Although HP did not readily embraced the netbook trend that started just a few years back and started to manufacture these mini notebooks later than its competitors, the HP netbook sales has had a 23% increase during the first quarter of 2010 compared to the total 2009 netbook sales.

It is difficult to assess what particular HP netbook model has contributed to the increase in sales. To date, there are so many variations for each netbook model. For instance, the HP Mini 210 has three hundred forty (340) variations. One possible factor could be is that there are so many models and product specifications to choose from and any prospect buyer will surely do a lot of research before purchasing a worthy netbook that will suit his or her taste and preferences.

As a matter of fact, HP has a lot more to prove to the world in terms of netbook PCs. Despite the increase in sales, the HP manufacturers are not quite satisfied with this because other brands have more figures to tell. There are also reports coming from trusted sources that HP might definitely stop producing these 10-inch screen Intel Atom PCs and introduce the 11-inch AMD netbooks.

Yet as of this writing, HP has produced Touchsmart, a tablet notebook with a touchscreen feature as a way to move their netbook market share towards a more advanced notebook. In the first place, many manufacturers including HP, are reluctant to invest on netbooks due to its cheap selling price and yet high cost of production. The computer industry continues to survive during the 2008 and 2009 economic crisis mainly because of netbooks. But now that the economy is forecasted to gain leverage in the next few years, high-end laptops and notebooks might be in full bloom again. With this, HP can now compete with open arms for greater market share.

With the introduction of tablet touch-screen laptops, the HP netbook sales is expected to decline as more people will be enticed to buy the tablet notebook with the latest feature. Since Apple has released its newest product offering, the Ipad, HP on the other hand, has produced the Touchsmart to maintain its market share and boast its capacity to create same products such as touch-screen tablet notebooks.

However, the netbook’s greatest advantage is its cheap price. Of course, practical consumers will still prefer to purchase products with cheaper price than a laptop with high-end features. Albeit there are those who can afford to have the latest features, the netbook sales may decline but it will never diminish. Market prospects may include:

• Young students
• Young professionals or new graduates
• Average and not-technically-inclined persons
• Average housewives and house people
• People with blue-collared jobs
• People who are on a tight budget
• College students who are always have the need to research in the internet

HP can decrease or entirely stop the production of netbooks, but definitely there will always be a prospect market for this declining-peak gadget.