Are thin-client PCs the wave of the future? HP is the latest vendor that's betting that the answer is yes: the world's largest manufacturer of PCs is launching two new thin-client models to fill out its low-end offerings. The Compaq t5135 Thin Client and business-class t5530 Thin Client are both roughly the size of a paperback book and can be bolted to the back of a monitor, if needed. The company is pushing the clients as a cheap, power-efficient alternative to the desktop PC. The 5135 will run Debian Linux while the 5530 will run Windows CE. Aside from the difference in pre-installed OS, the two devices are almost identical: diskless, fanless, 64MB of flash storage, 128MB of RAM and either a 400MHz or 800MHz processor. The two machines will be available in February for $199 and $299, respectively.

For more on HP's new thin-clients:
- see this ComputerWorld article