The Tablet of My Dreams

I’m sure you all know how much I love my little Acer Aspire One netbook. The Asus Eee PC really did spark a “revolution” of sorts in the mobile computing markets. Netbooks are cheap, portable, and “powerful enough” for everyday web browsing and document creation.

But the ONE thing I would love to have, and for which I would be willing to shell out much more cash, is a true TABLET sub-notebook. Here are the requirements.

1) 9″ or 10″ capacitive multi-touch LED backlit screen plus active pen digitizer.

2) No more than 2.5 lbs WITH battery that lasts 5+ hours of actual use.

3) Full keyboard with convertible screen for tablet mode.

4) Must fit in my purse. Small footprint is preferable to crazy thin.

5) Either a real 2.5″ SATA hard drive or fast SSD > 64 GB.

6) Full desktop operating system that supports true multi-touch.

7) Graphics that don’t completely suck (nVidia 9300/9400 would be great).

8) Dual-core CPU, but doesn’t have to be a powerhouse. The new dual-core Atoms would be perfect.

9) Real connectivity options. WiFi, Bluetooth, e-SATA, Firewire, USB, Ethernet, etc.

10) Integrated 3G would be a nice bonus.

This is clearly above the capabilities of a netbook, so I would be willing to pay well upwards of $1000 for such a device. Maybe even $2000, if it’s beautiful. As to operating system, I’m agnostic. Mac OS X, Windows 7, or Linux are all fine with me, as long as they support true multi-touch… but I’m looking at you, Apple.

Let’s face it, the MacBook Air just doesn’t measure up when you can get pretty much the same thing in a netbook for less than 1/4 the cost. Make the device I just described, and you will be the king of ultraportables again.