The Sony UX180P Ultra-mobile PC is perhaps the most innovative device to arrive to the PC market in some many years. For those of us who require full PC functionality on the road but don't want to lug around a full laptop all the time, this device is the one you have to get. I previously used a Sony T270 series laptop while on the road, but found even three pounds too much to carry around on an everyday basis. This small wonder weighs in a little over a pound and is quite easy to carry around on an everyday basis.

The screen is a good size at 4.5 inches and 1024x600 widescreen resolution, however, you will need good eyesight to take advantage of the small screen.  Some may find the icons and text too small, but I've had no issues since the sharpness and clarity of the Sony XBRITE screen is so good.

The hidden keyboard appears when you slide up the screen and is surprisingly useful. Blackberry and Treo users will find the thumb keyboard very familiar. Some folks with smaller hands may have some difficulty with thumbing on the keyboard while holding the device, but I have not had any issues and I have average sized hands/fingers.

The amount of technology stuffed into this little machine is quite remarkable. The connectivity options are plentiful. You have standard 10/100 ethernet on the dock and dongle, 802.11b/g wireless LAN networking built-in, and Cingular's WWAN with SIM card (available via subscription --30 free trial included). Access to the Cingular EDGE network is reasonable fast at about 100-200k average speed. Not quite as fast as Verizon's EVDO network, however, Cingular's coverage is much more broad across the U.S.  Furthermore, the EDGE modem that is built into the device can be UNLOCKED for use with SIM card from other GSM carriers like T-Mobile or AT&T. I was able to call a special Sony support number and got the unlock code for use with T-Mobile (easy search on Google for unlock instructions/also checkout HowardForums.com). With all these connectivity options, I have been able to connect to the net from just about ANYWHERE, which totally KICKS ASS!

As with most other name-brand laptops, you'll get a ton of useless trial software clogging up the hard disk, so the first thing you'll need to do is go to Add/Remove Programs to delete all that crap, otherwise, the device will feel slower that it should be. Also, if you connect an external DVD-RW drive via USB, you will be able to run the Recovery Wizard to make your recovers discs (a must have). Go ahead an delete the recovery partition and you gain 6GB of disc space back and then use the recovery discs to reinstall the OS & apps.

In day-to-day use, I've found the battery life to only last about 2 hours with basic activities like surfing the web. This is perhaps the only thing lacking in this device. Hopefully Sony will come out with a better battery in the future for us road warriors.