Caveat Emptor: Netbooks Have Higher Failure Rate

From /.

"Netbooks are more likely to fail within the first year than their more expensive laptop brethren, according to new research. SquareTrade, an independent US warranty provider, analyzed the failure rates of more than 30,000 laptops covered by its own warranties. It found that 5.8% of netbooks malfunctioned within the first year, compared to 4.7% for regular laptops and 4.2% for premium laptops costing more than $1,000. The research also raises question marks over the legendary reliability of Macs. Three PC manufacturers — Asus, Toshiba, and Sony — boasted better reliability rates than Apple. Macs have a 17.4% malfunction rate over three years, compared to market-leader Asus, which has a 15.6% failure rate. HP was the worst of the nine PC vendors listed, with a malfunction rate of 25.6% over three years."

This /. user seems to sum it up: "So you're telling me that something cheap isn't as well made as something expensive? Allow me to go re-evaluate my life..."

At first, I thought this might be a use related issue. Let's face it, netbooks are more likely to be treated more roughly than their full-sized counterparts due to their very nature, but that seems to have been taken into account in the data analysis. The rates are based on extended warranty plan failure rates, so you know they aren't going to pay when it's user-fault issues.

It still seems mostly related to manufacturer. Obviously, some produce better product than others. Duh.