I had a similar use case and recently (Aug) got a used N810 off ebay for ~200 with the 8G microSD card. So far, I love it. I haven't figured it all out yet, but there are tons of apps to try out. Ebay usually lists several with varying options.

You may also look into installing Debian for full Linux support. I'm not sure if this is only for the N810 or N800 for memory usage, but I've seen links to a recipe for doing this.

I'm also looking into contributing, too, to help maintain its life.

To answer the OP on whether it's still worthwhile to get an n810, I say yes. The next tablet isn't out, and the 900 fills a different niche than the n8xx tablets did. So until the next true tablet comes out, stick with the n810.

I traveled all over France this last spring using the N810 for watching movies, podcasts (sync with gPodder), music, light web use (booking tickets locally, researching info) uploading pictures directly to flickr (SharePy), and making skype calls back home.

It was my honeymoon, so I wasn't allowed to bring a laptop, but the n810 handled it all without problems. It won't handle heavy duty web sites quickly, but with some forethought, it's a good mobile option.

Also, when they first came out, the n810 was upwards of $400...too expensive for me. At $200 though, that was perfect.

I'd agree with everyone else --- I've got an N810 I picked up on eBay last fall that I carry every day, in lieu of a laptop, unless I'm in hardcore edit/compile/debug mode and need to squeeze every last minute out of my rail commute. When a second came up for sale, I bought it as a backup unit. At home, we have an older, very beat up N800 serving as the kitchen Web Radio / weather / news panel on top of the microwave plugged into a couple of speakers.

With it and a Bluetooth keyboard, it's all I need for light email, quick checks to twitter, composing the occasional memo for work, reviewing work & home PDFs, and the like.

The app community has been great --- I've installed a few apps, but find I really only use an HP calculator emulator, emacs and pc-connectivity, and occasionally maemo-mapper for amateur radio stuff.

Others have remarked that the browser can be a bit on the pokey side; that's true, but especially if you go to sites optimized for iPhone, it works really well.

If you can afford it, I don't think you'll be disappointed.

Since I just bought an N810 last month, I think the answer is yes. I got mine because my aging Palm TX started having touch screen issues so I was looking for pocketability, wi-fi for light browsing, and a catalog of miscellaneous (and, ideally, free) apps. I went with the N810 rather than the N800 because my experience with the OQO 02 has convinced me that a little thumbboard is a great time saver.

The N810 excels in just about every area and I am certainly satisfied with my purchase.

As far as other alternatives, I find the N810 screen to be the lower limit of what I can use for surfing. The smartphones, including the N900 and the various Android phones, strike me as too small. You could spend a lot more and go with the Viliv S5 or the UMID M1. You'd get a much faster processor, a lot more storage, and a bigger screen. The downside will be their weight and battery life. Whether that's worth it to you, only you can say. You might also look at the announced Archos 5 Internet Tablet (the one that runs Android, not the one that is currently available for purchase). This would be the only similarly priced alternative to the N810 that I could see waiting for.

Two months ago, I would have said get the N810.

Now, I'd say to seriously consider the N900 with AT&T voice and EDGE support (if you're on a contract) and then switch to T-Mobile for full 3G.

You most likely will be able to tether the N900 to an AT&T compatible phone, too.

But the old tablets are still great and they've got lots of life in them yet!

As for the smaller screen on the N900; I keep saying it, but it bears repeating. It is smaller, yes, but it is the same resolution as the N8x0 tablets. That puts the N900's screen in a class by itself. All the other devices look pixelly after looking at the beautiful N900 screen.

I know you had it in your hands so maybe it is really not so bad but as for 'resolution is everything' opinion, I recently got HTC touch diamond 2 as my work phone and it has 800x480 too but the screen is simply too small. I tried same type of browsing I regularly do with N8x0 but it is a pain. Even if it looks crisper it is simply too small and switching to tablet is always big relief for my eyes. Still, Diamond 2 is 3.2 inch screen and N900 is 3.5 so let's hope N900 won't be so bad (N8x0 is 4.13)

I have to emphatically agree. Between the screens on my LG Env Touch (3"), N810 (4.13") and OQO 02 (5") there is a world of difference - every fraction of an inch counts. Some sites are just unusable on the Env because the screen is too small. This is especially apparent with sites which are essentially built with interactive graphics rather than HTML. Even the OQO, which runs full Firefox on Vista Business, has problems occasionally. Sleek and small may be the mantra for smartphones but bigger is better remains the mantra for Internet tablets.

I wouldn't be surprised if everyone's experience will be different.

One of the key features of the new browser is the ability to "dial in" a web page by turning your finger clockwise. Combined with kinetic panning, it really makes reading (and interacting with) web pages much easier.

If your eyes struggle to focus at close range, then you'll probably become frustrated with the smaller screen, because you do need to hold it closer than the current tablets to read fine details clearly.

My best suggestion for those who aren't sure about the smaller screen is to find somewhere near you that has an N900 on display and go and try it before you buy it.

If you don't need a built in cell phone then the N810 is a great product.
This thing has opened up a whole new world for me and the community here is awesome.
Years ago I was exploring Linux and subscribed to some forum and the members there were a bunch of jerks who had no compassion or patience for newcomers so I avoided Linux (and Linux users) like the plague.
I was a bit hesitant here but have found the community here very friendly and helpful. What a contrast!
I don't think the N810 will be obsolete anytime soon and the community is developing Mer. From what (little) I actually understand about it, it looks very promising. The dedicated programmers are amazing.
Anyway, I agree with the other posts in that the N810 is well worth owning and will be for some time to come.
Lantz