[Advantage X7500, MDA Ameo Upgrading] spacecat:
Its not emotion its a FORUM where things get Discussed.

Whats 'Harmony' got to do with anything? This is a place to talk and argue the relative merits of something in this case SHIFT/EEE/ATHENA not fall in love... or whats the point?

You have clearly NEVER used an EEE so I doubt you are talking from experience.

I would hazard a guess that 99% of what 100% of people do regulary on a computer could easily be done on an EEE pc.

Which is basically Internet,Office apps, video watching, maybe some music , emails, game playing etc

YOU are the only person I have EVER known who runs Architectural drawing apps on ANY computer. I doubt ANY normal laptop would be sufficent for this.

MOST laptops have inbuilt graphics cards and have limitations unless you buy an Exorbitantly over priced Gaming laptop. So your argument applies to pretty much ALL laptops not just an EEE.

NO LAPTOP unless you buy some humongous beast can replace a decent High Spec Desktop (by which i mean a regular PC).

Laptops are designed to be used on the move and carry out basic computing tasks that are not generally high intensive apps.video editing

How many business users use laptops other than for doing emails, basic report writing, internet and presentations? Not many i would have thought

In tests it has actually beaten many laptops that are 4x its price.

You talk about things like you know when you DONT such as the connection capabilities

Actually the EEE has one of the best inbuilt WIFI modules on the market, in a hotel i went to recently with free WIFI once i had the password it was an INSTANT connection.

With my phone either usb or bluetooth its up and running in about 10 seconds so cumbersome doesn't come into it.

My EEE is not my main PC and as a 'Power User' nothing can beat sitting in front of my 24 inch monitor for playing games and downloading stuff, surfing the net, video converting and HD video playback.

Unfortunately Its a tad Large to carry about on the train to work and anywhere else so a Tiny laptop with the superb functionality of the EEE PC comes in perfect.

I would say however that 90% of what i do on my main PC , i could do on my EEE PC.

As Leoni pointed out the battery life is excellent and a bigger one is on the way. so that argument doesnt wash either

Your basically missing the point, this is not about whether an EEE/SHIFT or Athena can REPLACE a desktop machine.

Mind you for the vast majority of the population a SHIFT or an EEE or indeed an regular laptop probably could

Its about what is the best way to go mobile which i would split into 2 categories

1. Ultra Mobile which can be used one handed on the go

Would be a very small device which, does email ,music, movies, document reader, PHONE CALLS ,Diary and appointments alarms etc/

Basically any decent SMALL smartphone or a VIEWTY (i had to say it :) or an N95 or similar. Which can be used

2.Basic Mobility requires 2 handed operation and possibly a LAP! or something to rest on, desk, table etc.

I would put the EEE/SHIFT/ATHENA in this category.

The EEE wins IMHO because it is Significantly CHEAPER than the other 2, runs FULL XP over WM6 and Vista , has better battery life than the SHIFT. and has a bigger and better screen than the Athena.

The only thing the athena has that some might want is GPS which i believe the SHIFT doesnt have.

Like i have said before I think a TRUE convergent phone and pc device is probably impossible. The size requirements of ONE preclude the other. Hence making phonecalls on SHIFT or ATHENA is nothing short of a JOKE!.

If i had to choose ONE device over all of them, based on my needs which tend to be more multimedia based than anything I would stick with my Viewty!