"The users who are not that computer-literate were excited that something like this was being given to them," said Graham Smith, ERP software manager at ADNH Compass. But it was Smith himself who pushed for the purchase of the low-cost, downsized . "Both our operations managers and logistics operators are always on the move, so it makes sense to have something light and portable," he explained.

Now Smith is working to enable users of the 2.5-lb. netbooks to access the company's Web-based SAP applications via 3G wireless connections. He said that will let the branch managers at ADNH Compass, which operates throughout the Middle East, do month-end inventory counts in real time as they walk through product storage areas.

Early adopters such as ADNH Compass are showing that some of the conventional wisdom about netbooks - that they're too fragile for on-the-go corporate users, too tiny for doing real work and too underpowered to run business applications - may not be so wise after all.

Of course, the conventional wisdom a year ago was that netbooks weren't ready for consumers, either. But in 2008, according to ABI Research, which predicts that 39 million netbooks will be sold this year and that unit sales will reach 139 million by 2013.

Netbooks such as the Aspire One and Asustek Computer Inc.'s typically have smaller screens and keyboards and use less powerful processors than conventional laptops and notebook PCs do. But they're also lighter and usually less expensive, with prices often starting at under $400.