ASUS was among the first companies to show off a smartbook powered by Google Android but there will not be any move to bring such a device to market in the near future. ASUS CEO, Jerry Shen, indicated that the company does not see a “clear market” for such a device.
A second reason for the decision is that the company’s limited engineering resources are needed in other areas.
Smartbooks differ from netbooks in using mobile phone components (such as ARM processors) rather than components more typically associated with PCs. The expectation is that such devices would sell for less than netbooks.
Should market conditions change, ASUS could still enter the smartbook market by using smartbooks from contract manufacturer Pegatron (its wholly owned subsidiary).