It can be a fold-up, roll-out, light-based, or even giant old-school keyboard. Or it can be something that is built-into and detaches from the tablet itself, or the tablet's case. And the screen can be propped up and placed at any distance, not the distance dictated by the keyboard's location.

What is a netbook, anyway, but a tablet with a bulky keyboard attached? And what is a tablet, but an ergonomically adjustable netbook that also functions without the detached keyboard?

Netbooks won't stand a chance against the tidal wave of touch tablets coming next year. Tablets have many advantages over netbooks, but netbooks have very few advantages over tablets.

So here's my advice. Sell your netbook now while you can still unload it. By this time next year, the space between cell phones and laptops will be taken over by a new generation of touch tablets, and you won't be able to give that netbook away.

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