A real pain to work on says the editor? Based on what, based on the fact that there is no ethernet port, but that you need a tiny adapter (if you need it at all). I have used the machine a few weeks now and there is nothing difficult about it. About the upgradability? Who upgrades a notebook nowadays? 99% of the professionals for which the notebook is made throw it out of the window after two years and buy a new one. Bet that Bill Detwiler screws open his Acer everyday.... not so for the rest of us.