Hmm, Just got My mom a Sony Vaio P11
I was all set to get her the Asus 1000HE, as it had the best balance of Specs and Performance (As I thought) and a great battery life.
However A little time talking with her and Dad ended up changing our plans.
We ended up going with the Viao P insted of the 1000HE for a couple of reasons
* Weight - The P is 600grams to the HE's 1.6Kg, and the power supply is equally light.
* Size - The P is literally half the size and 2/3 the thickness, making it easy to just pop into a slightly large purse.
* Connectivity - Built in 3G and 802.11n
In the end it came down to usage. Her primary usage is usually going to be within easy access to a power point, and when she need to be away froma plug, the 2 1/2 hour battery is enough for her needs.
However she does travel quiet a bit, and is finding it harder and harder to lug around heavier notebooks finding even the old Sony TX she was using a little heavy. The P's so light that se can usually forget tha she has it in her purse or bag, so is more likely to carry around.
While the drop in performance and Vista (Which I will be switching to W7 as soon as possible) is a bit of a downer the 2Gb of ram and the 1.3ghz Atom is enough for her needs which mainly consist of Web Surfing, email and occasional audio and video playback.
The Small HD (Max 60 GB) is a little bit of a painful, but luckily SDHC cards are pretty cheap, so a 16GB one is serving as her media folder and once 32 and 64 GB ones come down in Price, can easily be upgraded.
The Built in 3G is really hand, as you can just pop in a SIM card, and once you enter in settings, you are on-line in a flash. no Need for bulky dongles or Tethering. With Pre pay data being so cheap in the UK, its easy to just get a free sim, pop in s a little money and be online.
While the screen is a little small, being a ultra wide screen means that Web pages display wuiet well, only requiring alittle more scrolling.
That brings us to another point, namely the Trackstick
. Being used to using Trackpad's or mice, it does take a little getting useful, but once you get settled in, its pretty easy to use. Along with the nearly full size keyboard, its very very usable.
There are a few downsides.
First the smaller screen does take a little getting used to, and if you multitask a lot, its probably not the best option.
Performance wise, its so-so, but how much of it is due to the slower processor and how much is due to the OS still has to be seen, and once I get some time to install Windows 7 on it, will see. Still, It is usable, though if you have more then a few apps open at the same time, it can and does freeze up a bit.
To keep it nice and slim, Sony has moved the VGA out and Ethernet jack to a separate Dongle which they to their credit have included in the box. Still it is one more thing you have to keep track off, and if you have to use it often can be a bit tiresome.
Only 2 USB Ports and no analog Mike in, though there is a built in mike. Still if you plan to use a head set, better get a USB one.
Overall, its a really nice machine, though you really pay a premium for the Small size and low weight.
It worked out to £700 for the machine and another £40 for the carry case (The official Sony one was £100!!!!!!)
That's a little over double the price of the 1000HE, but still below other ultra-portable notebooks such as Sont Tz, Toshiba Portege, etc.