A lot of folks have been wondering how long it would take Dell to join the notebook party. The expectation was not for a full laptop but rather something more smaller. Delldelivered just last week with the Mini 9, a $349 portable computer that weighs 2.28 pounds, has an 8.9-inch screen. It is fit for Internet-centric tasks, like surfing, chatting, uploading photos, blogging, watching videos and listening to music.

This move has a lot of economic challenges including a loss of ground in the pursuit of a smaller, more powerful notebook computer. The move towards these ‘netbooks also challenges some of the biggest American PC companies, given that the pioneers in the category are lesser-known overseas manufacturers, like Asus, the maker of the Eee PC. And it challenges some of the suppliers, like Microsoft, that are tailored for a world of powerful computers, not basic ones that function chiefly as way stations to connect consumers to the cloud.

Indeed, the base model of Dell’s new machine includes a “mini” operating system made by Ubuntu (a $399 model has Windows XP Home). The machine does, however, use an Intel Atom chip. In the art department the Mini 9 comes in two colors (which Dell refers to as “Obsidian Black” and “Alpine White,”). One wonders whether this new category will, over the long-term, challenge the PC makers in their efforts to reproduce their favorite color at the checkout line: U.S. Dollar Green.