Toshiba sounds netbook death knell in US but UK gets reprieve

Toshiba sounds netbook death knell in US but UK gets reprieve
The NB510 is acting all nonchalant but its tiny heart is breaking inside

Hear that? That's the sound of a thousand netbooks gently weeping into their tiny, tiny keyboards as reports that Toshiba will cease selling the diminutive laptops in the US surface.

A Toshiba executive apparently confirmed that there are no plans to offer any new netbooks in the US to Liliputing, but Toshiba tells us that there's no such roll back in the UK.

The first netbook not to make it to the US is the Intel Cedar Trail-toting Toshiba NB510 but it is definitely still headed to the UK's shelves, according to a Toshiba spokesperson.

Safe haven

State-side, Toshiba is focusing more on the Ultrabook line-up like the Toshiba Portege Z830 - but although Ultrabooks have the portability tied up, the price tag is much, much higher than the netbooks'.

Dell recently said it was stopping production of netbooks in favour of Ultrabooks, saying that "thin and powerful is where it's at for us".

Other companies are also having a think about bidding the netbook a quiet farewell – last year a Samsung email leaked to that effect, while Acer has been rumoured to be ditching the little laptops too and even Intel doesn't reckon netbooks are long for this earth.

From Lilliputing

News Editor (UK)

Former UK News Editor for TechRadar, it was a perpetual challenge among the TechRadar staff to send Kate (Twitter, Google+) a link to something interesting on the internet that she hasn't already seen. As TechRadar's News Editor (UK), she was constantly on the hunt for top news and intriguing stories to feed your gadget lust. Kate now enjoys life as a renowned music critic – her words can be found in the i Paper, Guardian, GQ, Metro, Evening Standard and Time Out, and she's also the author of 'Amy Winehouse', a biography of the soul star.