I heard another happy HP-user? Your friend?
Most people think if you get a big screen (17 inch or more) the notebook must be very powerfull.
But that's not always the case. 14 inch or 15.4 inch can be much more powerfull then the big ones!
The keys are simply small because, like you said, it's an 14 inch notebook. Their is not much room for all the keys. I don't know how working on a Eee PC would be? You press a key and see 3 letters? 7" or 11" notebooks.
