Eee PC-like ultraportables - name that product category
By Ryan Block 
posted May 30th 2008 7:24PM
posted May 30th 2008 7:24PM
We've heard "low-cost ultraportable" and "laptop-lite" used to describe these kinds of machines, but it seems best to let you decide: leave your best suggestion for what we all should all call this emerging product category, and we'll put it up to vote next week. We'll officially be throwing "netbook" into the ring. (Intel may have initially coined the term, but that we don't think it should necessarily have to refer only to Intel-based products.)
Litetops.
How about "econobook"?
clam shell umpc's or csumpc.
They're not UMPC's since they don't have a touch screen. And even if they did, they still don't meet MS's definition of UMPC I don't think :S.
smallbook maybe
I think subnotebook is a better category, its a very literal name because they are just small notebooks.
ULPC
I call mine a Geeekbook!, everyone knows what i mean when they first hear the term
TipTop
clam-top
I was wondering the same thing as I was sharing and tagging some of these things in Google Reader. I am using "ultra-portable" for the time being, but clam-top has a nice roll to it.
Knee-tops!
minibook?
microbook?
nanobook? (well, since they're all VIA these days anyway...)
something between palm and laptop could be good, but all i can think of is armtop. which sounds stupid.
*waits for better idea*
We could just let microsoft name it and use Small-Form Factor Clamshell Personal Computing Devices or something...
Palmtop?
Or just slimbook, when the MacbookAir came out I was really surprised they hadn't named it the Macbook Slim but after all these months Macbook Air just really sounds good.
Hobbybook might be something since it's just a lightweight surfing device.
And "UltraPortables" on it's own isn't even that bad a name, it perfectly describes what they are.
I second minibook
Notepad. Notebook but smaller and cheaper =D
Officially they're called the ULCPC btw: Ultra Low-Cost Personal Computer
I second "nanobook"
i third minibook
I'm going to to fourth minibook.
Better idea is here: How about SquirrelBook?
Wow, I have to name my old Libretto Squirrelbook now.
Didn't "palmtop" go the way of "Palm-PC" when MS tried that as the first name for PocketPC?
Here are my suggestions:
Litebook
Ultralight
Handbook (yeah, I think it's already used, but I've found that the Eee is light enough that I can literally rest it on one hand while using the other hand to navigate, which is useful if you're using it in public without a lot of room to set it down)
I'm also tempted to add "paperback notebook" or something as an indicator of just how light these things are, but that's too long a name to use conveniently.
wait a sec, aren't these just called sub-notes anyway?
*goes to look up sub-notebook*
Yeah I was under that impression also. So yes, my suggestion would be sub-notebook
Another vote for sub-notebook. Traditional yet different. Nothing ground breaking or extravagant :)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Subnotebook
Ultralights or Ultraportables
How about ultra-lite notebooks.
hyperportable
or better yet... ludicrous portable
It's gone plaid!
WICKED SICK PORTABLE
sub-notebook or "netbook" sounds like good names to me
go home people (especially you Ryan) this discussion ended right there with Subnotebook, but in fact it ended like a year ago, with subnotebook.
Engadget is becoming even slower than Kotaku.
A lot more than a year ago. This size of machine has been known as "subnotebook" for many years. I've had one for four years (Fujitsu P5020D) and that was by no means the first.
These are just low power subnotebooks. But they're also light, so "ultralight" sounds okay to me.
Or we could just call them weebles.
They're still subnotebooks. It describes the form factor, Specs always evolve .
It's about more than size, it's about the specs and intended use. As Ryan said, to put the eeePC in the same class as the $2000 subnotebooks is just silly.
Weebles FTW! I love it =]
But yes, subnotebooks would make the most sense.
subnote wins
Sub-notebook is just one too many syllables, and subnote fully gets the point across.
I don't like netbook, sounds too Web 2.0ish.
I agree with subnotebook, as it is an already established category that doesn't sound completely stupid.
Fisher Price Laptops !
they are almost toy like... like the old speak n spell machines of the 80's.
Seriously.. someone should make one of these hybrids in a lego style case for the ultimate toy. At the $200-$300 mark, I would have loved one of these as a child (it would certainly have beat my Commodore Vic 20 that I got as my first computer)
I vote - Wee top
Wee top... is that the same as a codpiece?
Though now that I think about it, "crotchtop" has a dirty little ring to it. Me likey. Though it might rule out the easily-overheated nadcookers (oooh, there's another good name!) like HP's 2133.
(Sorry-- couldn't stop myself.)
How about:
Laptop-Like
liliputers!
The brilliance of this remark was overlooked.
Seconded, and +1 for the literary reference ::lmao::
Excellent! Lilliputer definitely gets my vote.
This is my absolute favorite. I can't think of anything better.
Lilliput is the island in Jonathan Swift's novel Gulliver's Travels with the "little people" for those who missed the reference.
I'm going to have to go with Liliputers too. But I might be biased.
Oh my god!
I thought it was a word play on lilliputian!! But then it dawned on me that maybe, just maybe, the word originated from the book xD...hahaa
http://www.liliputing.com/
ask the guy who made this site where he got the name.
Mini laptop
it most assuredly is NOT netbook. why? i sure as heck don't use it for surfing the net. i use it like a real computer, only an ultraportable one. its not a laptop/notebook, its not a umpc (those dont have keyboards), its not an MID.
i am fine with ultraportable, mini-notebook, or sub-notebook.
The Vaio UX begs to differ with your UMPC claim.
1337top?
Hyperlight :)
...or sublights!
Palmtop computers.
"Palmtop" strikes me as the size "MIDs" are targeting. Literally the size of your hand.
Haven't seen you in awhile, PG! How's that new iMac working out for you?
I think these may work
LCUPL: Low Cost Ultra Portable Laptop
CheapTop: Cheap Laptop
ich fully agree.
cheapbooks or cheaptops, if that fits better for anyone.
or LCTPs (lightcheaptops).
really, i don't care. My only hope is that some of the good stuff comes to germany soon (down the drain, 7inch version!).
Cheaptop seconded! (You stole my idea! I came up with that name lol)
make it cheeptop instead...
I'm really starting to wonder when Engadget is going to rename the site to the Eee PC news page...
You're probably one of those people who comment "Geez, how much is Apple paying engadget" on every single Apple article, or "Post some real news!" when there's an article about Microsoft.
Face it, you're on a Tech site and the EEE-PC is interesting 'new' technology, so quit your bitching.
Sub-notebook sounds good to me...
If you insist on a single word name, "litebook"
Oh, change that for "cheaptop"
psuedo portable or notepad
Paperweights?
Let's get abstract. Call them "credslitters."
Sounds oddly perverse and won't cause any confusion. Nice.
Sub-notebook or "subnote" if you need a throw away one word answer.
cheap shit
Poindexter's peculiarly petite personal palm plaything
yeah, i'm coming up with something... wait:carryputer... hmm, no (stephen king might like it, though..)... i go it: takebook.. nah, still lame.
hmmm maybe Handbook?
Microtops
Thightop
light notebooks
Let's see, they're cheap ultra portable laptops, you could go with the acronym and call them CUPLs, (pronounced 'couples', I'd imagine), or you could call them 'cheaptops'. Given that they're reminiscent of the Windows CE laptops of ages ago, PDA+ might work too. I guess the idea came out of the OLPC project, or maybe it was pushed into relevance by the Foleo, maybe 'palmtops' would be an effective homage. Or you could trace them back to the Origami concept, but being bigger than those, call them 'single-folds' or something. Or maybe extend the standard 'notebook' name for normal laptops, and call them 'notepad's. That makes them sound like tablet laptops a little, though, maybe 'post-it-pads'. One of their more useful defining characteristics is low power, both in AC consumption and MIPS, so 'greentop' or 'greenbook' become possible, or maybe 'slowtop' or 'slowbook' if you want to be mean about it.
The bigger issue here is where to draw the line, as they get bigger and more powerful, creating a complete category could be tough.
ultradisposables
...let's face it, the market for these computers consists of [dare i say 'geeks'?] who are definitely not using them as their sole computer, but enjoy the idea of a small, cheap laptop they can view their pr0nz on at the local cafe, without breaking their backs getting it there.
is anyone under the delusion that these laptops are gonna be used longer than a year?
Take a trip on over to http://forum.eeeuser.com/index.php for a gander at the people that use these.
You can also see my post on "What has your Eee PC done for you today?":
http://forum.eeeuser.com/viewtopic.php?id=22750
Well seeing as I still use my 333mhz Thinkpad occasionally, yes I believe it's quite possible.
to quote The Inquirer
CROTCHTOPS
Replied to the wrong comment. When is Engadget going to let us delete comments?
Vernon Troyer pc's?
How about LOL
Low cost
Output
Laptop
Laptops. Enough said. The current generation of 19"+ do not fit in the lap of your average human, so they are the ones that need reclassifying.
Kneetop
leanbook,
spritetop,
postbook,
kneebook,
fisttop,
fingerbook,
clamnote,
pocketbook,
tilenote,
thinbook,
trimbook,
sleeknote,
teenbook,
kidnote,
tinybook,
craptop?
does anyone care?
I lean toward the term "cloudbook" because these machines tend to rely heavily on web 2.0 services, or in other words the services exist in the could rather than on the machine.
+1
Mineee notebook.
shorter form? i'd vote for cheaptop.
craptops
LOL. That was the first thing I thought of too.
Overpriced pieces of crap.
right because 500-700 for a solid highly portable laptop is overpriced. Sorry buddy but not everyone needs SLI and a quad core in their fucking portable.
^ How about "fucking-portable laptops"?
how'bout.. HalfTop or HalfLap?
noobcake maybe?
actually having laptops at this size is good but when it comes to serious business these laptops still need more juice tbh. anyways with next platform manufacturers are promising great things (VIA gone mad about crysis as you know). so at this point calling those laptops as noobcakes wont be wrong :D
I dub thee "Craptops"
Personally, I like these new cheap subnotebooks and will buy one eventually - but there is no way they should be in the same camp as the TZ, R7, V5, and P1620 (all full-featured, sub-3lb and below US letter in footprint).