Its not a Nokia phone this time. Its a new non-netbook ASUS just announced last week. Since the Compaq B1900 (which are not sold anymore), I have not successfully shortlisted another notebook.

Basically I’m dreaming of an Intel Core 2 Duo, 2GB(+) RAM, 80GB(+) HDD, 11-12″ display, built-in DVD writer, 2kg(-) weight and WiFi. Somewhat like a compact beast.

I’ve shopped around, and I realize that Compaq usually have problems of a heated wrist rest; Lenovo doesn’t have trackpads (uses trackpoint); and Acer’s designs are often too rounded. Netbooks had too small screens, but they have a pretty good price.

These 2 weeks I was targeting Asus U6 and F9. They’re both 12.1″, Core 2 Duo, 3GB RAM (after free upgrade), 250GB HDD, with a built-in DVD writer. The key differences lies in the design: U6 is slimmer, looks cleaner, and has a leather wrist rest (which I don’t need). But I’ll have to fork out $2.8K for a U6, or a mere $1.6K for a F9. (FYI at the same $2.8K there’s also a lower spec-ed Asus U2 with a full leather finishing)

While hesitating on the $2.8K, I found the N20, which seem to fit my specs pretty well. The next questions would be when they would be available here, how much it will cost, and hopefully some good reviews.

Below is the only picture I found of it, which is taken from the ASUS web site.

Edit: Youtube shows the N20 with 6-cell. I managed to observe the inside view, which I have a screenshot below; looks clean and great to me. He mentioned “low-cost”, so hopefully that’s true. With netbooks below $1K, I certainly hope N20 doesn’t run too far off.