Acer to Expand Netbook Line, Add Gateway Brand

Netbook Acer is looking to expand its current netbook line beyond it’s 8.9-inch Acer Aspire One line, according to LAPTOP Magazine’s Joanna Stern. They are also going to be adding the Gateway brand to a new netbook line as well.

Joanna attended a global press conference held by Acer in Budapest, Hungary, where Acer President and CEO Gianfranco Lanci spoke about Acer’s goals and where netbooks fit into the scheme of things, as far as Acer is concerned.

Lanci dispelled a…I won’t call it a myth, but a belief that has made the rounds, namely that netbooks weren’t worth manufacturing: When asked by a journalist if the margins of netbooks weren’t worth the manufacering costs he stated, “the margin impact of netbooks is better than on notebooks. The margin of netbooks is not a problem.”

He predicts that by the end of this year, the number of netbooks sold will hit the 10 million mark, and by the end of 2009, 25 million.

As far as the current Aspire One netbook, Acer is looking to offer different screen sizes, and a 3G option for October was announced in a press release, along with WiMax being added sometime by 2009.

Read: LAPTOP Magazine