Smaller than a breadbox

Chris DiBona8217;s work as manager of open-source programs for Google takes him on the road, where laptops grow heavier with every gate he passes in the airport.

Chris DiBona8217;s work as manager of open-source programs for Google takes him on the road, where laptops grow heavier with every gate he passes in the airport. So he has been experimenting with piecing together the ultimate lightweight PC. At the core of his ensemble is the OQO-01, a full-featured PC running Windows XP that is not much bigger than a pack of 3-by-5 index cards. It8217;s measured in ounces 14, not pounds. The OQO comes with a built-in keyboard that can be tapped by the thumbs.

DiBona is not the only one exploring replacing a laptop with a combination of cell phones, hand-helds and foldable keyboards. The folding keyboards have been around since the introduction of some of the first palmtops, but they are playing an increasingly viable role in laptop replacement as the combined elements become more and more capable.

Many of the latest palmtops will run all the software needed to browse the Web, exchange e-mail or even drive a projector to give a presentation. A Palm TX 5.25 ounces, for instance, can let you handle most basic editing chores with files created in Microsoft Word, Excel or PowerPoint. These microsize versions can do many of the simple tasks of their bigger cousins, but are limited by the size of the screen. The TX and competitors from companies like Hewlett-Packard and Dell can do most of what a traveller could want except, perhaps, play the most sophisticated games. The thin slabs can even display low-resolution movies, albeit not from DVD disks.

To use more than a stylus or a thin thumb keyboard, a user must stitch together a fully functioning system out of parts that all speak the current lingua franca, Bluetooth. Regular keyboards cannot be connected. While full-size keyboards are the tools most commonly added to a cellphone or a hand-held, there are also mice, headphones, microphones, digital cameras and even satellite navigation receivers.

The advantage is that people can carry just the parts they need. On a short trip, the keyboard and mouse can stay home. The disadvantage is that each of these devices needs its own power system, potentially requiring a number of charging bricks.

The heart of these machines lives behind the screens of the cell phones or palmtops where the main processors, memory and wireless receiver can be found. Hand-helds like the Palm TX connect with the Internet with Wi-Fi connections, while higher-end tools like the Palm Treo 650 use cellular networks to fetch information.

The latest Treo, the 700P, also includes the ability to connect with the emerging EV-DO networks from Verizon and Sprint, which offer download speeds that can exceed those of cable modems and digital subscriber lines. Some of these devices include tiny keyboards while others use just a stylus and a few buttons. The OQO, Treos and BlackBerrys come with built-in keyboards best operated with thumbs, while others, like the Palm TX and the Nokia 770, are meant to be driven by a stylus. The focus of the software also varies. While many palmtops keep track of appointments, phone numbers and notes, the eight-ounce Nokia 770 is sold as a window to the Web and is labelled an 8220;Internet tablet8221;. It latches on to any Wi-Fi connection to link into the Web.

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These devices are designed to be a bit simpler and focused on the needs of the traveller. On the other hand, the OQO behaves just like a desktop PC running Windows XP and offers 30 gigabytes of disk space. The interest in the micro Windows PC is growing. Microsoft is pushing a standard called the Ultra-Mobile PC, running a stylus-enabled version of Windows in a larger package that weighs a bit more than two pounds. The first model, the Samsung Q1, has a 40-GB hard drive and a 7-inch display.

While all of these cell phones, palmtops and tablets can operate by themselves, a full-size keyboard makes them much more efficient and useful. It may be simple to page through a list of phone numbers with a stylus, but for writing anything more than a disjointed, error-filled and uncapitalised text, a real keyboard is essential.

Device makers like Palm often distribute customised keyboards, while companies like Think Outside and Freedom Input sell their own versions. The company also makes a tiny thumb keyboard the size of a credit card for Bluetooth phones that have no built-in keyboard.

The flashiest keyboard, literally, may be the Bluetooth Laser Virtual Keyboard from i.Tech , a tiny device 1.38 by 3.6 by 1 inch that draws the keyboard on the desk with a ruby laser and watches the movement of your fingers with a motion sensor. There are no hinges or moving parts to jam, bend or break, but the only feedback is a click. If your favoured combination begins to look too complicated, laptop makers continue to make their offerings smaller and lighter. The Panasonic R5 weighs only 2.2 pounds, a number almost small enough to quote in ounces8212;about 35.

PETER WAYNER