Stefan Mileschin

Windows 8 can't be described as a flop just yet, but it is no success story, either. Now it appears that Intel might be about to start pushing Android convertible notebooks, in an effort to stimulate demand and move away from Windows.

Rumour loving Digitimes reports that several major vendors, including Lenovo, HP, Toshiba, Acer and Asus will launch Intel based convertibles sometime in the third quarter. Lenovo will lead the way and it will introduce its first Android based notebook a bit earlier, in May.

Intel is rumoured to be targeting the sub-$500 market with Android based convertibles. Pricier designs, such as Haswell based Ultrabooks should cost at least a couple of hundred more and they will feature Windows 8 rather than Android. In terms of hardware, the convertibles will have to feature a completely detachable keyboard that will allow them to transform into a tablet. With a completely detachable keyboard, the whole concept sounds a lot like Asus’ Transformer series of Android devices.

It might sound a bit farfetched, and since Digitimes can sometimes be a squeaky cog in the rumour mill, the report should be taken with a grain of salt. However, with the demise of the netbook, Intel might have a vested interest in pushing cheap notebooks and convertibles based on Android, or even Chrome OS.

Android could be a pretty good choice for no frills notebooks and convertibles. It is getting more productivity apps with each passing day, there are plenty of office applications and best of all it is completely free, unlike anything coming out of Redmond.

http://news.techeye.net/mobile/intel...d-convertibles