And Now, the Portable Desktop PC, Up to a Point "The beauty of the Smart Display concept is that it keeps you out of Duplicate Hard-Drive Hell. That's the disorientation experienced by laptop owners who can't remember which machine contains the latest version of a certain file or which e-mail In box stores a critical message. With a Smart Display, you still own only one computer (that PC in the den), so all of your stuff remains in one place." ...
"ViewSonic charges $1,000 and $1,300 for its 10- and 15-inch screens; Philips will charge $1,400 for its model. But for that kind of money, you could buy an actual laptop. You could use it precisely the way you would use a Smart Display, tapping into your main PC using the same wireless technology and the same remote-control feature of Windows XP Pro.
In the process, you would avoid the frustrations of a missing keyboard, you would be able to play DVD movies in bed and you wouldn't be limited to tapping into a single computer.
Finally, not incidentally, you would own a true laptop - a computer that doesn't turn into an expensive hors d'oeuvres tray the minute you take it beyond the property line."