UMPC Woes...

Hey it seems that grieving over IT-related concerns is in fashion now. With Tablet Woes... come the UMPC Woes!!! I really should stop UMPC/Tableting and start mugging for the finals which is like 3 days away!!!

So... what is WL fretting about again you ask. UMPC wad else?

Ok, currently WL is pretty set to get the ASUS Eee PC 4G. For you gundus out there the specifications are:
- 7" LCD Screen (no Touchscreen sadly)
- 900Mhz Celeron M CPU (which is auto-downclocked to 600Mhz)
- 512MB RAM
- 4GB SSD
- Has QWERTY keyboard
- Weighs 1kg
- Cost S$550-600

WL believes that by Q3 2008, which is when he intends to buy the UMPC he can get the ASUS Eee PC 4G (with a 1GB RAM upgrade) for S$600 or less. Woots!!!

So what will WL use it for you will ask?
1) Using it as an electronic reading device... whenever I can't use my Tablet PC. This means in places like on the train, on the bus, at the bus stop, etc... Basically environmental conditions that change rapidly and/or have a high incidence of movement. Why I don't use my Tablet PC in such cases is because WL is paranoid he will drop it, the HDD will spoil because of jerky movements, etc... not to mention 2kg is not light. So basically think of the UMPC like a piece of digital paper.
2) Using it as secondary laptop screen. So now I will have 2 screens (i.e. digital piece of paper) with me, and this will reduce the irritating ALT-TABbing between various programs on my puny Tablet 1024 x 768 LCD screen.
3) Using it as a real web-surfing device, etc... on the go.

All is good and fine until ASUS decided to released the next-generation Eee PC sometime in Q3 2008 also. The basic concept remains the same ASUS Eee PC 2nd Gen is expected to have the same CPU, 1GB RAM, 8-12GB SSD and 8.9" LCD screen, while maintaining almost the same form factor and weight. In fact, I would say Eee PC 2nd Gen is better... but industry reports seem to say that the price will go up... Current predictions are at S$800.

Don't forget that other companies are introducing their own Eee PC like devices too like Acer, HP and MSI. Details are still sketchy... but the similarities are there. 7 to 8.9" Screen, 512MB to 1GB RAM, HDD and a retail price of $800+.

And so WL was thinking, because he has set a primary requirement for his UMPC to be cheap and have a SSD, that has limited his options to only one choice, the Eee PC. Then WL said to himself... what if I did not need to get a SSD? Granted, the UMPC will be subjected to not-so-laptop friendly conditions, but I'm not going to wave it around like a madman or shake it like a kid playing with his toys.

Once I lifted the requirement for SSD... a flood of possibilities came in.

Interestingly enough, by the time one reaches the S$800 price point... ASUS/Acer/MSI/HP solutions for UMPC all seems to go to the shithole? Why? Cause there is the Kojinsha 1st-Gen products that retails for S$800-900!!! It basically has the similar specifications but... it has a touchscreen and can flip like a Tablet PC. This means that WL can really use it like a piece of rather thick paper!!! Unfortunately, one drawback of the Kojinsha 1st-Gen product is the castrated AMD Geode 400Mhz CPU... Sigh... But seriously as long as it can render my large PDF files quick enough, I think I can live with it. Of course, the counter-argument is that the touchsceen and slate mode is not really necessary, more like a luxury... as while the touchscreen helps with manipulation in more mobile conditions... I'm not going to be using my UMPC as often as my Tablet.

Now... yesterday WL found out the existence of the Fujitsu Refurbished eBay store. What entices WL is that the refurbished items have Fujitsu International Warranty, and it's a great way to get cheap Fujitsu products. Then... WL saw a damn sexy piece of device. The Fujitsu P1610/1510.

The P1610/1510 is really a cross between a UMPC and a full blown Tablet. It has a 8.9" touchscreen, has slate mode, 1.2GHz CPU, 3hrs battery life, HDD and RAM... but all for the weight of only 1kg!!! Now... if WL can bid for one unit for US$800, with shipping and GST that translates to S$1300. Yeah WL, finding more excuses to waste money right?

Well... the thing is... the P1510/1610 are old models. The current-gen P1620 retails in Singapore for S$4000. Yes, you heard it right S$4000... And for the purposes of why I need a UMPC... it doesn't really matter whether I get the P1510 or the P1620... The discount factor is really enticing...

And what's more is that with a 9" Tablet Convertible that weights only 1kg... I am thinking it may even serve as a backup Tablet... should my trusty old wife decide to go kaput one day during classes.

You know after thinking so much, WL figured out something. I need $$$. With $$$, I won't need to spend so much time thinking (and writing).