Netbooks have become a lot like cell phones. Since the first netbook models were released in late 2007, there has been a virtual flood of netbooks in the market today, with computer giants like Dell joining in the flow. The netbook category would not have been made possible without the Taiwan-based Asus, the creator of the Asus Eee netbooks.

Everyone else in the computer industry hates Asus. Microsoft certainly blames the surge of netbook sales for their less-than-expected profits in the last quarter. In other segments of the computer industry, netbooks are the only ones expected to sell like hotcakes. So, should you hate the company that created the netbook phenomenon?

Prior to offering netbooks, Asus made more motherboards than any other company in the world. You can find Asus motherboards on Sony's PlayStation 2, Apple MacBooks, Alienware personal computers, and on some HP computers.

Asus' Eee full featured mini laptop costs $ 69 less than Apple's 16GB iPod Touch, is $ 100 cheaper than Amazon's Kindle eBook reader. Asus's most expensive netbook sells for $ 499. Prior to the Eee PC, Asus was not a known consumer brand. Yet it expects to sell five million of its mini computers by the end of 2009.

The concept of the mini netbook is not new. In fact, prior to the Eee PC, Dell and Palm had been planning on releasing mini laptops, but Asus beat them to it. So, should you hate Asus? Not if you want powerful yet cheap mini computers that you can take with you wherever you go.