And it's happening. Ironically, innovation is coming from newcomers such as Sony and Sharp. Sony's new VAIO notebooks are a nice combination of power and sleek, light design. At first, I thought the magnesium alloy case was there for looks. But it offers more strength for less weight than plastic.
Less mass means less chance of breaking when it's dropped.
My ideal notebook must weigh 4 pounds and be an inch thick. Since I depend on networks and only occasionally load software, a CD-ROM player is not that important. HP's OmniBook 4100 comes close but must lose about 3 pounds. The revamped Windows CE handhelds that reporter John Spooner writes about in his Page 1 story face an uphill battle. I have little doubt that a considerably refined Toshiba Libretto would be more attractive than a 2-pound handheld with a new operating system.