As computing becomes increasingly portable and accessible to all, the demand for cheap, easily accessible games has grown exponentially. Netbook capable games like Plants Vs. Zombies, Facebook games like Farmville, and the huge game catalog of the iPhone continue to prod mobile gaming forward. There were an estimated 33.3 million netbooks and 168 million smartphones sold in 2009. To say there is a market in mobile gaming is an understatement.

iPhone games were a huge hit in 2009, and with the release of the Droid and the Nexus One, expect some Android games to start popping up soon. And if CES is any indication of things to come, the market will soon be flooded with ARM powered tablet PCs and smartbooks. If these smartbooks and tablet PCs live up to the claims of all day battery life, smooth HD video playback, and even half decent gaming with chipsets like the Tegra 2, then expect smartbooks and tablets to become the new netbooks.

The rise of mobile computing has also become a large thorn in Microsoft’s side, and will continue to be in 2010. The inability of the super-efficient mobile processors used by tablets and smartbooks to run a standard Windows OS necessitates the use of Linux, or a modified form of OSX for the Apple tablet. While tablet PCs that can run Windows 7 exist, they make use of the Atom instead of an ARM, which is significantly less efficient when it comes to battery life. The most likely OS candidate for the Linux tablets and smartbooks will be Android, as it has already gotten its feet wet in the smartphone market and has a reputable following.

In my opinion, the smartbook/tablet craze can end in one of 3 ways:

1. Smartbooks and tablets will find their niche markets, and sell decently. The Apple tablet will sell exceptionally well, and the expansive app catalog for the iPhone will be ported to the Apple tablet. The Android tablets will fail to sell as well as the Apple tablet, but will sell enough to be considered a success. Android will see just enough growth to get a handful of excellent games.

2. Smartbooks will sell exceptionally well due to their sub-200 dollar price point, but tablet PCs will ultimately become a failed enterprise. The average consumer will see a tablet PC as a pointless utility, while they will welcome the smartbook as an improved netbook with a familiar smartphone GUI. Android will finally achieve a respectable catalog of games.

3. Neither smartbooks nor tablet PCs will sell well, and 2010 will see these systems fall as quickly as they rose. The average consumer will see tablet PCs as foreign with the lack of a keyboard, and Linux based smartbooks will fail to catch on due to the popularity of XP and Win7 on netbooks. Netbooks and smartphones will continue to be the driving force of mobile gaming.

Tablets and smartbooks provide some interesting opportunities for Android and Linux to finally get a foothold in gaming (sorry, Wine just doesn’t cut it). Now that Android has the spotlight with its smartbooks, will it get the mainstream popularity it has been pushing for? And will the Apple tablet be a success, or fall flat on its face like the iMacs?

What are your predictions for tablets, smartbooks, and their impact on gaming in 2010?