My biggest laments about the eee 701 were soon answered: (1) a few with slightly higher-resolution screens, (3) several with a better keyboard, and (3) a few with more RAM for not much overall weight gain. But the negatives came in. XP. More weight (with even bigger displays). Generally shorter warranties than the 2 years on my ASUS. And (as with “healthy” manufactured “foods” where I can get “less salt” or “less fat” but usually not both) I can rarely find my desired features combine into a single unit that doesn’t shoot itself in the foot on price, weight, or other performance features. So every time I look at newer netbooks, the balance tips back in favor of what I have – the original.

Maybe I’ll buy something new on a future visit in East Asia, after we see more Nano- (or Pineview, perhaps)- powered machines; 3+ GB of RAM, and a better balance between power efficiency and video performance; that will let me build a dual boot netbook. Until then, I’m happy with my 950 gram 701.

I like your examples, and I think that you have summed up some of the differences with netbooks quite well. I am on my third netbook (all eee pc’s) and from a pure mobility standpoint there is a huge difference between my 701 and my 1005. The 1005 is more powerful (both have 2gb of ram), has better drive space, and has a battery that lasts all day, but it is huge in comparison. I found my 901 to be the right mix of power and size, but it suffered from a horrible keyboard. I really see netbooks as being about portability. Like you said, there is nothing quite like leaving the 15″ laptop at home and traveling with the netbook. I think the 10″ devices are about as big as you can get and still gain the real portability advantage.

As to the premise of taking one of these devices with you on a trip, I agree that there is no substitute for actually doing, and the experience for me was a revelation.

In this case, I went on a trip to London and Paris with only an iPod Touch as my sole computing and communications device (no mobile phone, no MacBook), and it was an eye-opener.

Imperfect, but the combination of media library, google maps, facebook app, email, web and note taking fundamentally transformed and enhanced the experience of traveling in a foreign place, something that I blogged about in:

Touch Traveler: London, Paris and only an iPod Touch
http://bit.ly/1FoCVT

Check it out if interested.

Mark

Take a look at this for example:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834101185

It’s a Core 2 Solo(with a laptop graphics chipset) at a netbook price, as well as being portable (11.6″)

So no, the line between netbooks and laptops is being blurred.

The reason I prefer a netbook for writing is primarily the weight. If I don’t mind the weight, then the computer is easy to carry with me. When I stop for lunch, it is easy to pull out and review my notes and jot down ideas, so I do it instead of picking up a paper for reading. As you mention, it fits anywhere, which my 17″ Dell doesn’t.

That may be just me.

My work requires Adobe products, Coda and Xcode plus the usual contingent of office products. These function fine on my laptop, while it fits within the spaces you discuss. An optional monitor could balance out the situation. My feeling is that the device that will become my netbook is a tablet phone. I think of this as a pro device.

Having to take notes on a call requires a device that can manage such information. Juggling a calendar, a call and a web search is not out of bounds, and current devices — the iPhone in my case — does not accomplish this task. I would rather not manage a second device with the file issues that consistently occur — forgotten files. I do agree most people need less power. I do not agree that another laptop, even if smaller, solves the problem.