Fires Big Into Netbook Realm With Cheap Laptop

An ultra-cheap laptop from HP's Compaq division could be the game changer for all the vendors and wireless carriers pushing forward on netbook initiatives.

Why? Well because netbooks, which let you browse the Web, check e-mail and handle other light processor-driven tasks, range in price from about $299 up to $599, with the cheapest options coming through a two-year data plan with a carrier. The netbook's small screen and small keyboard form factor is not meant for serious work tasks and most netbooks can't support full application productivity suites or provide any sort of hefty data storage capability.

Compare that with Compaq's new Presario CQ61z notebook PC, priced at $399, which offers up a 250 gigabyte hard drive for storing up to 49,000 songs or 39,000 photos and a15.6-inch diagonal high-definition display and it's obvious that a netbook might just be a little too pricey for what it provides.

HP, Compaq's parent company, obviously thinks so as well.

"Everyone deserves access to a high-quality computer, and HP makes that possible with the Compaq brand," said Steven Hoffman, director of worldwide marketing, Personal Systems Group, HP, said in a statement. "The Compaq portfolio delivers great design, strong performance and reliability that customers need for 'just right computing' at 'just the right price.'"

Now we'll just have to wait and see if the netbook makers will finally come around to realizing that a $300 price point for what's mainly a social network and Web tool is too costly for the average PC user to bring into their collection of mobile computing tools.

How I do love PC vendor competition, especially just before the big holiday shopping season.

Image courtesy of Ballistik Coffee Boy, via Flickr