Pop Quiz: Dell Mini 10 - £200 in the UK. But in Australia?

I'm in the market to replace my now aging original-series EeePC 701 model netbook.

Dell has recently released a nice-looking netbook which offers better keyboard, screen and build quality that what I have now. What's more, news reports indicate that they're offering the entry-level version of this system for £200 in the UK, which is a decent price.

Now, £200 translates to AU$400 at today's exchange rate - still a decent price. New netbook, here I come.

So I go to my local Dell website and choke on the price they're offering the Dell Mini 10 for.

So what's Dell's asking price for this netbook in the Australian market, I hear you say? How does AU$849 grab ya? Yes, AU$849. That's over double the price that our European and North American cousins have to pay.

Yes, I note that this price is for the more expensive Windows version, rather than the Linux version of the Dell Mini 10 netbook offered in the UK, but even then, the pricing is still substantially inflated.

And why doesn't Dell offer Australians the Linux version of the same device? I might understand it if Dell offered the Linux option to India and China only, major markets which are perhaps more price sensitive. But to offer something to the UK and Canada, and not Australia? This makes no sense at all, and Dell does nothing to explain to its Australian customers why their options here are so artificially limited.