There seems to be a general amount of confusion regarding what exactly a "notebook" is in comparison to other kinds of portable computers. Unlike netbooks, which are a recent emerging kind of portable PC with a distinctly different role to play, notebooks have been around for a while and are now almost indistinguishable from standard laptops. The two terms are, in fact, often used as synonyms today. The term "notebook" was coined around 1989 to describe emerging lines of smaller laptops that were about the size of a typical A4 paper notebook. The first two to fit the original label were the NEC UltraLite notebooks and the Compaq LTE line of systems, with the IBM ThinkPad arriving a couple of years later to really popularize the form factor. Laptops before then (and many since) were usually wider, taller, and thicker, with the laptops of today being so to fit extra goodies into the system, increase airflow to cool really powerful processors, or to simply have a larger, eye catching screen (or all of the above, as the case sometimes is).

For years after this initial introduction, the term "notebook" was common vernacular for these smaller laptops, which became really popular among businessmen and students for their light weight and more discreet size. The reduced size, however, came with a price. Notebooks had all the elements of a younger sibling, including somewhat weaker hardware specs. This distinction helped to create a distinct market for notebooks, as they made for great computers to own in addition to a desktop, but they were not so great for a complete desktop replacement depending on what you used your desktop for. More powerful laptops, on the other hand, could easily match any but the most powerful desktop systems available, and this is the case even today. This distinction remains in force today, though not quite as much as it did ten years ago.

This does mean that notebooks are by and large "in the middle" of the scale, with laptops on one end and the new and very affordable netbooks on the other. Netbooks have become the lowest denominator in all respects, making them increasingly popular with the frugal crowd, which has been the notebook's primary market for decades. Netbooks, however, are a bit more limited as to what they can actually do, whereas notebooks can perform almost any task a laptop and desktop can.

With notebooks and laptops converging and becoming increasingly similar, it is possible that very soon there will not be any difference between the two at all. We would like to mention that there is one distinction between laptops and notebooks that is actually increasing at the present time: touchscreen functionality. At present, the percentage of notebooks with a built in touchscreen is rising quite rapidly.

While there are laptops with touchscreen support, the function is, at least for the moment, a notebook thing.

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Article Submitted By: Matthew Kerridge
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