R.S.
[REVISED Apr 6 '24 for storage issues - see end.]
I bought two of these. The oldest is 18 months old and still going strong (although the screen isn't as bright as the second one, which I never use except to update it). My first one was just $150USD and now the same model has gone up by $40USD. It's still a great buy.
You can also find a nifty review on YouTube by the user First Look.
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PROS:
1. Excellent battery life. It really does last for 8+ hours provided you're not doing anything intensive like accessing a high-capacity USB HDD. Keep in mind that a bigger screen, a bigger built-in HD will drain your battery faster.
2. Weighs 2.8 pounds (under 1.5KG).
3. Still a great bargain at the current price (I bought two for $140 ea. over a year ago).
4. The 14" LED screen works well for most purposes. I've noticed that my oldest one (18 months old) is losing brightness. But for the price, I'm not worried since I only anticipate 2-3 years' use out of it.
5. Built tough like a tank - compare to Dell.
6. Comes with Windows 10. The update to 11 is free. You'll lose some built-in HD space, but it's worth it.
7. Built-in webcam and mic. I've used them for Skype and WhatsApp - not great quality but if you're traveling they'll do fine for those or Zoom.
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CONS:
1. Only 2 built-in USB ports. You'll need a USB hub. Note that a typical (unpowered) USB hub will not take a large-capacity USB drive. So if you want to run two of them, a powered USB hub helps, e.g.: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0BZ46YVRK/ [NOTE: I actually daisy that with a standard USB hub and plug the former's power connector into it. It doesn't short on me.]
2. The built-in keyboard and mouse pad are minimally useful. For traveling, consider a small external pointing device and a roll-up keyboard. (Which is yet another reason to have a USB hub.)
3. Very little useful space on the built-in solid state hard disk (about 38GB available for apps and data). A USB HD will fix that problem; for traveling use large-capacity memory sticks. IMPORTANT: you have to turn off Windows' restore points otherwise your on-board space will deteriorate quickly. Be sure you back it up when you get it (you'll need a USB CD drive or a bootable memory stick). I keep very few "data" files on it. [Keep the ESC key pressed for boot options.]
4. Not terribly fast, the processors are rated at 1.1GB. Supposedly it can be overclocked but I've never tried. It's a nice addition to a desktop, but most certainly NOT a replacement.
5. You need to know your way around Windows for the best results. For ex., I had to create my own batch file to run MSPaint. (It's designed to prefer MS Office 365 which I refuse to deal with. Consider Apache Open Office - it's free.) Even tho' the processor is 64bits, I've been pleasantly surprised by how many 32bit applications seem to run on it.
6. The built-in speaker sound quality is **dreadful**, but one can't complain given the size and weight. For traveling consider bluetooth headphones/speakers or USB speakers.
7. Keyboard keys aren't backlit, but then the keyboard isn't very useful as I noted. When I'm in bed w/ wife, I just use an external backlit keyboard (lots of choices here - I like: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BRMCPPZ5/ ... that said, if you're on a plane and the lights are off, you're probably just going to have to live with your cell instead ... there's just not enough space on a tray table. For my money, it's not worth paying more for a built-in backlit keyboard.
8. Will not hibernate (see below).
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HD SPACE NOTES (built-in HD):
1. I get the best results from setting PAGEFILE.SYS to a min of 2000 and a max of 3000 (roughly 2G & 3G respec.). Go to
Advanced System Settings | Performance | Advanced (virtual mem) ... you have to restart afterwards.
2. I can't get this to hibernate (an annoyance when traveling). However HIBERFIL.SYS still exists. I got an extra 1.5GB by disabling hiberneration with this command (run from the command prompt as an administrator or power shell):
powercfg.exe /hibernate off
| Standing screen display size | 14 Inches |
|---|---|
| Screen Resolution | 1366 x 768 pixels |
| Max Screen Resolution | 1366 x 768 Pixels |
| Processor | 9 GHz celeron |
| RAM | 4 GB SDRAM |
| Memory Speed | 2.8 GHz |
| Hard Drive | 64 GB Emmc |
| Graphics Coprocessor | Intel Iris Xe Graphics |
| Chipset Brand | Intel |
| Card Description | Integrated |
| Graphics Card Ram Size | 4 GB |
| Wireless Type | 802.11ax |
| Number of USB 3.0 Ports | 1 |
| Average Battery Life (in hours) | 10 Hours |
joseph willis