While everyone has been busy catching iPhone fever, and Blackberries have firmly entrenched themselves as must-have tools in corporate America, the consumer-oriented, scorned netbooks may be the next hot device for businesses.

Although netbooks are viewed by traditional IT types as little better than toys, in fact the devices can fill an important niche between the mobile phone device and a full-fledged laptop. There are a number of types of services which do not require the horsepower of a laptop, and a number of individuals who are regardless uncomfortable accessing any service on tiny phone screens and keyboards, despite recent technical advances in softkeys and touch typing recognition. The netbook can fill an important gap that currently exists between the two spaces, and can do so quite economically, particularly in light of recent trends toward carrier subsidization of the devices.

In fact, in this CIO Zone article, representatives from Verizon and Staples suggest that netbook fleet deployment might best be outsourced, just as is sometimes done with phones. If the economics are similar, the CFO is certain to be looking into the idea even if the CIO isn't wild about it.

Netbooks probably won't take over either the mobile or the laptop niche but they probably do have an important place to fill in between the two for certain applications or types of users.