Recently, I’ve been trying to find a way to justify buying an Ultra-Mobile PC. Without any real reason, the part of my brain that tells me to buy Lucky Charms instead of oatmeal for breakfast takes over. And if you know me, that’s never a good thing.

The UMPC was unveiled a few years ago but hasn’t really seen much success, no thanks to the poor performing Windows Tablet PC operating system. However, its portability makes it such an attractive gadget, and I can’t get over the allure of owning smaller products, like my iPod, iPhone, and dozens of flash drives that I tend to carry with me. If it’s portable, expensive, and new, chances are I’ll buy it or expend mental energy longing for it.

Despite their lacking popularity, I believe the UMPC is the next big thing. Companies like ASUS are launching products like the Eee PC — super popular with Linux nerds — that are helping shine light on the subnotebook genre. Unfortunately, the UMPC availability at local retailers is rather weak at this time, and I hesitate to shell out $1,200 or more on a product I’ve never actually seen or tested.

I suppose for now I’ll just have to settle for a box of Lucky Charms.