and availability N

Try reading... It helps a lot!!

"The Japanese manufacturer has declined to list prices for the solid-state drives"

"and ship them in mass quantities during the first quarter of the year."

Come on ultra-portable Macs. W My credit card awaits...

the MacBook Pro Thin. Apparently there is going to be a rebirth in subnotebooks (if that's the category). It's going to be a copy-cat, follow-the-leader game.

I think that 128 GB SSD is a perfect size, but the cost will certainly be steep.

I'm not saying that Apple has invented the flash drive-based subnotebook, but I'll bet that every PC manufacturer in the world starts building them in mass production to compete with Apple.

the MacBook Pro Thin. Apparently there is going to be a rebirth in subnotebooks (if that's the category). It's going to be a copy-cat, follow-the-leader game.

Man, I didn't realize the subnotebooks had died. Oh, wait, that's right, if Apple doesn't make a product, the product doesn't exist.

I think that 128 GB SSD is a perfect size, but the cost will certainly be steep.

Forget the subnotebook, the drive would be perfect for a useful iPod Touch, or imagine an iPod Classic. Think of the battery time on that thing.

I'm not saying that Apple has invented the flash drive-based subnotebook, but I'll bet that every PC manufacturer in the world starts building them in mass production to compete with Apple.

So, you're not saying they invented it, but everyone will now be competing with them. Which kind of implies they did 'invent' it.

But, don't you think this is where so many companies have been hoping to go? Do you really believe only Apple (and it's loyal and rumor-mongering fan base) are the only ones who've come up with this idea? I would think that these drives would be in high demand by many a manufacturer not because Apple is rumored to be making a supposed 'subnotebook', but that the subnotebook makers out there would love the weight loss + energy savings. (Why else would Toshiba be making these drives, just because they think Apple might want them???) In fact, I wouldn't be surprised to see them in just regular notebooks as well.

Apple didn't invent the cell phone, but now everyone's trying to compete with Apple's implementation of it. It didn't invent the portable music player, but now everyone's trying to compete with the iPod.

The 'subnotebook' market is small right now. No company is succeeding at producing a popular product. Again, if Apple starts making one, it will be a good one. It will create a lot of buzz, and the other manufacturers will make new plans to compete with Apple.

I do agree with you that the drives (depending on cost) could show up in some regular notebooks.

"Sub-notebook", etc.

Jeez. People here in the U.S. get all worked up over tiny laptops. Well, maybe we are just a bit behind the curve....as my trips to Japan clearly remind me each year.

Sorry to say it, but Japan has been making very small laptops for quite some time now (smaller hands or disposition towards smaller things?) and once these flash drives really start shipping in mass, the Japanese market "sub-notebooks" will blow ours out of the water in regard to size and capability.

I still to this day do not understand the need for a 19inch, 17 inch, or even 15 inch laptops. Even the Macbook is too big for me after using some of the Panasonic, Fujitsu and Sony models in Japan.

Now, if Apple were to truly create a Newton replacement that ran a full version of OSX, I would bite in a heartbeat.