My new job is quite a big change from the old - I spend more time at a customer's site which might not provide any Internet. It's amazing what happens when there's no Internet. I get into some sort of a withdrawal symptom; I would take out my iPhone and start surfing and downloading e-mails. I will go crazy and start doing funny things to the machines around me. A few hours later, I'm out of the DC and downstairs having coffee and/or falling asleep.

So I decided I should get myself a mobile broadband AND a Ultra Mobile Personal Computer (UMPC) to make myself a completely geeky road warrior.

I picked the M1 broadband which was a pretty straightforward decision because they were the only ones offering a 1mbps no-frills 6 month contract at $22+ per month. Included was free rental of a Huawei E220 HSDPA modem.

Apart from extremely crappy drivers that came originally with the Huawei device (please go to M1's site and download a software update) I must say I am very satisfied with the service so far. In fact, it is sometimes faster than my home broadband (StarHub MaxOnline 8mbps) when it comes to YouTube!

Moving on, I went to hunt for a UMPC at Sim Lim Square. It's been ages since I walked into Sim Lim Square but that place hasn't changed in years. We bumped into a store trying to sell us thumbdrives like we were angmors.

Friend: "Er, how much for this?" *points at Toshiba 8GB thumbdrive without a price tag*

Salesman: "$45"

Friend: "Er.... ok nevermind..." (we saw another store selling it at $32)

Salesman: "OK! You pay cash ah! Cash? You pay cash?"

Friend: "Yah..."

Salesman: "You pay cash! I give you $38..."

Friend: "Er, nevermind..."

Salesman: "Still too expensive?"

And we walked off yah. Nevermind. Let me get back to my review...

I tried the following UMPCs:

• Dell Mini 9
• Lenovo Ideapad S10
• Asus EEE PC 901
• Axioo Pico (MSI Wind OEM)
  
• Acer Aspire One Note
• HP Mini 2133
  

My selection criteria for UMPCs were simple. All I wanted was a comfortable keyboard/touchpad and long battery life. Everything else was a bonus.

I developed a simple keyboard test and that was to type the following piece of code:

public static void main(string args[])
{
  System.out.print("Hello world\n");
  return;
}

And also to hit the standard keyboard shortcuts like WinKey+R (Run), WinKey+E (Explorer), Ctrl+X/C/V, Alt+F4

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Dell Mini 9

This was the first UMPC that caught my eye. On first sight the keyboard looks decent - the keys were not tiny like the other UMPCs. I almost bought it when I decided to try the keyboard further - as soon as I started typing code, I found the keyboard extremely crippled; the F1-9 keys are laid out as a Fn subkey on the "ASD..." row and the [] {} brackets were also a Fn subkey. Without the brackets, programming on this keyboard is almost impossible.

The keys were also not aligned like a typical keyboard (the Q key is almost directly above the A key but the Z key is still half a key apart from the A key). Google a photo of the keyboard to see for yourself.

Nonetheless if you are not a tech guy this UMPC might work out fine as a day-to-day web surfing rig.

Price: SGD 599

The pros: Low price with Windows XP, very small, decent mouse.

The cons: Absolutely terrible keyboard, especially for tech guys.

Verdict: 2/10 (Due to extremely terrible keyboard.)

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Lenovo Ideapad S10

This was the second UMPC I tried because its sleek and slim design caught my eye. The code typed fine on the keyboard but there was still some difficulty getting it right. The screen was LED backlit so it has slightly better battery life than competitors. The only drawback was the lack of USB ports (only 2) and its price.

Price: SGD 799

The pros: Sleek design, pink looks very sweet for girls, LED backlight, decent battery life.

The cons: A little more pricey, only 2 USB ports, small trackpad, keyboard needs a little getting used to.

Verdict: 8/10

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Asus Eee PC 901

I guess many people are familiar with this one and it needs no further introduction. Getting straight to the point here - I absolutely hate the trackpad buttons. They need considerable force to click.

Price: SGD 789

The pros: Cheap linux option, solid-state Disk (SSD), very good battery life, decent keyboard.

The cons: Difficult to click buttons on trackpad, weird power button location, cheap build, a little pricey.

Verdict: 6/10 (Due to poor trackpad buttons and cheap build.)

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Axioo Pico (White)

At first I walked away from this UMPC because it was a brand that I've never heard of. (Now you know how important branding can be!) After some research I found out that this is actually by a local company and is the OEM of MSI's Wind so I decided to give it a try. To my surprise, the Pico had the most comfortable keyboard amongst all the other UMPCs. The trackpad was also decent although the buttons could do with some improvement. The best part was that they offered a 6-cell version that provides up to 5 hours of battery life.

Note: There is a black verson available. The black version has a totally different keyboard. Please see below.

Price: SGD 699 (3-cell battery), SGD 759 (6-cell battery)

The pros: 6-cell battery option gives crazy battery life, very comfortable keyboard, well built.

The cons: Not the nicest design out there but you could live with it.

Verdict: 9/10 (Due to excellent keyboard and 6-cell battery option.)

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Axioo Pico (Black)

Although they carry the same name (Pico), the black version has a completely different chassis and keyboard from the white. It certainly does look better, but the keyboard and trackpad are terrible. Also, only a 3-cell version is available on the market for the black version as of this writing.

Price: SGD 699

The pros: Looks a little better than the white version.

The cons: Terrible keyboard and trackpad, only 3-cell option available.

Verdict: 4/10 (Due to terrible keyboard.)

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Acer Aspire One Note

This is another laptop that needs no introduction. Just like the Asus Eee PC, I absolutely hate how the trackpad buttons are aligned.

Price: SGD 698

The pros: Cheap linux option, SSD option, good battery life.

The cons: Terrible trackpad button location.

Verdict: 6/10 (Due to terrible trackpad buttons.)

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HP Mini 2133

There's much to debate about this one. I love the build - it's undoubtedly the best of all UMPCs. The aluminium or magnesium or whatever metallic case makes this look like a good business companion. The keyboard's also almost as good as a full-sized keyboard and very comfortable. However, the VIA CPU and reflective screen irks me.

Prrice: SGD 1199

The pros: Excellent build, excellent keyboard, runs Vista (depends on how you see it!)

The cons: Slow processor, very expensive, terrible trackpad button location, only 2 USB ports, runs hot, short battery life (about 2 hours), runs Vista (depends on how you see it!).

Verdict: 7/10 (The pros make up for the cons; you can consider it if you want a really nice keyboard)

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So what did I get?

The Axioo Pico... and I'm loving every moment of it!