UMPC comparison

[ddrueding]

I don't know if anyone else has been looking at these things, but I think they have real promise. Tablets and convertibles were just too big/bulky for handheld use, but these work really well. I presently have the cheapest one as a loaner, and I really like it.

Below is the comparison sheet I put together a few minutes ago, in case anyone is interested.

 

[ddrueding]

I'm pretty sure I'm going to go with the ASUS. I might even stick a 32GB SSD in it, as the HDD is clearly the bottleneck(even with this one, running XP). It has the fastest processor, most RAM, largest screen, and built-in GPS. I wish it ran at the higher 1024x800 resolution, but it really is workable. Streaming a video over the wireless to it while I'm walking around the house doing chores is just plain neat.

 

[mubs]

Keep us informed on your experiences!

 

[ddrueding]

I ended up buying the ASUS R2Hv-A1 from Newegg, it arrived about an hour ago.

First impressions:

This thing is loaded! Unpacking all the accessories is an experience; every adapter and gizmo is already included. This includes a USB mouse, USB sync cable (with software), external GPS antenna (to compliment the internal one), carrying case, 2 different sized batteries, all the adapter cables for various-sized USB and video, a lanyard, and a telescopic stylus! You feel well cared for when you are unpacking it.

The device itself is beautiful and well laid out, all the other laptops I've seen put the fingerprint reader in less than ideal locations, but this one is perfectly convenient. Only complaint being that there is no place to put the stylus in the device.

 

[ddrueding]

Initial setup is a fairly significant PITA. The welcome wizard for Vista doesn't support the soft-keyboard, and requires keystrokes, so a USB keyboard better be handy. The machine comes loaded with loads of software and custom utilities for the devices, including Nero and Lightscribe software...this thing doesn't even have an optical drive!

It has an interesting "Media Center"-esque UI that is very tablet-friendly, and includes access to all the apps and tools. Noobs might like it, but I prefer the standard (more powerful) Vista UI. PC Decrapifier doesn't get anything off of it, and really it shouldn't. None of it is trial software, no antivirus, or other crap.

 

[ddrueding]

After cleaning up and updating, it is quite snappy. After discounting the "gaming" score, it achieves a respectable 2.4 on the Vista Performance scale (Aero Graphics).

The hard drive is what really cripples it, IMHO. I suspect I'll be swapping in an SSD within the month...

 

[ddrueding]

About 6 hours of tinkering later, and I am still very impressed by this little toy.

The combination of voice and handwriting recognition make a keyboard practically redundant (Vista is ages ahead of XP on both of these) for all but the longest technical documents. The onboard microphone is hampered by the internal fan; it isn't loud, just about 2cm from the mic.

The GPS picks up satellites quickly with either antenna, and works well with either the packaged MS Streets 2007 or with DeLorme Street Atlas 2007 (MS makes the better package, IMHO).

 

[ddrueding]

To give you some numbers, I've broken out a stopwatch:

Power button to responsive desktop (including login with fingerprint): 61.8s
Shutdown button to silent: 53.6s
Enter Hibernate to silent: 28.6s
Recover from Hibernate to a responsive desktop: 31.2s
Launching Firefox (with ABP and IE Tab extensions, google homepage): 3.5s


Not bad for a 1Ghz single core with a 4200RPM drive running Vista

 

[LunarMist]

Have you any idea of how long it would take to convert a 1Ds MK II RAW file to a TIF?

 

[ddrueding]

A long, long, long time

If you send me one I will give it a shot.

I wasn't even going to install Photoshop CS3 on it because of the slow CPU/HDD.

 

[Mercutio]

Those things have way too many trade-offs to make sense IMO. I'd rather go with a vastly more capable X-series Thinkpad and have a computer I'm not afraid to load software on, or something that I need for just the quickest and dirtiest internet access. The price tag for such a limited machine is way, way too high.

 

[ddrueding]

I had a 12" laptop for a while, and I got rid of it. It was so much faster to sit at someone else's desk and use their machine. If you need a real computer, this isn't it. But it is the most capable PDA I've ever used.

 

[Mercutio]

You could've bought a Palm Foleo or Asus Eee and purchased two or three extra terabytes of disks with the money you had left. If you're afraid to run the applications you use, it's not like application compatibility is actually important.

 

[ddrueding]

What runs very well is Winamp, Media Player Classic, Microsoft Streets, and Firefox. Combine those applications with an emergency ability to do pretty much anything (thanks to the fact that it is a real computer) and it is quite useful. Further, the 7" display is decent for video/web and the form factor works well for dash mounting (something no laptop does well).