Some thought netbooks were a passing fad even though pretty much every PC maker and its mother launched a netbook last year. I’ve been undecided myself for the past six months. These super-petite laptops weigh in under 3 pounds, cost less than $500 and have all the tools one really needs for everyday connected life. It made me wonder, why do I need my clunky, more powerful laptop?

Well, at least one local manufacturer is betting that netbooks will live longer  than most Internet fads. Mobile Edge, a laptop bag maker in Anaheim, gave me a sneak peek at its first line of netbook bags. Not netbook sleeves, mind you. Those aren’t quite as sturdy and are already available. 

Mobile Edge, one of the first bag companies to tap into the female market, felt that demand for netbooks justified a new line of smaller bags, called The Edge Ultraportables. The first three bags are pretty basic — that is, they’re all black — but they have their own sporty style, which makes me want to buy a netbook so I can get one of these bags.

“We received so much customer feedback regarding making a specific bag for Netbooks other than a sleeve. They wanted something not too big, yet large enough to carry their Netbook, external DVD drive, power cords and other accessories they want to take on the road with them,” said Matthew Olivolo, Mobile Edge’s director of public relations. ”We took that customer feedback and let our design team have some fun.”

Olivolo did admit to me that the launch is smaller than some of its other first-time product launches. So, maybe the company is hedging its bets.

Mobile Edge isn’t the only company with netbook bags. I saw some cool but flimsy ones from Urban Tool at the Consumer Electronics Show. And there are a handful of others from Solo, Sumdex and CaseLogic – but even these verge on being glorified sleeves. You really want to risk your $400 machine to a single layer of neoprene?

Mobile Edge’s bags are true bags. There are three of them — a backpack, messenger bag and briefcase — and they accommodate netbooks with screens of 8.9 to 10.1-inches. If an adjustable strap is removed, the compartment can hold a 13.3-inch laptop.

They add a lot of nice pockets to stash cords, memory cards and even a DVD player (since most netbooks don’t have one built in). Plus, coming from a trusted source like Mobile Edge, the bags have been built by a company that understands that computer bags need to be durable yet protect the electronics inside. Features like shock-absorbing shoulder straps, padded computer compartment, and a lifetime warranty are a given. 

The one drawback I see (and I haven’t seen these in person), is that the bags weigh almost as much as the computer. The backpack is 1.7 pounds, while the messenger bag and briefcase come in at 2 pounds.

All three are priced at $49.99 MSRP and should be available soon at MobileEdge.com, Amazon.com and eBags.com.

Click images below to enlarge. All images courtesy of Mobile Edge.

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