According to Jeremy Green and Adam Leach - who seem to be a symbiotic organism since the thoughts are attributed to them both - the Asus eee PC 900 will test the limits of the mobile internet device (MID) market.

And before you ask, that’s the point in between a fully functioning PC and a smartphone, where apparently there’s “quite a lot of product space”.

However, the duo did question whether the €415 price tag made it less of an obvious choice than the €292 the 701 model sells at.

“This brings the device ominously close to the price point for a low end laptop - albeit not to that of the ultra portable models,” the Green/Leach combo said. 

“It’s a distinct possibility, too, that the difference between the two prices takes the product out of the ‘why not?’ category and into the domain of serious evaluation.”

According to the Ovum analysts, that higher price point could actually settle the argument for some people about whether they can get away with an MID or if they need a full laptop.

“It should at least help to clarify some of the issues about exactly what MIDs are for, and resolve the relative importance of size, price and functionality,” they said.

“If Asus has got it right, its device will set the benchmark for MIDS; if not, there are plenty of other candidates with different trade-offs waiting in the wings.”