Netbook: 35 million units shipped in 2009

The number of netbooks shipped worldwide in 2009 should flirt with 35 million units, according to forecasts from research firm ABI Research. Approximately three quarters of the market for mini-PC at low price in 2008 was controlled by the trio Acer, Asus (the manufacturer of the pioneer of the genre, the Eee PC), and Samsung. However, the landscape of the netbook should be redesigned in the coming years with the arrival of new manufacturers and the success of these machines in emerging markets, said analysts from ABI. The firm also provides a surge of small PC hybrid (combination of netbooks, ultra-portable Internet Tablet), which should peak at 124 million units worldwide in 2011.