Cellar Talk – 13th June

This week has been mad. I’ve been following up all the news and contacts from Computex, written the full review of the X70, done some testing with the S5 Premium Air, done the live Q&A session with the X70 and a podcast. All with a big fat cold and bunged up nose that you’ll hear on my broadcasts. And then Archos goes and lights up the segment by announcing a 9 inch 16mm 800gm Windows 7 tablet. This has been on one of the busiest UMPCs weeks ever in the UMPCPortal cellar that I like to call my ‘studio.’ Apparently the weather was crappy so at least I didn’t miss anything at ground level!

X70 working out well.

I’m absolutely loving the X70 and it’s really raising my spirits about UMPCs. Usability wise it’s in a different (better) class to the S5 and that’s simply because of the lower number of pixels per inch. The Viliv S5 has 247 pixels per inch and the X70 just 170. I often talk about how to work around the problems of high pixel density with Windows and and the X70 and S5 highlight the difference. The standard-sized fonts are more readable both in handheld and especially in table-top mode, the UI is easy for the finger or stylus and the on-screen keyboard is far more comfortable. There’s no need at all to boost the font sizes (and effectively reduce screen real-estate.) It has to be said that if you want to stick with Windows, you’re going to need a 1024×600 screen and you’re going to have to keep the PPI below 200 which means using a 7 inch screen. The only way we’re going to be able to get usable operating systems on 4.8 inch screens at the same resolution is to make them especially for that screen size. Unfortunately for the Menlow platform, one of the best power/mobility platforms, you’ve only got Windows so for most people that means a 7 inch screen.

Other people seem to be loving it too. CrunchGear, the sister publication of the website that is trying to bring the CrunchPad tablet to market said ‘It rocks’ . There’s been good feedback from JKOnTheRun – “I am getting good use out of the X70 already — even better use than the smaller S5 inch and other people are expressing interest through emails, blogs and on Twitter too. I called it the ‘best 7 inch Tablet ultra mobile PC we’ve ever tested’ (it is, easily) and it quickly hit #1 on the Product portal.

I’m trying to install Windows 7 on it this weekend but so far I’m hitting a block as the install keeps hanging. I hope it works out as it’s going to be an important test for many. I’ve already contacted Viliv to see if they have any tips.

You can find all the important X70 links in the database including the review and live session videos.

SmartDevices Q7 firmware.

There’s a new firmware available for the Q7 now. V3. I’m downloading it from the Chinese website and i’ll host it on the site. (watch for links in the Smart Q7 page.) I have no idea what it’s going to bring to the device. Maybe it’s just bug fixes. Maybe it’s a UI tidy up. I’m hoping for new apps but we’ll see when I install it later this weekend.

Funny story of the week.

ASUS are doing a promotional tour this week and on Thursday, they hit Cologne with their tour team. They didn’t quite plan it well enough though. Thursday was a holiday here in this part of Germany and as always, all the shops are shut. They all had to go home.

Disappointing news on the KAX-15.

I like the UMID M1 a lot but something is stopping me from buying one. Build quality and the USB dongles are annoying but it’s the screen angle that annoys me the most and I can’t commit so it was great to see the KAX-15 on the stage at Computex. With Windows, the new Z515 (800Mhz/1.2Ghz CPU) and a great design, this could be one to watch. JKK highlighted a potential show-stopper though. The battery. In his second KAX-15 video you’ll see him pull the back off (at 1:40 into the video) to reveal what looks like a very small battery. I’m trying to get hold of the battery details (along with the other missing specifications) and keeping my fingers crossed that it’s twice as deep as the battery on the previous Compal/Aigo device that only returns 2.5hrs battery life.

Mifi coming next week.

Novatel have kept me hanging with the MiFi while they finalise distribution of the HSDPA version here in Europe. Mobilx have it listed and will be getting it at the same time as me so if you’re interested in what I think is mobile device of the year, check out Mobilx and keep an eye out here for hands on and a review.

Touchnote long-term notes.

I can’t fault the Touchnote. It performed fantastically in Taiwan and the 3G reception is just amazing. It highlights how important a good antenna is in a 3G set-up. Battery life is only 3hrs though so I’ve ordered a 6-cell battery which will take it up to 4.5hrs. With the 3hr spare, I’ll be ok for a long day’s work with it. I’m also getting VERY used to the touchscreen and it’s well integrated into my workflow. So much so that I keep trying to control my desktop with my finger on the screen! I still haven’t heard about Windows 7 support from Gigabyte. They don’t have the drivers for ACPI yet but I highlighted it to them at Computex. I also had hands-on with the high-end version of the Touchnote. It was indeed running the N280 and had a higher resolution screen. (See images, right.)  It was even running Windows 7 but again, there was no battery information available.

Thinking about a new phone.

The iPhone impresses me more and more as time goes on due to the amazing creativeness of software developers and user base and it’s lead in one of my favorite niches location based services. This weeks announcement of the 3GS brings the iPhone up to spec with video and it looks like the device might even be running a new CPU core making it a relatively fast browsing device. At an estimated 600-800 Euro no-contract cost though, its extremely expensive and because there’s no iPod S version, without voice, I won’t be stepping into that ecosystem yet. As soon as an iPod Touch option comes along, I’m in. Unless the new Nokia Maemo Tablet launches first in which case I’ll probably step on board that train because I love their (Maemo/Nokia) focus on real internet rather than the cut-down version you get on the iPhone. If the new tablet has a quality 5mp cam with 720p recording there won’t be a need for my N82 any more so I may look to move to a smaller device as my voice communicator/pim/mini-web device.  Maybe I can dump the phone altogether and go 100% data using Skype-in. Worth a thought.

Solar project.

The X70 has me thinking about another solar computing project. Compared to the Q1b I used a few years ago it’s 50% more efficient so running it day-in, day-out on a 24wh solar panel is a real possibility. The car adaptor that I have for the X70 is rated 10-24v so it could charge the X70 direct from the panel but unfortunately that means the X70 has to be connected to the panel all the time. Less efficient but more practical would be to charge a power bank from the solar panel. Unfortunately I don’t have one that provides the required 9.5v output. If only Viliv had an external battery charger for the X70.

Have a great weekend everyone and feel free to talk back to the Cellar in the comments section below.

Chippy.