Just Another Mobile Monday

Prior to jumping the Microsoft ship and diving straight into Mac-land I tried many of the ultra-mobile PCs that were initially released.  I love the concept of being able to have a full computer with me all the time but never quite worked for me.  I tried the EO, initial offering from Tablet Kiosk, for a brief time I had a Samsung Q1P and for an even briefer period of time had a Sony UX.  While each of them was an interesting device, none worked for me.  Either the screen was too small, the battery life too short, or the power not significant enough. After a time, I felt as if I was Goldilocks looking for the perfect device but none of them were "just right". So I thought I was completely done with the ultra-mobile endeavor and had settled quite happily into using my Macs for just about everything I do. The only exception was that I continue to use the slate tablet PC for those times I need to ink during meetings.

When the opportunity came along a few days ago to get an all but, brand-new Samsung Q1U Premium. Samsung’s new offering that has the form factor of the Ultra but a higher powered processor and excellent battery life, well I decided to take the plunge. Worst case scenario I would put it on eBay and sell it at a little bit of a loss. The device came a few hours ago and I’ve been happily setting it up.  I have to say, I’m impressed and I think I will be keeping it.

The device weighs 1.9 pounds and has a 1.33 Intel core solo processor.  The tiny, split keyboard from the original Q1U is slightly improved but still not great.  It is, however, perfect for entering passwords or quick URLs.  The speakers sound terrific and it’s probably the most usable of the ultra-mobile devices that I’ve tried.  But those aren’t the greatest aspects of it.  These are…

The device runs cool. One of my biggest complaints about many mobile devices is that they just run too hot. it’s not pleasant to use a device under those conditions. Under the heaviest load so far, the device has only been slightly warm.

The device runs quiet. I can hear both the fan and the hard drive but the sounds are really quite quiet. Between the lack of heat and the quietness, using the device is a pleasure.

The device runs and runs and runs and runs.    After setting it up, loading a lot of software, and doing some preliminary testing on it  I still have over three hours of battery life left, and that is while it is on high performance.  Based  upon my initial indicators (it came with a fully charged battery thanks to the thoughtful individual who sold it to me) when the battery is set to "normal" it should get between five and a half and six and half hours of run time. You read that right, I said five to six hours of run time.

Finally, it has enough power to actually be usable.  Among the biggest issues I had with many of the early ultra-mobile devices was their lack of power. A device that is frustratingly slow to use is almost as bad as not having a device to use in the first place. Okay, that’s an overstatement, but you get my point. I want something that works and the prior devices fell short of what I want. Not so here. This device has plenty of power. Don’t ask me to run benchmarks because I don’t do that. That doesn’t really mean anything to me. What does matter to me is whether or not the programs I like to use run smoothly. For me the litmus test is whether or not I can run voice recognition software. I enjoy using voice recognition software and use it often.  If a device doesn’t have the power for voice recognition, it is useless. This device not only has the power to run it but it also has dual array mikes that allow me to dictate at an incredibly fast-pace with tremendous accuracy. In fact, it is able to keep up with the pace that I speak and I was born and bred in New Jersey. The accuracy is remarkable. In fact, I wrote this entire entry using it. That is what I’ve always wanted in a truly mobile device.

Kevin Tofel over at JKOnTheRun should be getting his later this week. So as a public service to Kevin, whose style and insights I always enjoy, I decided to do a little mobile blogging. The Samsung Q1U Premium has two cameras, a forward facing VGA camera for video calling and a 1.3 megapixel camera on the back, so I decided to try out a few pictures. Here’s a picture I took a few minutes ago of my dog and one of her best friends.

Being able to take a picture, edit, and post at one time with one device is a pretty nice way to blog.

From what I can tell thus far, Samsung got it right with this device. It has good weight, enough power and great battery life.

I just wish Apple made one like it- yeah I’m a diehard fan-boy at heart now.

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