• by Cory Treffiletti , Featured Contributor, July 1, 2009

As we prepare to celebrate America's independence, I'd like to celebrate a little unexpected independence that I've witnessed, something I didn't see coming no matter how focused I was. This unexpected independence comes as a result of the rise of the netbook and the increased proliferation of wireless carriers offering them for such low, entry-level pricing!

 

In the last couple of years, mobile and the wireless Web have truly become a reality, which brought the expected maturation of the mobile marketplace (in no small part due to the development and subsequent zeitgeist domination of the iPhone). You can now access the Web from anywhere: in a taxicab, on the bus, on the train, even in your own car, as a number of luxury automotive brands are beginning to package wireless routers to the inside of their cars.

I fully expected the wireless carriers to offer broadband access cards -- and just four short years ago they started doing just that. The first-generation speeds were slow, but the immediate freedom and liberty to access the Web from anywhere was exciting as well as convenient. I started sending emails from cabs in between meetings, and the efficiency of my workday increased tenfold.

What I didn't see coming though, was the advent of the netbook, those tiny little PCs that were aimed solely at the mobile web audience and allowed you the ease of accessing the Web from anywhere with the full keyboard and a miniature screen to boot!

Those little PCs have exploded in recent weeks and every carrier is offering them in conjunction with a wireless plan. They're perfect for Web and email, which covers the majority of your day outside of work (I mean, how much time do you really spend in Powerpoint or Excel outside of work?). Companies like Google offer a number of Web-based applications that can provide you with some of those extraneous tools as well, but their strength and attraction lies in the size. These little computers are small enough to fit in just about any bag you carry around. In New York this summertime, I hear the "in-fashion" item is going to be the netbook rather than those silly little dogs that fit in your purse. ASUS started the market but Dell and HP and Lenovo weren't far behind. And the price is just right, with some of these computers selling for less than $300.

I could not have predicted the Web would become a fashion accessory, but I applaud this simple fact! This independence from the wired Web just speaks to our constant desire as a species to gather information and stay connected to others. I remember the days when you had to make your plans for the day before you left the house. You didn't have a cell phone; you carried quarters. Nowadays I can leave the house with no idea where I'm going and make plans on the fly. I could start my day in New York and end the day in San Francisco without missing a beat; just buy some tickets online, hop a plane and land in SFO with a car ready to meet me and an outfit ready in the backseat!

The rise of the netbook signals the end of the wired world. It's even possible that Wired magazine is going to have to change its name to UnWired just to stay relevant! Of course, if I go the route of the netbook, does that mean I'm being unfaithful to my regular laptop? Will my regular laptop start to become envious? It's possible that in the new wired economy, size does matter -- just not the way it used to!

The answer to all of these questions is "yes," "no" and "maybe." You have to decide for yourself which way to go and what's most important to you. If netbooks become even more popular than they are now, will we start regressing back to phones that just make calls? Who knows, but this Independence Day, I want you to raise a glass and toast to the unwired world that beckons.

Maybe I'll go online and buy some sparklers to celebrate!

Happy Fourth of July, everyone!