A Look at Windows 8 Part 2: Keeping the tablet at bay

In Part 1 of this post, we noted that Windows 8 is part of Microsofts long terms strategy of maintain its position as the dominant desktop operating system. Microsoft's OEM partners need to generate sales today, and look to Windows 8 to shore up PC sales.

A bit of history. Late in 2007, Asus took Intel's remaining stocks of outdated Celeron processors, put it in a frame with a ill-fitting 7-inch display and called it the Eee PC. The first Asus Eee PC sold 300,000 units in four months. Other OEM's started building their own small low cost mini-laptops, Intel created the Atom processor, Microsoft extended the life of Windows XP and over 100 million "Netbooks" were sold. Between a worldwide financial crisis and demand in developing countries the Netbook was a sales success.

But no one liked selling these things. A friend of mine who sold laptops, hated selling netbooks. Profit margins were low. And that was true down the line. OEM's, Intel and Microsoft were making less per Netbook sold, and so the product was allowed to languish with only incremental improvements being made to the platform. I don't think users really enjoyed using them. I bought two, and never really liked either. The plan was, to eventually phase out netbooks and go back to selling higher priced laptops. 

In 2010, Apple launched its iPad tablet. It came out at a price point close to what netbooks were sold for. Came with an operating system and software ecosystem built around the form factor. The iPads could play HD media and were good gaming platforms. For the consumer market, the iPad brought the capabilities consumers wanted from their Netbooks.

Instead of Netbooks being phased out and laptops taking their place, tablets took over the market. In the third quarter of 2012, 27.8 million tablets were sold. Apple sold 14 million iPad's and the rest sold 13.8 million tablets. Instead of the Netbook being phased out by the traditional laptop, it was wiped out by the tablet/ 

The OEM's, Intel and Microsoft probably regret they did not develop this segment more, all of whom have no significant market share in the tablet space.

Hence, Windows 8. The Windows 8 family is designed to take a share of the smartphone and tablet markets, with Windows phones, tablets and hybrid devices. This in turn would secure the future of Windows on the desktop. But that is a long term strategic move.

PC OEM's and Intel need a quick fix to shore up lagging PC sales. First came the Ultrabook, and now comes touch screen laptops. PC OEM's and Intel are hoping there new devices will convince prospective tablet buyers to buy a PC instead. They are also hoping that the new devices are exciting enough to make PC owners decide to upgrade their existing devices.

A few of these new devices have hit the Philippine market already. 

The Samsung NP-540U3C-A01PH brings full touchscreen functionality to its Ultrabook line. This 13.3-inch Core i5 laptop is priced at Php47,900, which will not make it a success in the Philippine market. It would appeal to a laptop owner looking to replace and existing laptop.

The other device, the Asus VivoBook X202e, is a more interesting device. Available in different configurations with a price range of Php20,990 to Php26,990, these 11.6-inch touchscreen laptops are priced low enough to compete with tablets, to be a second PC and items which a buyer might buy on impulse.

The question is does a touchscreen work well with the traditional laptop form factor? Using one for a bit, I found myself using the touchpad all the time. A fair number of laptop buyers still drag around a mouse, and maybe this will appeal to them. I just don't see it.

A Look at Windows 8 Part 3: The new "hybrid" devices

Budget ultraportable buyers guide

Choosing which low cost ultraportable to buy is difficult. There are simply so many options in the market. I do have some favorites:


Php15,990 - Asus Eee PC X101CH with Windows 7 Starter

Pros - It is a thin 0.86 inches and a light 2.2 pounds.

Cons - It is really a netbook with a 10.1-inch, 1024 x 600 resolution display and cramped keyboard. The Atom N2600 processor really is not faster than the dual core netbooks you have been using the past two years, but it can now play HD video. RAM limited to 1 GB.

More details on the Asus Eee PC X101CH at this link.

Php18,900 - Samsung NP305U1A with Windows 7 Home Basic

Pros - AMD Fusion E-450 accelerated processing unit gives true ULV like power and the 11.6-inch display has the industry standard 1366 x 768 resolution. Lightest of the AMD Fusion E-450 laptops at 2.7 pounds, with a slim bezel around the display giving it the size more like a 10-inch laptop. Decent 4000 mAh battery.

Cons - Smaller form factor means smaller keys, and I just cannot get to liking the keyboard on this unit. AMD Radeon 6310 graphics instead of the 6320 graphics usually paired with E-450's.

More details about the Samsung NP305U1A at this link.

Php21,500 - HP Pavilion DM1-4000AU with Windows 7 Home Basic

Pros - The right price. No compromise 11.6-inch AMD Fusion E-450 laptop packing with the expected AMD Radeon 6320 graphics with Beats Audio as a bonus. Decent 4400 mAh battery.

Cons -  A bit heavy at 3.4 pounds. Now comes with Windows 7 Starter. The E-450 version of the Asus Eee PC 1215B could actually be better, but that laptop comes in so many configurations both C-60 and E-450 version, and with either Radeon 6250, 6310 and 6320 graphics, and with or without USB 3.0 so it becomes hard to recommend since the buyer may buy the wrong set-up. If you are diligent about checking every component, check it out.

More details about the HP DM1-4000AU at this link.

Php19,500 - Lenovo ThinkPad EDGE e125 with DOS (so about Php24,250 with Windows 7 Home Basic 64-bit)

Pros - Like the HP DM1 but lighter (3.1 pounds) and thinner (0.93-inches) with a better keyboard. If you plan to run Linux, it comes without an operating system so it become a great deal.

Cons - If you plan to install Windows, it gets kind of expensive compared to the HP DM1. 

More details about the Lenovo ThinkPad EDGE e125.

I type a lot and don't mind using Linux so....

With give the edge to the Lenovo ThinkPad

 

Asus Eee PC X101CH - Finally, a Cedar Trail netbook worth buying

The main benefit of the new Cedar Trail Atoms is not power. Sure they can play HD video, but they are a lot slower than their AMD Fusion E-450 and C-60 counterparts in terms of video performance. The Atom N2800 processor runs almost as fast as that of an AMD Fusion E-450, but lags far behind in graphics power. Similarly, the Atom N2600 runs about as fast as an AMD Fusion C-60 in terms of pure processing, but lags far behind in the graphics department.

The main advantage of the Cedar Trail as against the AMD Fusion is they run cooler and hence can be placed in devices with smaller form factors:

• AMD Fusion E-450 - 18 W Thermal design point
• AMD Fusion C-60 - 9 W TDP
• Intel Atom N2800 - 6.5 W TDP
• Intel Atom N2600 - 3.5 W TDP

When the new Atom netbooks came out, they came in the same old netbook chassis capable of running the hotter old dual core Atom Pineview processors. Well, Asus has changed this with the new Asus Eee PC X101CH.

The Asus Eee PC X101 is not new. It was offered last year running single core Atoms. Thanks to the Cedar Trail, it now has dual core power. 

Quick Specs:

Display: 10.1-inch (1024 x 600 pixel resolution)

Processor: Intel Atom N2600 (dual core 1.6 GHz)

RAM: 1 GB (not upgradeable)

Storage: 320GB hard drive

Wireless: WiFi and Bluetooth 3.0

Notable Ports: USB 2.0 and HDMI out

Card Reader: Yes

Webcam: Yes

Battery: 3-cell rated at 5 hours (3-4 hours real world use).

Price:

With Windows 7 Starter - Php15,990

With DOS - Php13,990

Why buy this device? Portability. This device is a small 10.3″ x 7.1″ x 0.86″ and weighs in at just 2.2 pounds.

Personally, on the small low cost laptops, I have taken a preference to the Lenovo ThinkPad EDGE e125. Best keyboard in the 11.6-inch world. But the ThinkPad EDGE e125 costs 6K more and weighs all of 0.9 pounds more. 

Acer Aspire AOD270-268 N2600 netbook

Acer has released a lower cost version of it AOD270 netbook powered by the new Cedar Trail Atom processor. The Acer Aspire Aspire AOD270-268 retails for Php15,900, cheaper than the Php18,900 retail price of the Acer Aspire Aspire AOD270-281.

Cost were cut by using an Intel Atom Dual Core processor N2600 (1.66 GHz) instead of the N2800 on the higher priced Acer Aspire AOD270-281. The installed operating system on the Acer Aspire Aspire AOD270-268 is Windows 7 Starter, instead of Windows 7 Home Basic which is installed in the Acer Aspire AOD270-281.

The other specifications of the two are identical with a 10.1" SD 1024 x 600 (WSVGA) resolution display, with 2GB of RAM, 320 GB of storage, a card reader, a six cell battery, WiFi, Bluetooth and HDMI out.

While I am not too keen on the new Intel Atom powered netbooks, this one is not a bad deal. If you are spending more, an AMD Fusion C-60 or E-450 unit with their larger high resolution screens makes more sense.

Lenovo IdeaPad S110 N2800

Lenovo has updated its IdeaPad S100 netbook, by outfitting it with the new Intel Cedar trail processor into the new S110. Like the other manufacturers, Lenovo has chosen to just slot the new cooler running Atom in the same netbook cases they were using last year. It would have been great if a new slimmer cases were used.

In fairness, the S100/S110 case is a thin 0.75-inches and weighs in at a reasonable 2.6 pounds. The Lenovo keyboard is also the best in class. So despite our disappointment with the first generation Cheddar Trail netbooks, this is probably the best in the bunch.

The Lenovo IdeaPad S110 comes with the most powerful of the current Cheddar Trails, the N2800. With the new Intel GMA 3650 graphics, this system should be able to play 720p content and 1080p content stored on the hard drive. Intel graphics drivers are still being optimized, so your mileage may vary. 

Unfortunately, the screen is a 10.1-inch 1024 x 600 display. So despite the new vaunted HD capability, you won't even be able play 720p HD content at its native resolution.

What makes this Cedar Trail netbook acceptable is the price. It sells at a reasonable Php14,495 with 2 GB of RAM, a 320 GB hard drive WiFi and Bluethooh. It does not come with an operating system, and getting it with Windows 7 Starter will bring up the price to just under 16.5K, which is 1.5K less than its competition. 

The more expensive Cedar Trail notebooks are priced at the same level as AMD Fusion C-60 versions which comes with larger and sharper 11.6-inch 1366 x 768 displays.  

So, while I am not too excited about the new Cedar Trail netbooks, if you really want one, this is the one I would recommend.

A flock of new, but dissapointing Cedar Tails netbooks

A few days ago we took a look at our first Cedar Trail Netbook, the Neo Vivid VC2EW-114 with Atom N2600 processor and Intel GMA 3600 graphics which can play high definition video and were less than impressed. Basically, it is the same 10.1-inch netbook chassis with a 1024 x 600 resolution screen that we have been seen for the part three years with a new faster Atom inside.

Since than, a whole flock of Cedar Trail Netbook have hit the shelves:

• Acer Aspire AOD270-281 Atom N2800 (1.86 GHz/GMA 3650 graphics) - Php19,900 with a free external optical drive.
• Samsung N110 Atom N2600 (1.6 GHz/GMA 3600 graphics) - Php16,900
• HP Mini 110-4112TU Intel Atom N2600 (1.6GHz/GMA 3600 graphics) - Php15,900 (DOS operating system)
• HP Mini 210-4022TU Atom N2800 (1.86 GHz/GMA 3650 graphics) - Php18,900

All these new Cedar Trail netbooks have 10.1-inch, 1024 x 600 resolution, screens, 320 GB hard drives (except for the Mini 210 with a 500 GB hard drive), 2 GB of RAM and a 6-cell battery. 

Basically, all Cedar Trail powered versions of the netbook which you have been familiar with for the past few years. If Intel wants the Cedar Trail to revive the netbook industry, these netbooks are not what will do the trick.

With the new HD capability of the new Cedar Trail chips, it would have been better to place these processors in laptops with HD capable 1366 x 768 displays, and with a lower 3.5 W to 6.5 W thermal design point ("TDP") as compared to the 8.5 W to 10 W TDP of their predecessors, slimmer lighter cases would have been nice.

As things stand right now, at the price point of the new N2600/N2800 netbooks, a AMD Fusion C-60 or E-450 powered system with a larger and higher resolution 11.6-inch,1366 x 768 display, and bigger keyboards seems to be the way to go. 

 

The days of the thin-and-light laptop are numbered

Just two years ago, the Php20,000 price range for personal computing belong to the netbook. These devices offered poor performance, but chugged along well enough to run Microsoft Office and could you run web browser. Intended primarily as highly portable internet access devices, these devices has plenty of limitations with the poor graphics performance rendering unable to play high definition video, cramped keyboards and constricting 1024 x 600 pixel resolution displays were hardly ideal devices, but were good enough for their asking price. Weighing in under 3 pounds and providing five hours or more of battery life, they offered a low cost solution for a particular need. People looking for portable affordable secondary devices or looking for cheap primary computers bought these new devices in the millions.

Today, things have changed. While netbook prices have dropped by 25% or more, and Intel's new Atom processors offer the ability to play HD video, it is hard to recommend these devices. With the advent of smartphones as low cost functional computers, people today are less likely to look for a secondary device. If the small 3.2 to 5.3 inch screens are not sufficient for your mobile internet needs, there is the tablet, and tablet like devices with screen ranging from 7 to 10.1-inches which start at just Php6,000. Occupying the netbooks Php20K price point are low powered AMD Fushion ultraportables with 11.6-inch HD displays. The larger size makes for a better viewing experience and gives you a more comfortable keyboard. People looking for a cheap primary computer can a very capable 13 to 14 inch laptops with AMD Fusion or Intel B940/950 processors at the same price a netbook would command two years ago.

Basically, the market for netbooks has shrunk dramatically over the past two years, and while it has taken a longer than expected time to die, the end is in sight for Intel's Atom powered mini laptops.

Acer Aspire S3

This is not the only category which is in imminent danger of extinction. The so called thin-and-light laptops are going the way of the Dodo too. Thin-and-light laptops have are traditionally defined as laptops which weigh in between 4 to 6 pounds. Half a decade ago, a 6 pound laptop was considered light enough for carry, and with lighter 3-4 pounds units costing an arm and a leg, have gotten fairly affordable. Intel's new category of Ultrabooks, 13-inch or so laptops weighing in at 3 pounds or less and with prices starting below US$1,000 will be the end of the thin-and-light.

When we started this blog over a year ago, we redefined thin-and-light as being between 4 to 5 pounds. Even back than, we could no longer consider a laptop weighing over 5 pounds as offering “balanced mobility.” That was even before the ultrabook.

Today you already have several offerings starting at US$899 from Acer, HP and Toshiba. The Acer Aspire S3 sells at the Php45K price point on local shelves. But we suspect that price will go down soon. While manufacturers reluctantly entered this arena because of high manufacturing costs, Intel's prodding and the realization that tablet gave a new meaning to the word portable compelled them to go this route. As volume production reduces the price of these under 1-inch thin and 3 pound light frames, you will see lower cost processors, like AMD Fusion and thin conventional drives find their way into Ultrabook-like devices. Following the Ultrabook will be a bevy of 13-inch 3.5 pound low cost laptops.

Helping in this effort will be Windows 8. Windows, Linux and MacOSX has grown heavier each year requiring more of the cutting edge hardware that Intel was happy to feed to the market. But with ARM processors in mind, Windows 8 will require less RAM and processing power than any Windows operating system since Windows XP. Testing the Windows 8 Developer Preview on an old HP laptop running Intel Core2 Duo T7100 on just 1 GB of RAM was eye opening. This early build of Windows 8 ran well on specifications that would make Windows Vista and 7 feel sluggish.

Low cost processors with ample power, the ability to play HD video with an operating system happy to play along will make the 13-inch 3.8 pound Sony's Vaio S (Php59,900) feel expensive and make Apple's 4.5 pound 13-inch Macbook Pro feel heavy. Hardcore gamers and those who need processing power for heavy applications will still need the fastest processors that Intel and AMD can churn out. The rest of the market will be happy with something that works, is light enough to carry around and equally light on the wallet.

With the Ultrabook, and Ultrabook like laptops, you will see the end of the thin-and-light laptops. I do expect to see in the next month or two a redesigned MacBook Pro weighing in under 4 pounds. I would not be surprise if eventually, the 13-inch MacBook Pro and 13-inch MacBook Air are merged into a single product. Sony which had been reluctant to enter the Ultrabook fray as it would devalue their Vaio S and Z lines will have no choice but to follow the herd.

The technology world announced the end of netbook in late 2010. By the end of 2012, we will see the end of the thin-and-light. Anything weighing over four pounds should be a device targeted at gamers or workstation like laptops used a desktop replacements. The MacBook Air on which I am writing this on, which gets disbelieving looks from passers by, is about to become rather pedestrian. The days of thin, light and portable being expensive are at an end.

Cedar Trail and the Neo Vivid VC2EW-114 N2600 Dual Core NetBook

Neo has released its new Vivid VC2EW-114. With a 10.1-inch 1024 x 600 screen, 2GB of RAM and 500 GB hard drive, the most notable thing about this offering is that it comes with Intel new Atom, the long awaited Intel N2600 Cedar Trail platform. This gives netbooks the ability to play 1080p video from stored content. From a hardware standpoint, these cool running processors can be cooled passively, meaning a fan is optional. This can result in some very interesting designs.

The Neo Vivid VC2EW-114 is designed as a conventional netbook.  With overall performance is similar to the AMD Fusion C-50 chipset, basically it beings nothing which has not been available for several months. With a 1024 x 600 screen it cannot play 1080p or 720p video at their native resolution. Being priced at Php15,999 the Neo Vivid VC2EW-114 is not particularly inexpensive. 

If you are looking for something in this price range, we suggest you spend a little more and get an AMD C-60 powered unit with a larger, higher resolution, 11.6-inch (1366 x 768) screen, or better yet Samsung NP305 with a AMD E450 processor at about Php17,500.

The Cedar Trail will may make for some very interesting low cost devices in the near future. The Neo Vivid VC2EW-114 is just not one of them. Things like the ultra thin and ultralight  Asus Eee PC X101CH, which we expect to see in the next month or two, will be a much more compelling Cedar Trail solution.

Asus Eee PC X101CH

What to expect in CES 2012 - Intel based Mini-Notebooks

CES 2012. The 2012 Consumer Electronics Show starts next week which will give us a taste of what to expect in 2012. Before you get too excited, we really do not expect all the products shown at CES 2012 to be available immediately, but most will come out in the market by March to April 2012. Some will be available immediately.

The Netbook officially dies. Intel is starting to ship the Atom N2600 and N2800 Cedar Trail Atom processors. The new Atoms will run at 1600 MHz and 1833 MHz respectively and will finally being 1080p video playback support to the Atom, allowing it to catch up AMD's Fusion platform. This is long overdue.

Still the Cedar Trail processors are not expected to have as much processing and graphics power as the AMD Fusion C-60 and E-450 chips, they are much cooler running and less battery hungry with a termal design point of 6.5W. 

With the release of the Intel N2600 and N2800 expect to see the term netbook disappear, the new "netbooks" being marketed as multimedia mini-notebooks instead.

Ultrabook like designs. With a TDP of 6.5W expect to see these mini-netbook in ultra slim ultra-light designs similar to the Asus Eee PC X101.

Long battery life. You can also expect longer battery life from the new Intel N2600 and N2800, some with battery life as long as 10 hours.

Tablet alternative. Whether the Intel's new chip will be enough to slow down the onslaught of tablets remains to be seen until Intel gets into the tablet game. I think it might. Coupled with all the recent news about medical problems the occur because of bas posture caused by too much use of tablets and smartphones, I think these new mini-notebooks will find a market. They are really much better for the posture.

A decade ago we were looking at desktop screens level of out face. Now we glance down a few degrees to look at our laptop screens. Tablets for us to anlge our head forward even more which over a few years of use could cause serious back problems.

Availability. Given that Intel has been shipping the N2600 and N2800 since Q4 of 2011, we expect to see the new Mini-Netbooks in a few weeks.

Is the Tablet the next Netbook?

It has been a year and a half since Apple launched its successful iPad. If you read technology sites all around the world, it would seem that the tablet will kill the personal computer. 

iPad make excellent gaming platforms among other things.

I got a tablet in January 2011 and quickly passed it off to my wife. It has been less useful than it looked. Basically, I am sticking to the laptop and smartphone combination from now on, and will sit on the sidelines watching the tablet market with interest.

In one year and one quarter since its launch, as of June 2011, 28.7 million iPads have been sold. Android tablets, sales are estimated at less than 3 million since their release.

In one quarter, Gartner reports that almost 92 million personal computers, not including tablets, have been sold. That is in just one quarter versus five quarters of tablet sales. Could the tablet be the next netbook? Something to tide us over in though economic times?

Tablets share a lot with netbooks. Like the netbook they are cheap and portable. Like the netbook they are of limited use. Overall, while tablets are more functional than netbooks, most of what you can do in a tablet, you can do on a smartphone. Android tablets have a higher mountain to climb. The latest generation of smartphones are really now mini-tablets.

Lenovo tries to define a role for its tablet.

Is the tablet the next netbook? Or are we entering the era of keyboard less computing.  I think, tablet will fail as a productivity device, but makes a excellent multimedia and gaming platform. Basically, I do not see it going away, neither do I see it growing as much as predictive by experts. This one is too hard to call.  Would love to hear you chime in.

Update: We got some new data on tablet sales from Digitimes for the third Quarter of 2011. So are the figures from both Gartner and Digitimes for comparison -

Desktop and laptops - 92 million.
Tablets - 18.9 million (13 million Apple iPads and 5.9 million tablets of other brands)

Looking for a Asus Eee PC X101

I wrote about the availability of Asus new ultra-thin and ultra-cheap netbooks, the Asus X101 and the X101H a week ago. Both are 10-inch Atom powered netbooks, with the X101 having a 16GB SSD and a slimmer 0.69-inch thick case, while the X101H has a 250GB hard drive with and a chunkier 0.89-inch case.  

I was looking for a X101, to use as a Linux box. Take it out of the box, wipe Meego from the drive and install Ubuntu... well that was the plan.

Unfortunately, I was unable to find one. While the X101H is available pretty much everywhere, I I could find the X101. A retailer told me that their orders for the X101 have not come in yet and they are not expecting it soon because of a driver  issues with the SSD drive.

So, for those who want an X101, we have to wait a bit more.

The case for the Asus X101 & X101H

Poor mans MacBook Air? Lets start with what will make you consider buying this netbook. The Asus Eee PC X101 weighs in at 2 pounds while  the  X101H weight in a 2.2 pounds. Both netbooks very handy having a width of just of 10.3 inches, a depth of 7.1 inches, which is the size of your typical 10-inch netbook. The PC X101 is  a MacBook Air like 0.69 inches thick, while the X101H is a thicker, but still a slim 0.89 inches.

What else makes the X101 and X101H very tempting? It is the price. The X101 is priced at just Php9,995 while the X101H is priced just a little higher at Php10,995.

Storage distinguishes the X101 from X101H. The main difference between the X101 and the X101H, is storage. The X101 has a 16GB SSD drive and a MicroSD card reader. This will allow you to expand storage to up to 48GB. The X101H comes with either a 250GB or 320GB hard drive. We understand the Philippine version will come with a 250GB hard drive. 

Netbook genes. The Asus Eee PC X101 has the typical netbook 10.1-inch 1024 x 600 resolution screen. Inside you will find, an Intel Atom N435 or N455 processor and 1GB of RAM. The Philippine version will have the faster N455 version. I really have no strong preference between these two processors, the N455 is a bit faster, the N435 is a bit more energy efficient and runs a bit cooler. Given a choice between the two, I would probably choose the slower but more energy efficient N435.

Given the modest specifications, you should have reasonable expectations of what these netbooks can do. They are more than sufficient for web browsing, typing documents, preparing spreadsheets and presentations and managing your social networking. 

I would not try to do any 3D gaming with these machines, or serious photo editing. The modest specifications also mean the these laptops cannot seamlessly play HD (720p or 1080p) video. Basically, it is a not a good multimedia platform.

These netbooks come with small 3-cell batteries. Asus rates them at 4 hours or battery life. But while web browsing on WiFi I would expect a little under 3 hours. This is probably the biggest drawback of these netbooks.

MeeGo inside. While a Windows version of the X101H is available for a higher price, the current models being has the Linux based MeeGo operating system installed. While the mention of Linux normally scares most buyers, and netbooks which originally ran Linux operating systems quickly coverted to Windows three years ago, I think MeeGo acceptance will be easier today.

I think with many users now having gotten used to non-Windows operating systems and applications in their smartphones, so they wont feel lost with a laptop that does not run Windows. While you can install Windows on the X101H I recommend you give MeeGo a try. This operating system has much lower system requirements than Windows 7, is designed to work in smaller screens and will run faster than Windows. With OpenOffice installed, which is compatible with Microsoft Office formats and dedicated Facebook and Twitter apps, it is good to go out of the box.

Wing design. Whether you like these laptops or not, I suspect most would give a approving nod to the new "Wing" design which will replace the Sea Shell design Asus has been using in their 10.1-inch and 12.1-inch netbooks and laptops. A 12.1-inch AMD Fusion (HD capable and HDMI packing) powered versions of these netbooks with a larger battery would really be interesting. 

Should you buy one? I think these are nice alternatives to a tablet. First they are half the price of a tablet. Second, since they have physical keyboards, they are a better choice for people who type a lot.

When my current Linux box dies (it is a 4 year old HP Compaq 6510b - a real workhorse) I will probably get one of these things and use it as my Linux machine.

The car, the pick-up and the truck

More than a year after the Apple iPad's release, with more than 30 million sold, people still question whether the tablet is a practical device. The answer to that is a simple yes.

As the "Personal Computer" has evolved it, has moved from a machine designed for business, to a household device, and now is a personal communication,  entertainment and productivity device.

For years we were stuck with the desktop as our only personal computer, for reasons of cost. The laptop had been around for some time, since the Dulmont Magnum in 1985. But with the entry level model going for US$2,995. That was a lot of money in 1985, and it is still a lot of money today. It was only after the year 2000 that laptops started dropping in price and became available to the regular consumer as an alternative computing choice to the desktop. The tablet now gives you a third choice.

The tablet is the car of the computing world. A good choice to take you around day to day, but with its primary function being people transport. A tablet is useful for someone whose computing needs is mainly web browsing, reading and writing email, note taking, instant messaging, listening to music, basic photo editing, watching movies and playing games. Some in the industry call it the "media" tablet, and that is pretty much correct. A tablet is a great computer for someone who does not use the computer for work. I know many will disagree with this. 

The laptop is the pick-up truck of the computing world. Small enough to be a daily driver, and capable enough to do some serious work. Many people chose a laptop for lack of choice, but if you do not spend much time typing documents, preparing spreadsheets and the like, a keyboard is not all that important. If you don't use a keyboard much, the virtual keyboard of the tablet should be sufficient. You could add a keyboard to a tablet, but than it really just becomes a ARM powered laptop, with a touchscreen and a detachable keyboard.

The desktop is the truck of the PC world. The desktop is still the platform of choice for those who need a computer for a dedicated task, whether that task be a workstation or a hardcore gaming machine. The highest end desktop components still have a little more power than the highest end laptop components.

Which one is best for you? It really depends on your needs. Do you need a car, a pick-up or a tuck?

Mobile computers: The Desktop Replacement still rules

A recent article on LaptopMags Blog was rather eye opening. The mobile computing world is not as mobile as we think. For the first quarter of 2011, The breakdown of mobile computer sales for the period are as follows: 

Tablets - 13.8%

10-inch netbooks/laptops - 16.3%

11 and 12 inch netbooks/laptops - 4.3%

13 and 14 inch laptops - 27.1%

15 inch laptops - 33.6%

16+ inch laptops - 5%

The world is going more mobile, but not as fast as we think. Better than one in three laptops sold had a 15-inch screen, with another 5% having even larger screens. This is the category of laptops often referred to as desktop replacements typically weight six pounds or more by buyers who do not expect to carry their devices around too much. This is lower than the previous year, so there is a trend towards smaller and lighter.

Q1 2010

15 inch laptops - 35.2%

16+ inch laptops - 8.9%

Total: 44.1%

Q1 2011

15 inch laptops - 33.6%

16+ inch laptops - 5%

Total 38.6%

Netbook sales have slowed down, but not as fast as we think. Sales of 10-inch laptops for Q1 2010 and Q1 2011 were as follows:

Q1 2010 (10 inch netbooks/laptops) - 17.1%

Q1 2011 (10 inch netbooks/laptops) - 16.3%

The real difference is not volume, but price. Netbook prices have been dropping since the introduction of the tablet, which should mean smaller margins for a product that was already producing small profit margins.

Tablets are popular, but mainly in North America. The figures of tablets sold in Quarter 1, 2011 were as follows:

North America - 24.8%

Worldwide - 13.8%

iPads are popular, but mainly in North America. The figures of iPads sold in Quarter 1, 2011 were as follows:

North America - 22.6%

Worldwide - 10.7%

Basically, the exciting new gadgets which are the darlings of tech writers are not as popular and do not sell as well, as old clunky desktop replacements.

Asus Eee PC X101 - Will netbooks be sexy again?

HardwareZonePH has the new Asus Eee PC X101 in their labs (pictures on their Facebook page here). The Asus Eee PC X101 is a 10.1-inch Atom powered netbook. It will be offered with both the Meego Operating System (yep the same one in the new Nokia phone), and there will also be a Windows 7 version.

The processor of the X101 is a single core Atom N435 running at 1.33GHz (some sources say 1.5GHz) and the system will come with 1GB of RAM. Power comes from a 3-cell battery. For storage the Meego version has a 8GB or 16GB SSD hard drive. The Windows version names X101H will have a 250GB hard drive.  

What is so special about this? The X101 is all of 0.69 inches thick. Weight will be just over 2 pounds. That is MacBook Air thin and light. The Meego version will retail for US$199, so it looks like we will see a 10-inch netbook a below Php10,000. Aside from being thin, it will be dirt cheap. The Windows version, the X101H will cost US$310, so it will be priced the same as todays entry level netbooks. With the N435 processor, and 1GB of RAM, I do not think this will run very well with Windows 7. The Meego version looks interesting, the 28Wh battery worrisome, but we will have to wait for the reviews.

Now, if Asus built one of these things in 11.6-inches with a AMD C-50 inside...

The unwanted netbook soldiers on

 The netbook may be about to disappear, but it is amazing what changes this product brought to the laptop market. Three years ago, a 10.1-inch Atom powered netbook would cost you Php25-30K. When the first netbooks came out, finding an ultraportable under 30K was amazing. A 12.1-inch ultraportables back than would cost you more that three times as much.  The netbook provided a cheaper alternative to those wanting a 3-pound laptop but not willing to pay the premium price.

By 2009, the price of a netbook went down to 20-22K. But the notebook changed enough to make updating your one year old model worthwhile. Intel did not give you a good reason to upgrade your netbook, but netbook manufacturers package larger batteries with their 2009 models. While most netbooks in 2008 came with 3-cell batteries, most 2009 models came with 6-cell batteries makign all day  computing commonplace. 

In 2010, netbook pricing remained pretty much stagnant, and technology remained pretty much stagnant. Dual Core Atom's did not provide a significant performance boost giving you little reason to upgrade. At the same time, Apple changed the mobile scene with the tablet and ultraportables powered by Intel's Core i3 became available at about 30K closing the price gap with netbook while providing performance levels way beyond what any netbook could could produce.

Intel let netbook technology remain stagnant, as if it were a platform they wanted to kill. The truth of the matter is they did. Profit margins on netbooks are small, but in the wake of poor economic conditions, selling these cheap boxes kept sales up in a weak market. Netbooks were a temporary placeholder to be phased out, when the market grew tired of their sluggish performance and when the economy improved enough to allow buyers to spend more for a more powerful laptop.

By this time, Intel was probably itself hoping the netbook was dead with the market flocking to higher priced laptops. What Intel did not foresee was that the tablet would come around, and the cheap netbook platform would not be phased out by more expensive laptops, but by low priced tablets.

With the advent of the tablet, the netbook has been forced to soldier on, and to meet the tablet onslaught, what would have cost you 20-22K in 2009 and 2010, would cost you about 11K to 15K today, priced just under the tablet price point. Without a viable tablet contender, Intel has been forced to have the netbook soldier on and drop its price. The netbook is a placeholder once again.

Acer Aspire One 722 (AO-722-C52) and 12.1-inch Asus Eee PC 1215B

Update: Acer has released a updated Acer Aspire One O722-C60, details at this link.

Two new AMD Fusion powered laptops are now available in the market. By we are going to greet these two with a yawn. The first is the 11.6-inch Acer Aspire One 722 (AO-722-C52) with a suggested retail price of Php21,990 pre-installed with Windows 7 Starter. The second is the 12.1-inch Asus Eee PC 1215B with a suggested retail price of Php19,990 without an operating system.

Acer Aspire One 722

While more AMD Fusion options are welcome, these two are equipped with the slower AMD Fusion Brazos C-50 with 1.0 GHz dual core processor and Radeon 6250 graphics processing unit. This processor and graphics combination is more than adequate, providing performance on par with a dual core Atom with Nvidia Ion.

Asus Eee PC 1215B

But before you buy one of these C-50 units take a look at the HP Pavillion DM1-3016AU with the more powerful AMD Fusion Zacate E-350 with 1.6 GHz dual core processor and Radeon 6310 graphics processing unit. The HP Pavillion DM1-3016AU, has twice the processing power and 30% more graphics punch than these C-50 units.

The Acer Aspire One 722 (AO-722-C52) and Asus Eee PC 1215B do come with larger 500GB hard drives, as against the 320GB drive on the HP Pavillion DM1-3016AU. The slower C-50 might also mean longer battery life than a Zacate powered system but, we need to wait for more reviews and user feedback to verify this.

Could be an interesting option if the battery life is significantly longer, but right now the the HP Pavillion DM1-3016AU is looking like the value for money option among the three.

Update: Asus has released an E-450 version of its Eee PC 1215B. Looks like it might be the best of the bunch,

The Netbook lives on

Neilsen reports that the adoption of tablets adoption is growing quickly. By the end of the second quarter of 2010 2.8% of all Americans owned a tablet. By the end of the first quarter this year, 4.8% of all Americans owned a tablet.  

Contrary to popular belief the netbook market seems to be alive and well too. By the end of the second quarter of 2010 5.8% of all Americans owned a tablet. By the end of the first quarter this year, 8.2% of all Americans owned a tablet. 

Tablets:

Q2 2010 - 2.9%

Q1 2011 - 4.8%

Netbooks:

Q2 2010 - 5.8%

Q1 2011 - 8.2%

But these figures do not tell the whole story. With dropping netbook prices, profit margins on these devices are smaller than ever. Tablet profit margins must be fairly thin too, but every tablet sold means app sales and Adsence income.  

 

Asus throws down the gauntlet

By launching Asus Eee Pad Transformer at US$399, Asus "has put other companies on notice. Anyone releasing a tablet above $400 will now really have to justify the premium" --- Laptop Magazine.

The Transformer is part tablet, part netbook. Lets look at the tablet part first.  Every tablet today will be compared as against the Apple iPad 2. 

At US$399 the Transformer is priced US$100 lower than the iPad 2. For that price you get a 10.1-inch tablet which weighs in at 1.4 pounds, making almost as light as the 1.33 pound Apple iPad 2. At 0.5 inches tick, the Transformer is nowhere as thin as the iPad 2.

With a 1280 x 800 IPS display, 1GHz Nvidia Tegra 2, 1GB of RAM and 16GB of storage it matches up well to the hardware found in the iPad 2. The iPad 2 should provide more graphics punch, while the Transformer would have more grunt for serious multitasking and number crunching.   

The Transformer can be plug directly into portable USB hard drives and has a SD Card reader. This means that it can replace your personal computer. The Apple iPad is really an accessory to another computer relying on cloud storage or being connected to another computer in order to expand storage.

An this is where the difference lies. While the iPad is a multimedia tablet, the Transformer tries to replace your PC. For another US$149 Asus will sell you a dock that converts the Transformer into a touchscreen laptop. The dock also comes with a battery which will extend the 8 hour battery life of the tablet by another 3 hours. Unlike the awkward physical keyboards for the iPad and Samsung Galaxy Tab, the Transformer dock really converts it into a laptop.

The main advantage of the iPad 2 is the app environment. There are every few Honeycomb optimized Apps at the present time, about 62. The iPad has 1000 times that number optimized for the tablet. That alone can justify the price difference. The Apple brand also carries more prestige in ownership.

Time will tell how popular Asus entry into the tablet market it will be. But this could be the next evolutionary step for tablets, and netbooks as well. 

Netbook versus Tablet: Acer Aspire One 522 v. Samsung Galaxy Tab P1010

With the price of the entry level Apple iPad having dropped to below Php20,000 earlier this month, we decided to do a netbook versus tablet comparison, between the AMD Fusion powered Acer One 522 and the WiFi only 16GB variant of the Apple iPad. People have been comparing netbooks and tablets for a long time, christening the tablet as the netbook killer. 

With the recent price drop of Samsung's 7-inch  3G Android tablet to just over Php20,000 and the release of a WiFi only version for just Php15,999 put more options in the price range dominated by netbooks, a reader posited the question:

"What about the Samsung Galaxy Tab? The wifi only version now sells for only P16,000. Won't this be a good deal against the netbook?"

The answer is yes and no. When we did our last comparison, we concluded that it was like comparing Apples and Oranges. The two devices are so dissimilar, as straight up comparison is really not possible. However, it does not mean that tablets do not threaten netbooks. While the two devices are rather different, they target the same market segment: those looking for low cost ultraportable computers. 

In a one-on-on comparison, the netbook will win on specifications, for now at least. It was more power, more storage and more ports. The second generation tablets do, close the specifications gap between netbooks and tablets. The tablet provides better portability and generally better battery life.

On the other hand, the use different operating systems and software so differences in power are notall  that important. 

We could repeat the system we used in our earlier Acer One 522 versus iPad article, but after writing that article, I realized how pointless it was. We will take a different approach this time. This time we will be putting up the 7-inch WiFi only Samsung Galaxy Tab in the ring against the 10/1-inch Acer Aspire One 522 netbook.

As a standalone device. If you are planning to buy one of these two devices to be your primary computer, which would be best. Someone on a budget, looking for a standalone device is best of with a netbook. A tablet, for now, is still an accessory to another computer. 

Why? Mainly the absence of a physical keyboard and storage. The biggest drawback of the tablet, and advantage of the netbook in this regard is storage. The absence of a USB port so it can hooked up to am external drive really makes it an accessory to another machine. You are limited you to 16GB of storage which can be expanded through MicroSD cards.  The Aspire one 522 has 250GB of storage. Matching this would mean seven 32GB MicroSD (well almost anyway). Seven 32GB Micro SD card will cost you more than a Aspire One. So if you need more storage than 16-48GB, you might as well buy both a tablet and a netbook.   

As a multimedia device. The Acer Aspire One 522 can play and output 1080p HD video through an HDMI port. The Samsung Galaxy Tab is limited to 720p playback and has no HDMI out. Because of this, we think the netbook makes a better multimedia device. But unless you plan to hook it up to an LCD TV, the Aspire One's advantages, 1080p play back ability and HDMI out, is of little important.

As a daily companion. As light as the Acer Aspire One 522 is, it still will weight almost 3 pounds. You can carry it everyday, but you will know you are carrying a netbook. At a bit more than 10 x 7 inches in size, and an inch thick, it is also still fairly large. The Samsung Galaxy Tab at 0.84 pounds and about 7.5 x 4.7 x 0.47 inches, and is  less than one-fourth the size of a netbook. 

Aside of being smaller and lighter, the Galaxy Tab will give you more endurance. It should give you six hours of real world use, while the Aspire One 522, a little more than four hours. The camera on the Samsung Galaxy Tab is nothing to crow about, it takes decent 720p video, so it doubles as a video camera. 

Decisions. We could go on, but it depends more on what you want, than what it can do.  So, which is best for you? I can only draw on personal experiences.

Having bought a netbooks myself, in 2008, and a second one in 2009, I finally ditched netbook for good replacing it with a very light full powered laptop. If you want a highly portable laptop on a limited budget, than get the netbook. If is still a laptop, just a smaller less powerful version. A tablet, never cross my mind. It is simply really, I wanted a keyboard. As a laptop alternative, netbook is a better choice than a tablet, and the main reason is the physical keyboard. 

My wife and a friend of mine, both early tablet adopters, never owned netbooks. One uses a 14-inch HP laptop, and the other a 13.3-inch MacBook Pro. In selecting their laptops, they did not go with the most portable options available. Portability of the laptop was not the number one priority, and they both do not in-fact carry their laptop around much on a daily basis. So why did they get tablets? Tablets are small and light enough, that carrying them around is not longer a chore. 

If you want a small but powerful machine like a Sony Vaio Z, MacBook Air or Lenovo X200, but are on a budget, the Acer Aspire One is your best bet or one of the low cost AMD Fusion laptops is you. If you have never felt the need for a light but powerful laptop, but want something more than your smartphone, the Samsung Galaxy Tab may be more appealing. A tablet is a nice handy device for someone that does not need a laptop on the go. 

The two devices cater to different needs. But in the low cost and light weight arena, previously the only option was the netbook. Tablets are not netbook killers, because they are more capable or better. The tablet gives an alternative solution.  Many would be netbook buyers, will become tablet owners instead.