Tom's Hardware Reviews the Newly Non-Vaporous OQO

[Pat Logsdon]

<div class='os_post_top_link'><a href='http://www20.tomshardware.com/mobile/20041214/index.html' target='_blank'>http://www20.tomshardware.com/mobil...1214/index.html</a><br /><br /></div><i>"The OQO computer has finally arrived after existing as vaporware for several years. This small computer, about the size of your average PDA, runs a full version of WindowsXP Home or Professional. A one-gigahertz Transmeta processor and 20-GB hard-drive give users more power than a PDA, but less than a laptop. So does the OQO fulfill a value-add need that laptops and PDA don't offer?"</i><br /><br /><img src="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/images/web/2003/logsdon_20041220_oqo.jpg" /><br /><br />This is a great, unbiased article with lots of good photos. For your edification, I'll break down a few of the more salient points for you. Price: $1999 - expensive. Battery: 4000 mAh battery good for ~2.5 hours. Boot time: 1 min, 7 secs cold boot, 28 secs from hibernation mode (but take off some time from the battery life if this feature is used). Extra Battery Price: $149 - yeah, pretty high. USB 1.1: Slow, AND it can't handle some older USB HDD drives due to a lack of power to the port. <br /><br />To be fair, I did see some positives; I like how they've done the keyboard, a five inch screen is always nice, and the docking cable is very well done. Unfortunately, I think the most telling thing about the review is what Tom's considered to be the positives, namely that it was nice for PowerPoint presentations and wardriving/walking. :roll: Personally, I don't see what this thing can do that a Pocket PC can't, and at a much lower price point to boot. Take a look at the article and let us know what YOU think.

[marcm]

Hmm... this could be a true desktop replacement if the battery life was higher and it booted faster... :wink: I'll stick to my IBM T41 and X30 for now... :)

[HTK]

I would love to do some e-reading with it!

[maximus]

$2000 ? Bye bye OQO.

I'd rather buy an ECS g556e laptop + XDA3.

[ctmagnus]

Seriously though, who would buy one of these? If you can afford one, you can afford a decent (sub)notebook and a PDA. And if you're the hardcore gadget type, you already know better than to buy one.

[Darius Wey]

OQO... Hmm, *next please*. The feature set does not warrant the shelling out of $2000 in my opinion. There are many more affordable pocketable solutions out there.

[OSUKid7]

OQO... Hmm, *next please*. The feature set does not warrant the shelling out of $2000 in my opinion. There are many more affordable pocketable solutions out there.Completely agree. You can even get a decent Tablet PC for that price. And the boot time isn't impressive at all, so I see no reason to go with the OQO over a Tablet PC/laptop plus PDA.

[Typhoon]

lol the OQO sucks. I was hoping for conviencing in a pocket...but it's not. Well...if they can improve the next model by improving the size and battery life, it would sound better. But I don't think anyone agrees to the $1.9K.

[Typhoon]

I would love to do some e-reading with it!

! lol, you will only be doing it for 2 hrs, unless you want to carry around a ac adapter

[jgalindo]

I have a Tablet and a PDA. (ACER C300 and HP IPAQ 6315)

I would love to have the OQO instead of the Tablet because I carry it around all day long. The price doesn't quite match the need though.


Does it have bluetooth?

[yslee]

huh.. what's with the biasness? I thought people were salivating over the Sony U series?

This is a first gen product guys. What it really needs IMHO is longer battery life (4-8), with the ability to do certain functions without using all of the components on board (eg MP3 player). When we get there it'll replace the stand-alone PDA, hard disk based MP3 players, hyped-up video players, and even portable game consoles.

[szamot]

huh.. what's with the biasness? I thought people were salivating over the Sony U series?

This is a first gen product guys. What it really needs IMHO is longer battery life (4-8), with the ability to do certain functions without using all of the components on board (eg MP3 player). When we get there it'll replace the stand-alone PDA, hard disk based MP3 players, hyped-up video players, and even portable game consoles.

Knock, knock, knock, come on and wake up already. Too little, too late, too expansive, too limited - jack of all trades is a master of none. This one is a dud. This thing should be running Win95 to "operate" PPT and Netstumbler, not only would it save the battery life but also about 3.7 gigs of overweight OS files. Seriously. Next please

[IpaqMan2]

huh.. what's with the biasness?

I echo the thoughts on this... What is up with everyone? The OQO is not for everyone, nor is the Pocket PC the perfect solution to do real mobile computing. If fact I find it odd that a good number of people will spend hundreds of dollars for a Pocket PC than use it as a Toy to wow their friends, listen to Mp3s, watch videos, play games, and do little if any productive or real world work than for a company to buy this for a mobile sales man, or a doctor, or even a police officer to use in their car.

Now don't flame me.. but it's just how I see it. In my line of work I see companies who shell out over $1800 per pocket PC and Per Palm OS device for it to function the way they need it to and they still need to purchase a desktop computer.

I think it's safe to say that the OQO is geared for companies... Not individuals. Many companies will part with 2k easily if it means more productive work. I would never think a Pocket PC can be on the same level as a full fledge PC, in most cases PDAs are looked at as glorified toys by many in the business world and full fledge PC can do everything that a PDA could ever hope to do and more even though there are nitch areas in business where PDAs are the better choice, such as when using with GOOD Technology services.

I hope OQO is successful and continue to make better products at better prices. I would love to see a Tablet PC in the same size and formfactor with a stylus and thumboard. By the same token I would love to see Pocket PCs become even more functional and grow beyond their current size so when using it in VGA mode it could actually be more functional than they currently are.

[yslee]

Huh? If so, can the same be said about the Sony U series? Last I remembered, everyone seemed to be going wow over that! The OQO here isn't too far off, with some tradeoffs (no card slot, no usb2, smaller screen) but you get a few advantages (keyboard, smaller size lighter) back.

I'm just wondering where the consistency in criticising devices went!

Hmm, interesting to note though, that even with the Transmeta processor, and a battery twice the amperage of the Sony U, they last about as long..

[surur]

huh.. what's with the biasness?

I echo the thoughts on this... What is up with everyone? The OQO is not for everyone, nor is the Pocket PC the perfect solution to do real mobile computing.

The OQO is like the Mpx, a good idea in theory, but poorly implemented. What good is having your computer with you all the time, if you can only use it for two hours? High mobility MUST go with high availability, else why carry the brick around all the time?

The first thing they need to improve is the battery life. 5 hours would be more acceptable, allowing you to use it say for an hour on a train trip and then for another hour or two at a conference or meeting without worrying about the device suddenly shutting down. Secondarily they need to improve the boot-up time, but thats only necessary if they intend to use this device as a PDA replacement. If you are NOT planning to keep your phone numbers and addresses/ passwords etc on this device 28 seconds is OK, else its a bit too much.

Like I said, good idea, crippled implementation.

Surur

[paris]

It takes one minute and 7 seconds for the OQO to boot into the Windows desktop

only this does not make it practical enought as a ppc replacement. The BIG thing about the pocket pc is that its instantly on so you can do what you want to do that moment.

[jlp]

Most of you guys are an amazing bunch.

You're serving the same biased, crocked and re-heated lame arguments that Palm users and anti-PDA people have served you:

Example:

The ipaq 4700 is too late, too little, and waaaay too expensive. For the same price my desktop has 4 times the memory, an optical drive the ipaq lacks, an HDD, can print, scan, connect to screens 10x larger, any mouse and keyboard etc. etc. you get the picture.

The worst part is that you don't EVEN realise you're serving those lame excuses in your turn just like those nay-sayers against PPDC/PDAs!!

Just like PDAs are NOT for everyone (PDAs are a niche market) these handtops like the Sony U and OQO (and Flipstart IF it ever sees the light of day) are neither perfect nor for everybody.

BUT they do offer far more than most can acknowledge or even attempt to research or understand.

Another point: you're very slow (if ever) to get that you neither can put a laptop/TPC in your pocket, nor can any PPC run WinXP apps; while the OQO is the only one (vs the former) that can do that.

Also why only those reports of lame reviews from people who don't understand the market or the true potential of these pocketable desktops?

Where are your reports of real life case studies, of impartial reviews, etc.??

Peace.

[jlp]

"The OQO computer has finally arrived after existing as vaporware for several years. This small computer, about the size of your average PDA, runs a full version of WindowsXP Home or Professional. A one-gigahertz Transmeta processor and 20-GB hard-drive give users more power than a PDA, but less than a laptop. So does the OQO fulfill a value-add need that laptops and PDA don't offer?"

http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/images/web/2003/logsdon_20041220_oqo.jpg

This is a great, unbiased article with lots of good photos. For your edification, I'll break down a few of the more salient points for you. Price: $1999 - expensive. Battery: 4000 mAh battery good for ~2.5 hours. Boot time: 1 min, 7 secs cold boot, 28 secs from hibernation mode (but take off some time from the battery life if this feature is used). Extra Battery Price: $149 - yeah, pretty high. USB 1.1: Slow, AND it can't handle some older USB HDD drives due to a lack of power to the port.

To be fair, I did see some positives; I like how they've done the keyboard, a five inch screen is always nice, and the docking cable is very well done. Unfortunately, I think the most telling thing about the review is what Tom's considered to be the positives, namely that it was nice for PowerPoint presentations and wardriving/walking. :roll: Personally, I don't see what this thing can do that a Pocket PC can't, and at a much lower price point to boot. Take a look at the article and let us know what YOU think.

For your information the base price is not $1999 but $1899, yet the U70 was $2700 when it first came out. The OQO price will surely come down.

The battery is $99 special price. Even at the regular $149 it's a lot less than 4000 mAh worth of PDA batteries!!!

Then when you consider all that's packed in the smallest WinXP PC body ever, I don't think you can fairly say it's expensive:

Most notably the OQO packs:
- a 5" ACTIVE touch screen
- 20 GB HDD protected by a freefall detection mechanism
- a body made of the strongest alloy ever made, 2.5 times harder than Titanium!!
- USB, &amp; FireWire &amp; BT &amp; Wi-Fi in a body virtually the size of a Dell Axim X5
- retractible screen on a quality rack and pinion mechanism that reveals
- an integrated keyboard with separate number keys, mouse stick &amp; buttons
- a thumbwheel
- a 4000 mAh battery with LED power status indicators
- etc.

In all fairness who can really stand up and say it's too expensive with all those features in such a small package??

[Jonathon Watkins]

In all fairness who can really stand up and say it's too expensive with all those features in such a small package??

Ummm, most of us can say that JLP. ;-) A device is only worth what someone is prepared to pay. The cost of this unit is simply far too high for the extra it offers. Even then it is still lacking in many areas.

It is perfectly fair to say that this device is too expensive.

[jlp]

No wonder you can't agree with me you're not talking about the same thing as I do!!

You're talking about it's relative value to you, while I'm talking about the absolute value of what is inside and outside (extra hard alloy body...)

You didn't understand it tho I made it very clear :roll:

.

[surur]

Most of you guys are an amazing bunch.

You're serving the same biased, crocked and re-heated lame arguments that Palm users and anti-PDA people have served you:


jlp, you may have missed the many people who have said PDA's will die due to devices such as the OQO. This seems like a very poor PDA Killer.

Having said that, I can see where you are coming from. Future generations may be much better. Currently however it makes a poor computer AND a poor PDA, despite the ability to put an XP laptop in your pocket.

You say the review is not inpartial. How are you planning to use the device, such that the cost will equal the value to you. What scenarios of use do you intend?

Surur

[jlp]

Most of you guys are an amazing bunch.

You're serving the same biased, crocked and re-heated lame arguments that Palm users and anti-PDA people have served you:


jlp, you may have missed the many people who have said PDA's will die due to devices such as the OQO. This seems like a very poor PDA Killer.

Having said that, I can see where you are coming from. Future generations may be much better. Currently however it makes a poor computer AND a poor PDA, despite the ability to put an XP laptop in your pocket.

You say the review is not inpartial. How are you planning to use the device, such that the cost will equal the value to you. What scenarios of use do you intend?

Surur

I didn't miss it.

I was one of the first ones who pretended this over 2 years ago!!

However I clearly said within 2-3 years of its incoming on the market.

Or rather I launched a poll asking in what time frame people thought that kind of device would kill PDAs.

Now the OQO took much longer than anyone of us thought.

Yet it's only coming out these days in limited numbers.

However since the birsth of PDAs, already Apple, Philips, NEC, LG and most notably Casio, Sony and Toshiba have entirely (or mostly for the latter 3, once very eminent proponents; these 3 only cater for their home market anymore) disapeared from the PDA scene.

Smartphones are becoming more powerful and capable, while PPCs and what's left of the PalmOS market (pretty much PalmOne alone) don't really shine either.

PalmOS development is stuck and nobody ever built anything on the newest version of the OS, a version that's been available for what 6 months (I'm not sure of the number, having a PPC I'm not too sure how long now).

WinMobile hasen't much evolved in the last 4-5 years now, only by very little increments, barely to add support here or there for newer technology; but nothing really fancy.

So give it 2-3 years and my and other's predictions might well be on schedule :).

[Ed Hansberry]

In all fairness who can really stand up and say it's too expensive with all those features in such a small package??
The issue is the battery life is lame. I also can't see this being used two handedly for long using your thumbs for the keyboard. Why in the world doesn't this come with the Tablet PC OS? And no computer today should come without USB 2.

The 1 minute 7 seconds for boot is bothersome. My Dell Latitude with 1.2GHz boots in 38 seconds. Why does a machine with only 200MHz less take 29 more seconds to boot? How much else runs slowly? And it is no PDA replacement by any means. I get frustrated at my Pocket PC for taking 2-3 seconds to be usable after turning it on, but once it is, all apps are instant or nearly instant - none taking more than 2 seconds to come up and many happening instantly. Can you imagine needing a phone number with the OQO? Boot the machine or even resuming it takes at least 30 seconds. Log in and wait for the desktop to come up. Minimum of 4-5 seconds and probably closer to 15 once you load a few apps on it that occupy the SysTray. Now fire up Outlook. Another 5-15 seconds depending on your PST/OST data file size. No way. I just don't see it.

I think Tom's Hardware nailed it. If you have money to burn and have to have the absolute smallest Windows XP box, the OQO is cool. Otherwise, take the $2000 and get a good laptop or Tablet. Or better yet, a decent laptop and a mid-range Pocket PC! :wink: :lol:

Seriously, on the size. I never go anywhere without my Pocket PC. It always fits in my pocket. You can't do this with the OQO - especially given the 14 ounce weight. So while it may be smaller than a laptop, does it matter? If you need to carry it in a bag of some sort and plop it on a table to use, why not just get a sub-notebook that has a real keyboard and real battery life?

I know PIE on the Pocket PC isn't the greatest thing in the world, but it does make a decent effort to reduce horizontal scrolling, especially in WM2003SE devices. Does the OQO use a modified version of IE that does the same, or are you stuck doing the side-to-side with a lot of sites? Fewer and fewer are optimized for 800X600.

And on the battery life, forget using it as a music player on trips. You'll still need an MP3 player or Pocket PC go get ~8 hrs of play time unless you buy a small army of $149 batteries for it.

The more I think about it the more I think this is an awesome product for the time it was concieved - 2001. Today, it is too little too late. Maybe v2 will fix some of these issues.

[Ed Hansberry]

I was one of the first ones who pretended this over 2 years ago!!
Oh... as long as you are pretending... :) Yeah, then this device makes perfect sense. :wink:

[Janak Parekh]

huh.. what's with the biasness? I thought people were salivating over the Sony U series?
Different people have different preferences. This site is about "Daily news, views, rants and raves". We have biases by definition. ;) I'm a little more high on the mini-PCs than some of the other editors, but certainly not as a PDA replacement (although, as I mentioned before, a Smartphone might replace a PDA if you were to pair it with the OQO).

What kills this for me is the resume time. I remember specifically discussing this with jlp, who claimed sub-1s resume time thanks to the Tablet PC architecture. Fact is the OQO can't ship with XP Tablet PC Edition, and it looks like even then the resume time is pretty bad. It'd be interesting to see how it fares if you install XP Tablet PC Edition, which you can only get off of MSDN, but if it's like my current tablet (Portege 3505) it'll still be about 5 seconds minimum before it's useful.

--janak

[surur]

Most of you guys are an amazing bunch.

You're serving the same biased, crocked and re-heated lame arguments that Palm users and anti-PDA people have served you:

jlp, you may have missed the many people who have said PDA's will die due to devices such as the OQO. This seems like a very poor PDA Killer.
I didn't miss it.

I was one of the first ones who pretended this over 2 years ago!! However I clearly said within 2-3 years of its incoming on the market.


So you are saying by 2008 these devices will be as usable as a pocketpc? Thats a long time to wait, and many expensive devices to replace each year to get there.

We all know disconnected PDA's are dying, but most PDA's come with some ability to network, either bluetooth, wifi, or both, and increasingly GSM and even 3G. Those are running the pocketpc OS. I dont expect to be running Windows Longhorn on my phone in 3 years time, but I would not be surprised to find windows mobile 2008. Just because it has a 3G modem does not mean its no longer a PocketPC. Look at the HTC Jam to see how small a PocketPC can be.

Having got that out of the way, I still dont see how you intend to use THIS device you are championing, which makes it CURRENTLY a better device than a pocketpc. You could buy an equally valuable chunk of gold, and while you could justify the price on the cost of the components, it would be equally useless for organising your day. Unlike this device though it may actually appreciate in value.

Maybe you want to illuminate us regarding the uses you would put this device to?

Surur

[yslee]

Janak, I'm just amazed by the inconsistencies.

Granted it's not a great device, but the potential is there (and not as a PDA killer, but as a legitimate niche of its own). The deal killers for me are no CF slot and no USB 2. And the bootup time as well as the resume time isn't fantastic, like you've said. I still think it's a device that could do with some optimising. (4000mah battery that lasts 2.5 hours?)

[Jonathon Watkins]

I have a mid-high range Laptop and Pocket PC for less than the price of this device. They do everything I am looking for in a typical work day. Photo editing on the train? Laptop. MP3 playing, instant addresses, contacts, calender, note taking etc. through the day? Pocket PC.

I really don't see a big demand for the OQO. Surur said it very well; I fully expect to be using Windows Mobile in 2008. It will offer full wireless connectivity and will not look much like PPC2003SE today. But we'll still be here posting about it. :wink:

[Stephen Beesley]

Why in the world doesn't this come with the Tablet PC OS? And no computer today should come without USB 2.

...

The more I think about it the more I think this is an awesome product for the time it was concieved - 2001. Today, it is too little too late. Maybe v2 will fix some of these issues.

Ed, I think these two points highlight what the real problem witht he OQO is - the specifications sounded great when we first heard about it nearly three years ago. But, now with 2005 just around the corner, they just do not stack up. Maybe with faster boot time, better battery life, Tablet PC OS and USB 2.0 it would be getting there, but the thing is that it does not have any of those things and by the time a newer version might come around that does then maybe we will all have moved on yet again.

That said, I for one am hoping that devices like this will lead to more innovation in the future. Whether it is PPCs getting more capable over time or a more mature version of hte OQO I want to see it!

[christak]

Well, while I agree that the OQO in its current form (and price) will not be added to my gadget stash, I like the idea of this device and would definitely consider one of these units with a few tweaks...

The second (or third) iteration of this device will likely find its way onto my shopping list... 8)

[Kati Compton]

Then when you consider all that's packed in the smallest WinXP PC body ever, I don't think you can fairly say it's expensive:
I can if it's my money being spent...

I also think flying first class is expensive, even if you get a lot of features for the money.

I think sailboats are expensive too.

Personally, I think the OQO is cute - I enjoyed playing with it. But I have to agree that the specs were nice when announced, and a bit less modern now. If I'm going to pay the premium for XP in my pocket, then I'm going to want functionality commesurate with that... and to me, the OQO does not have $1900 of value.

The word "expensive" is a very subjective term. If the OQO isn't expensive for you, hoorah. If others think it's expensive, then they think it's expensive. You can tell them they're wrong if you like, but it's not going to change anything.

[Pat Logsdon]

For your information the base price is not $1999 but $1899
You should read the article again. $1899 + the required $100 for XP Home equals $1999.

[Ed Hansberry]

For your information the base price is not $1999 but $1899
You should read the article again. $1899 + the required $100 for XP Home equals $1999.
Actually it is $1,899 for XP Home. $100 upgrade gets you XP Pro.

[Kati Compton]

Actually it is $1,899 for XP Home. $100 upgrade gets you XP Pro.
Maybe Pat should have said "the required upgrade from XP Home to XP Pro"... ;)

[Pat Logsdon]

Actually it is $1,899 for XP Home. $100 upgrade gets you XP Pro.
Maybe Pat should have said "the required upgrade from XP Home to XP Pro"... ;)
Yeah, that's what I meant! Heh heh.... :oops:

Apologies, JLP, *I* read the review wrong. :mrgreen:

[sbrown23]

I crack up at those that support the OQO claiming "BIAS" when people think the product sucks. So, what, people can't have a differing opinion for valid reasons?

The dealbreakers:

- Has a 1GHz Transmeta (cough, cough) processor. Ummm, have they ever heard of ULV Pentium M? Battery life would be improved, and performance would be VASTLY improved.
- 256MB RAM - just not enough for WinXP these days, especially with SP2.
- No Tablet PC Edition - are you freakin kiddin me?
- USB 1.1 - there is just no excuse. Really. In 2004, there is no excuse for a brand new PC, especially one for $2000 to not have USB 2.0 ports.
- Battery life - 2.5 hours? That is just sad and pathetic. My 1.7 Ghz Pentium M based laptop with 1GB RAM, much faster HD, 15" power sucking screen and 802.11a/b/g gets 5 hours of runtime on a charge. Granted, in a larger package, but Pocket PCs also get much longer runtime. Might as well just take the laptop on a trip with me. If this can't be fixed, the product is dead in the water.
- Boot time - pathetic. Processor and HD too slow to boot XP fast.
- Resolution - 800x480? Come on. I sure hope that they've added some functionality to reformat pages in IE, so I don't have to scroll side to side constantly.

Yeah, such bias. The OQO, to parrot many others, is FAR too little, FAR too late. 2 or 3 years ago, this device would have been amazing. It is just flat out sad by today's standards when there are so many other, better options.

[Leon]

Boot time: 1 min, 7 secs cold boot, 28 secs from hibernation mode (but take off some time from the battery life if this feature is used).
Why is hibernation affecting battery life :confused totally: :confused totally:

[denivan]

I'm wondering...If a vanilla OQO takes that long to boot...then how long would it take after you've installed a virus scanner and software firewall (which you can't deny you'll need) ? With such a CPU and only 256 Mb I think it's gonna be a hastle to keep this unit "clean". Alot of applications have some sort of hidden memory resident programs (quiktime, realplayer, etc... --> use msconfig.exe to see what's loaded when you're booting your pc). So when you use this PC, you're really gonna have to make sure there are no pesky resident memory programs running or adware/malware, because it will make your OQO even less usefull !

[Ed Hansberry]

Boot time: 1 min, 7 secs cold boot, 28 secs from hibernation mode (but take off some time from the battery life if this feature is used).
Why is hibernation affecting battery life :confused totally: :confused totally:Hibernation wouldn't. Suspend would resume faster than hibernation, but would take more battery life. For some reason, they didn't test resume from suspend times. Doesn't matter. It would be too slow given the other times.

I'm wondering...If a vanilla OQO takes that long to boot...then how long would it take after you've installed a virus scanner and software firewall (which you can't deny you'll need) ? With such a CPU and only 256 Mb I think it's gonna be a hastle to keep this unit "clean". Alot of applications have some sort of hidden memory resident programs (quiktime, realplayer, etc... --> use msconfig.exe to see what's loaded when you're booting your pc).
Exactly my point earlier. Get a few things that reside in the systray or start at boot - the apps you mentioned - and boot and login times skyrocket. Also, given this usually isn't going to be left on 24/7, it'll almost never undergo XP's file prefetch optimization routines, so it is at yet another disadvantage to desktops and laptops.

[Wiggster]

Boot time: 1 min, 7 secs cold boot, 28 secs from hibernation mode (but take off some time from the battery life if this feature is used).
Why is hibernation affecting battery life :confused totally: :confused totally:

Because hibernation keeps the computer turned on, even though the screen and most peripherals are turned off. The RAM needs power to retain its information, and the hard drive might possibly need to spin a little.

Hibernation is keeping the computer turned on, but just enough for life support.

[bmhome1]

For a little perspective, I just bought a tablet convertible laptop for almost exactly the same price as the OQO, at the best on the web price.

Its an Acer 303MXi running 1.7Ghz Dothan Pentium M and XP Pro Tablet, stock with 1GB RAM, wireless G and BT, 4X DVD burner. Hardly pocketable with 14" screen and at 6 lbs, but OQO has to sweeten the specs for any measurable sales.

I wouldn't want to run Tablet XP with less horsepower, its a resource needy OS. I remember how pokey the first Viewsonic tablets with that Trans processor and Tablet were. That's the real reason tablet sales have been so small. Also, large digitizer LCD's are still very expensive. Even the OQO's LCD must be pricey. My Acer flies with Tablet, but too many processes still slows down tablet responsiveness. The OQO must be REALLY slow with 256MB RAM. Also, those tiny flow slots must make it run real, real hot without Pentium M power optimizing inside.

I actually considered the OQO but my eyes are way too old for 10" screens much less half that size. Tiny and fast is one thing, but tiny, hot and slooow just sucks.

[altden2002]

All of you who bash OQO are now oficially forbidden from moaning about "how come Japanese get all the cool toys and we never see them?". Just this very one time somebody brought this cool thing to US market and your entusiasm is nowhere in sight.

Consider this - this thingie will fit very nicely into small LV (Louis Vuitton) Mabillion leather backpack, a fit no other WinXP laptop on earth can accomplish. It can also be a part of NT domain and run any internal corporate applications, something no PDA to date is able to do due to its small market share.
In place where i work we have some of these applications which we sometimes need to access during meetings. Typical meeting lasts one hour, so you can last a meeting and reacharge it back in your office before next one. I can totally see it being used by fashion-sensitive females, just imagine that - a girl in business suite with red nails pulls OQO decorated with same hue of red out of her purse and reads some business data from the device. Everyone is in awe, the cool factor is through the roof.

As for PDA functionality - I use smartphone to store contacts, tasks and meetings, so there is no need to my other computer to duplicate that. Since i bought smartphone and installed GPS application on it, i have not used my ipaq - its been over two months now.

Myself i am not buyng OQO because i value missing functionality over the cool factor - optical drive (archive pictures on vacation), smartcard reader (corpnet access), svideo/vga (presentations), larger HDD etc. That, and i am not a girl :-) I use Fujitsu P5000 - it is still somewhat cool (we discuss my laptop about every other team meeting :-)) and it is practical.


You can say "oh but it is expensive" all you want, but by this logic no one will ever buy LV bags either. Which they do, because some people have larger disposable income and put more value on cool factor.

[Ed Hansberry]

Because hibernation keeps the computer turned on, even though the screen and most peripherals are turned off. The RAM needs power to retain its information, and the hard drive might possibly need to spin a little.

Hibernation is keeping the computer turned on, but just enough for life support.
No, hibernation takes RAM and dumps it to the hard drive in the hiber.sys file. At that point, you can remove the battery if you like. Everything is 100% shut down unless the BIOS supports some wake-on-lan/ring features - but the OS is totally unaware of that until the BIOS sends the signal to wake up, as if the power button had been pressed.

Suspend uses battery power and keeps the RAM alive (frozen, but alive) but shuts down just about everything else. The OS is alive enough to know to bring the machine out of Suspend if the Task Manager requests a job be run that has "Wake to run this task" set. I honestly don't know if the OS is actually doing that or if it schedules a wake with the BIOS before going into Suspend. While in suspend though, even the HD won't spin.

[altden2002]

Also, those tiny flow slots must make it run real, real hot without Pentium M power optimizing inside.

I actually considered the OQO but my eyes are way too old for 10" screens much less half that size. Tiny and fast is one thing, but tiny, hot and slooow just sucks.

Transmeta processors use less power than Pentium M. They also run slower, but your point about it being "hot without Pentium M power optimizing inside" is totally made up and not based in facts.

My sources:
http://www.transmeta.com/pdfs/techdocs/efficeon_tm8600_prod_brief.pdf
http://www.cpuplanet.com/features/article.php/30231_2108671_3

If you do not feel like going through numbers, consider this - Pentium M laptops come with coolers, even the UV versions (I should know, i own one) Transmetas do not, because they do not need any.

:devilboy:

[bmhome1]

That must explain why no tablet manufacturer still uses Transmeta except maybe bargain-priced Averatec (noted for its exceptional heat). Its time to move on from three year old technology, Pentium M and ULV even at 1Ghz are the current design choices. Maybe its an Intel conspiracy.

Again, 900mz will be painfully slow for any smooth lag-free stylus/screen interaction. It was when used in the past-generation tablets.

The incredible confined space heat issue will or won't be reported soon enough. My bets are on a toaster.

[Darius Wey]

Granted it's not a great device, but the potential is there (and not as a PDA killer, but as a legitimate niche of its own). The deal killers for me are no CF slot and no USB 2. And the bootup time as well as the resume time isn't fantastic, like you've said. I still think it's a device that could do with some optimising. (4000mah battery that lasts 2.5 hours?)

Fair enough. Note the potential is there and that it needs optimisations, but we're talking about the present, not the future. Don't get me wrong - I like innovation and when new products roll off the dock, I'll be the one to stand there and welcome the new gadget into the world. But this OQO model is lacking by today's standards. A lacklustre screen requires a second thought by most. Imagine checking your email on that thing when a task pane fills half the screen. Granted - it is small, somewhat pocketable and very extreme on the gadget scales, but when it comes down to productivity, it's lacking. For almost $2K, those who have money to burn may see this as a great purchase, but for those of us who are wary of our budget, I can think of better things to spend with $2K. The fact that it's not running an optimised version of the XP OS is another thing. The standard Home/Professional versions of XP are not what this requires. It needs to ascend up and perhaps use a Tablet version, or even an OQO version! Back to the original statement, the potential is there, but we're talking about what the OQO is now, not what it will be in the future. This product doesn't offer anything compelling AFAICT.

I respect those who see the current model OQO as a great one, but I also respect those who see it as a waste of time. We all have our own *thoughts*. Personally, if I want mobility, I'll stick with a Pocket PC. Better battery life. More pocketable. A more mobile-optimised OS. ;)

[Pat Logsdon]

^
└ What he said. And then some. :mrgreen:

[Vidge]

As I write this post from my 4-day old Sony U750P. I find most of the stuff in this thread quite amusing. So far, the Sony has not only met my expectations - but exceeded them. These small units are not for everybody but after 8+ years using various PDAs, this meets my needs. I chose the Sony over the OQO because the specs are better.

Regarding Tablet PC - so much of it (especially the handwriting recognition part) has been incorporated into XP Pro SP2 that it really isn't necessary. And battery life with the double capacity battery is about 6 hours. (I'm getting almost 3 hours on the standard battery and that's with Wifi always on and the screen brightness almost at max.)

[Darius Wey]

As I write this post from my 4-day old Sony U750P. I find most of the stuff in this thread quite amusing. So far, the Sony has not only met my expectations - but exceeded them. These small units are not for everybody but after 8+ years using various PDAs, this meets my needs. I chose the Sony over the OQO because the specs are better.

Each to their own - everyone has their own perceptions on these portable computers. Myself, I like a proper pocketable solution; I'd find use for the OQO or U750P, but I'd still see myself slip a Pocket PC in my pocket than one of these somewhat-pocketable solutions. I like mobility, and so far, I see the Pocket PC deliver this over the OQO/U750P, purely because the former satisfies my wants and needs in a mobile device. But as I said, everyone has their own comments. Anyhow, it's good to see you're getting a better battery life than what the OQO would otherwise deliver. ;)

[maximus]

You can say "oh but it is expensive" all you want, but by this logic no one will ever buy LV bags either. Which they do, because some people have larger disposable income and put more value on cool factor.

Ah, a little flaw in your argument.

LV is a world-renowned brand. The same also applies to Hermes, Gucci, Hugo Boss, etc., who have spend MILLIONS in advertising expense to create the brand image.

OQO has zero brand recognition. I'd rather walk with a XDA3 than an OQO.

[Leon]

Why is hibernation affecting battery life :confused totally: :confused totally:

Because hibernation keeps the computer turned on, even though the screen and most peripherals are turned off. The RAM needs power to retain its information, and the hard drive might possibly need to spin a little.

Hibernation is keeping the computer turned on, but just enough for life support.
No, you are mixing up stand-by and hibernation. Stand-by keeps the RAM alive but hibernation switches the computer off after memory is written to the harddisk.

EDIT: Oh, I saw Ed already gave this same answer. :oops:

and the hard drive might possibly need to spin a little.
I have never heard of such an option. What good would that be for?

[gibson042]

This thread doesn't need another post complaining about the OQO's pathetic battery life and sluggish boot times, so I'll skip that.

What I will point out is the new personal gadget configurations that it and similar devices open up. Separate device folks will be able to carry a smartphone and a handtop, which--once things get straightened out with the above problems--will be perfect for them: smaller than any subnotebook, and more powerful than any PDA. The phone goes in their pocket or on their belt, and the handtop gets carried around in a purse/murse/bag along with its AC power adapter and accessories. That's more power and arguably more flexibility than us convergence lovers are likely to ever see.

[one504]

Transmeta mulls chip biz exit

Transmeta will announce on Jan. 21 whether it will continue producing microprocessors, according to an article at ExtremeTech. The company derives most of its revenue by licensing intellectual property (IP) to other chip vendors, and may move to a pure IP licensing business model, the article says.

Transmeta lost $27.5 million in its most recently reported quarter, announced last October. The company showed revenues of $7M, of which $3.7M were derived from licensing IP such as its LongRun2 power management technology to chip vendors such as NEC and Fujitsu.

[Ed Hansberry]

Transmeta mulls chip biz exit

Transmeta will announce on Jan. 21 whether it will continue producing microprocessors, according to an article at ExtremeTech. The company derives most of its revenue by licensing intellectual property (IP) to other chip vendors, and may move to a pure IP licensing business model, the article says.

Transmeta lost $27.5 million in its most recently reported quarter, announced last October. The company showed revenues of $7M, of which $3.7M were derived from licensing IP such as its LongRun2 power management technology to chip vendors such as NEC and Fujitsu.

Full details at http://informationweek.com/story/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=57300290

The OQO makes another mistake in their design - bet on a failing processor company that has decided to now exit the business.

[jlp]

What a lame badly informed and badly thought out comment, Ed.

I can't let you say such blatant falsehoods like that, without reacting to it.

First when OQO was founded in 1999, how could they know about things 6 years in the future???

But worst thinking and conclusion from yours: Transmeta is NOT quitting the CPU business like you say/imply !!!

They could (note the importance of this keyword!!) quit producing chips, but will no matter what still design them, licence their core technology like they already do today and possibly also licence their whole chip technology as well.

Already today Transmeta chips manufacturing is outsourced to Japanese manufacturers, notably Fujitsu and NEC.

.

[yslee]

Well, that's the kind of one-sided comments you should be expecting. Nothing more, nothing less.

[jlp]

I was expecting smarter comments from Ed tho.

[Ed Hansberry]

What a lame badly informed and badly thought out comment, Ed.

I can't let you say such blatant falsehoods like that, without reacting to it.

First when OQO was founded in 1999, how could they know about things 6 years in the future???

But worst thinking and conclusion from yours: Transmeta is NOT quitting the CPU business like you say/imply !!!
After struggling for years for momentum and profits as a provider of processors for mobile computing platforms, Transmeta Corp. later this month may decide to pull the plug on its chip business and concentrate strictly on the licensing of intellectual property.

Sorry. I read "pull the plug on its chip business" as quitting. :roll: Now, no matter how you word it, if Transmeta gets out of the business, the OQO has some redesigns to go through. You can't just slap an Intel Pentium M on the MoBo the Transmeta is on. For most companies that wouldn't be an earthshattering deal. For a company struggling and who's sales of their first product aren't setting sales charts ablaze, doing a complete switch of the MoBo and processor in their assembly line isn't going to be the best thing for their business.
I was expecting smarter comments from Ed tho.
There hasn't been a lot of smart comments in this thread. I didn't want to pollute it with intellligent comments. :wink:

[one504]

The Santa Clara, Calif., company will cut jobs on March 31 to reduce costs and hopes to generate a profit for the first time in its history. It plans to fulfill the orders of existing customers for its Crusoe and Efficeon processors, but the majority of its future business plan centers on licensing, Matthew Perry, Transmeta's CEO, said in a conference call.

Transmeta has retained investment banking firm Perseus Group LLC to search for partners that will allow it to continue providing chips to its current customers, he said.

The company's new plan is to secure licensing deals with other chip companies for its power management technology

http://www.computerworld.com/hardwaretopics/hardware/story/0,10801,99214,00.html