Dell has added an option to install a 32GB SSD solid state drive to their Dell Mini 9 netbook purchase. It adds an extra $100 to the base price of $349 for the unit, however. Click here to access their online store if you want to take the leap into more speedy memory for your netbook.

The unit comes packed in with a paltry 4GB of SSD drive support so paying $100 for an extra 28GB doesn’t sound like that bad of a deal. To put it in perspective, it costs half that much to make your Mini 9 pink.

Korean company UMID has announced their entry into the burgeoning sub-netbook category of computers. This laptop weighs just 315 grams (a little over a half-pound) and is just a shade bigger than the Nintendo DS. Still, the insides still pack quite a punch. The unit contains a 1.33GHz Atom Processor, 1GB of RAM and up to 32GB of storage via SSD. It also features WiBro, WiMAX, HSDPA, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth connectivity. The unit also has a 1.3-megapixel camera and a 4.8-inch 1024 x 600 touchscreen. The tiny netbook can run XP, Vista or Linux. The company has yet to release word on pricing or release date.

The new MacBook Air has been released, with some definitive upgrades from the original. Apple has replaced the awkward microDVI plug with the new mini DisplayPort plug. Under the hood, the unit features integrated graphics (NVIDIA 9400M) and booting has been said to take a paltry twenty-five seconds. The new MacBook Air also features a 128GB SSD. The unit is out now and costs approximately $1,799.

Jerry Shen, CEO of ASUS, noted recently that his company would release an Eee PC priced at US$200 in 2009. He also noted to a group of analysts that the 7- and 8.9 inch Eee PCs would be discontinued to make room for the 10-inch model. Shen did not clarify as to whether or not that meant the 10-inch Eee PC would be $200. He also gave the group some figures, noting that 70% of all Eee PCs now come loaded with Windows XP and hard disk drives compared to 30% that come loaded with Linux and SSDs.

Take a Dell Latitude, slap on some military-grade protective materials, waterproof it, and design it for temperature extremes from -4F to 140F, and what do you have? The Augmentix XTG630, one tough notebook. The specs aren’t too shabby, either:

• 14.1 inch LCD
• Core 2 Duo processor
• Up to 4GB RAM
• Removable 80GB HDD plus 32GB SSD
• Intel GMA X3100 integrated graphics
• Bluetooth 2.0
• 802.11 a/g/n (draft)
• EVDO or HSDPA
• All the ports any rugged type would need

It can function in 4-inches of rain an hour and 95% humidity, and take a fall from up to 3 feet. Makes me feel like a weak, frail being, because I certainly couldn’t handle some of that abuse.