Handtops, UMPC - OQO Model 01+ enough?

I am happy with my OQO Model 01+. I had to live without it for a while just recently, and it brought home to me how good the unit really is.

Make no mistake, I would be saying the same thing if I were the proud owner of an OQO Model 02, or a Sony UX, or a Sony U, or a Flipstart...

While I may shell out for a new Handtop some time in the not to distant future, I also may not. If I do, it is because the illogical lust for the shiny new unit has overpowered the logic that says I don't need it.

I bought the OQO Model 01+ as an always carry backup unit. In that context, it performs brilliantly. It is never going to be powerful enough to be my primary machine. But if I apply the same criterion to the other Handtops currently available, or soon to be released, or even still in the concept stage, I come to the same conclusion I came to before buying the Model 01+: They are still not powerful enough to perform as my primary machine, even in a dock attached to an external monitor etc.

This being the case, the logical question that begs an answer is: Why spend money on replacing a perfectly good machine that does the job I require of it with another machine that will still only do the same job?

(I am sure there must be a number of good answers to that question!

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If one has a working Handtop that is not ones primary machine, but that does the job, then maybe the way to decide, aside from lust, when it is the right time to upgrade the unit is to look at it from the other side of the equation: What is my minimum requirement for my primary machine?

One can leave keyboard, screen and mouse out of the equation, external units can be attached to just about any Handtop. What one needs to look at are the other factors to do with technical capability and performance.

The first question to answer is: What does one have to, or want to, be able to do on the machine?

In my case, I don't play games, I spend too much time in front of a computer already to want to do that, so a gaming machine is not required. Nor do I edit video, or do much photo editing, or work more than once in a blue moon on a CAD package, so a machine with a discrete graphics card is not a requirement. What I do require is a machine that I can design, develop, compile and test large software packages with large databases on. This requires a reasonably powerful CPU, preferably a dual core, a reasonably large amount of RAM, a high resolution VGA output for an external monitor of at least 1600 x 1200, and a large, reasonably high speed HDD. WiFi 802.11 g is a must, and Bluetooth a preference. Internal HSDPA would be a nice to have.

From a CPU point of view, a single core 2.0 GHz Pentium M or a Core Duo 1.6 GHz CPU are about the lowest performance items that will get the job done.

2 GB RAM would be nice, but 1 GB is about the minimum that I can use without performance being impacted.

A 60 GB 7200 RPM HDD is about the smallest, slowest drive I could use, a 64 GB SSD would be better.

A two hour minimum battery life is a requirement, three hours would be better.

The rest is pretty immaterial.

On the Handtop side, as a primary unit, I have certain requirements as well. The unit must be pocket sized, 150 mm x 100 mm x 34 mm or there about. It must have a built in keyboard. I don't care if it is a slider, convertible tablet, clamshell etc. It must be able to connect to a VGA screen without a docking station. A few USB ports would be nice. I would prefer the screen to be as big as possible, covering the entire face of the unit would be good. A minimum screen resolution of 1024 x 600 would be preferable.

My hardware specification requirements have not changed in a number of years. I have been working on laptops that meet these minimum requirements for years now, ever since my first 3.2 GHz Pentium 4 Laptop. Aside from games, and video related matters (where the requirements are ever growing and never met), a top of the line laptop from 5 to 6 years ago is fast enough to perform all the basic tasks.

So what I would need in order for my Handtop to also be my primary machine would be a 2 GHz Core Solo (or like performing) or 1.6 GHz Core Duo (or like performing) CPU, 1 GB RAM, 64 GB SSD machine with integrated graphics and a built in keyboard with a two hour battery life that would fit in a pocket.

The day when such a machine becomes available seems a while off yet. Until a unit like that arrives on the scene, the only reason to upgrade from the OQO Model 01+ is that I WANT the new machine. Now that is not beyond the realms of possibility!