Smaller sized notebooks are all the buzz and have now garnered the attention of Gateway. The OEM today announces its first 13.3-inch notebook with the introduction of its new UC series.

"The new Gateway UC Series notebook line hits the sweet spot of mobile entertainment with an excellent pairing of a chic portable design, widescreen display and mainstream notebook performance," Gateway wrote in a press release. "Gateway's first notebook PC with a 13.3-inch widescreen display, it sports a small footprint and lightweight 5.3-pound design that is idea for travel and taking to work and class."

The 5.3-pound ultraportable kicks off with the UC7308u and UC7807u, the latter of which comes equipped with an Intel Core 2 Duo T6400 (2.0GHz) processor, 3GB of DDR2-667 RAM, Intel's integrated 4500MHD graphics, a 250GB hard drive, 8x DVD burner, and six cell battery. Other features include a 1280x800 Ultrabright LCD screen, HDMI port with HDCP support, 801.11a/b/g/n, and a webcam.

Gateway's billing the new series as ideal for those who "want more than what a netbook can deliver" without sacrificing a small form factor, and included in the new ultraportables is "Switchable Graphics Technology."

Both the UC7308u and UC7807u are available now priced at $750 an $800 respectively.

As new netbooks continue to march into the market, it's typically the hardware that garners most of the attention. Some models sport solid-state drives (SSDs), while others keep it old school with a traditional hard drive. But all of them share two key characteristics - reduced screen real estate and gimped performance - that have opened up a market for specialized software.

Enter ThinkFree, who this week launched its ThinkFree Netbook Edition, a software solution encompassing an assortment of productivity applications designed for netbooks. Unlike standard office suites, ThinkFree claims its new software has been optimized for small screens and limited hardware resources inherent in Intel Atom chipset-based netbooks.

"Netbook users are demanding applications that are built to not only meet, but make the most of the unique characteristics of this new device category, (and) Netbook OEMs (original equipment manufacturers) can now offer their customers just that by pre-installing a customized, device-tailored version of ThinkFree Netbook Edition," Su Jin Kim, ThinkFree's CEO, said in a statement.

ThinkFree Mobile: Netbook Edition is available now with support for Windows, Linux, and Mac OS X. And from now until October 31st, the company will give away a copy to anyone willing to fill out a short survey.

November's shaping up to be a busy month, and it has nothing to do with Thanksgiving. On the desktop front, Intel's Core i7 platform is rumored to launch on November 17th, and in the mobile sector, MSI looks to launch its Wind U120 with built-in 3.5G before December rolls around, according to DigiTimes.

The new netbook will feature the usual assortment of components - Atom N270 processor clocked at 1.6GHz, 1GB of RAM, 120GB hard drive, and Windows XP -  tucked underneath your choice of a white or black shell and will run about $550. MSI has been working with Taiwan-based telco Vibo Telecom to implement 3.5G functionality in the U120 and will look to do the same with local telecom providers in Europe.

What you won't find on the new netbook is a touchscreen. Asus is rumored to be readying a touchscreen version of its Eee PC line, but MSI cites high costs as a prohibiting factor for its Wind. Bummer.

It may have taken Asus a year to get there, but the ultraportable Eee PC has finally been spotted for an ultra-affordable price tag. For a copper Lincoln shy of $300, Best Buy is currently selling the Eee PC 900A with an Intel Atom N270 processor clocked at 1.6GHz on a 533MHz frontside bus. Other goodies nestled inside the netbook include 1GB of DDR2 memory, a 4GB solid-state drive, 8.9-inch WSVGA widescreen display, integrated graphics, WiFi, and three USB 2.0 ports all running on Linux.

Kudos to Asus for finally offering a model priced in line with its specs, though Asus isn't the only guilty culprit to avoid doing so up to this point. Despite the immense popularity of netbooks in general, many models regardless of vendor have nipped at the heels of traditional laptops in terms of price, which generally offer more power, more storage space, and, well, more of everything. Asus new 900A puts some much needed distance between the two sectors, which is great for anyone looking to pick up a mini-notebook. Then again, no matter what the price, cynics it's still a mini-notebook under the hood.