Review Part 1
INTRO
Despite FedEx's claim that the tablet wouldn't arrive until Wednesday (today) at 10:30 AM, it arrived over 2 days earlier on Monday at 9:30 AM. I said I wouldn't post again until today before I knew the Tablet would be arriving so early, but I decided to wait anyway as that gave me some time to get to know it a bit more.
My desktop PC is a custom built Athlon XP 1600+ with 1024MB of RAM and a GeForce 5600. The Tecra M4 totally blows it away with the Pentium M 1.6 GHz processor, 1280 MB of RAM and a Geforce Go 6600. In fact, I haven't booted the desktop since I got the M4 - it can run everything the desktop can, and better too. (The desktop will soon be my Linux machine, and also empty space to back up this machine's data.) The SXGA+ (1400x1050) resolution looks extremely sharp. With the ClearType [http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/downloads/powertoys/xppowertoys.mspx] PowerToy from Microsoft, the text looks fantastic. My brother says it is a bit small for his liking, but for reference the text looks almost exactly the same size as your standard 12 pt font in Microsoft Word after it's been printed out. (Of course, that varies a bit depending on the application you're in, if you change the screen's resolution, etc.)
I am happy to report that my Tecra came with ZERO dead/stuck pixels, as opposed to some of the other reviews out there. [http://www.tabletpcreviewspot.com/default.asp?newsID=282] Unfortunately, I do notice a small area of shading in the bottom left and right corners of the tablet. From the corner up and over about 1 cm, there is a small triangle that is just a bit dimmer than the surroundings. It is not abrupt and barely noticable, but if I look for it, it can be somewhat annoying. The top corners are fine.
SETUP: OS/Hardware
As soon as I got the Tablet, the first thing I did was boot it up (of course), and make "a backup CD" of the hard drive image. Toshiba provides an easy to use utility for this, but the reason I say "a backup CD" in quotes is that its actually spanned across 8 CDs, and since I didn't get the DVD burner I had to use all 8 CDs. It took about 5 minutes per CD (twice that to verify the data), and when I was done I inserted in the first CD and rebooted. Nothing happened. I checked out the users manual, and the instructions said to put in the first CD and reboot. Nothing happened.
Turns out, you have to enter the BIOS (hold down ESC after booting the computer, and then press F1 when prompted). On the right side, in boot priority, make sure the CD or DVD drive is first (leftmost), and don't worry about the order beyond that. (I had to use LAN as second boot priority, the BIOS apparently won't let you set the priority manually, but gives only a few select presets to choose from.) Then the CD booted properly, and I did the restore that gives back the used HDD space (option 3) which took about an hour. First step on the new boot was to disable Themes and all visual effects (Control Panel->Performance), except for smoothing of font edges. Once I had deemed everything good and working, I shut down and installed my 1gb stick of memory from Newegg. I was planning to take pictures as I did it, but it turns out to be so easy I decided against it. Unscrew the cover, slide in the memory (it only fits one possible way, and it's made obvious by a little notch in the front end), and push until it clicks. It took me all of 10 seconds, and the User Guide instructions are more than adequate for the novice computer user. Then comes the fun part.
Spamware galore.
SETUP: UTILITIES
I know it's been said on every other review and blog out there, but there is a LOT of junk on this machine. I won't bother to list everything that was installed, but there was a lot, and I removed all of it. Simply go to Start->Control Panel->Add/Remove Programs, and remove anything that you know you don't want. If you don't know what it is, I'd suggest leaving it. I also suggest leaving all of the Toshiba Utilities (they all start with the word "Toshiba"). After I cleaned out Add/Remove Programs (except for AOL - it wouldn't remove, and I'm contemplating calling Toshiba to figure that one out), I turned off some of the applications from booting. To do this, simply go to Start->Run, and type "msconfig" (without quotes). Select the "Startup" tab, and deselect anything you don't want to boot up. I deselected msmsgs, CFSServ, and a few others. If you aren't sure what it is - leave it. That's my general rule of thumb. One thing that bugged me a helluvalot was the sheer number of system tray icons that come stock on the tablet. If they bug you too, you can remove them from startup through msconfig, or if it is a process you want running but don't need to see all the time, you can usually find a "hide icon" box in the applications preferences. I've since reduced the number to 6 on a default bootup:
tablet/pen settings
wireless
hdd protection
power
crossmenu
"safely remove hardware"
The "safely remove hardware" icon is related to the CD drive, and I'm not sure if there is a way to make this go away without just hacking the registry. (Let me know!)
The tablet/pen settings icon simply launches the Control Panel applet, but I can't figure out any way to make this go away. It's not something I click often, in fact I've never had to other than a few times out of sheer curiosity or to remember what was in there. Let me know if you know how to make this go away.
Wireless: Toshiba, for some reason or another, ships the M4 with 3 wireless management applications. The default is Windows XP itself, then there's Toshiba's own ConfigFree utility, and then there's the Intel PROSet application. The Intel PROSet application is far superior, it allows you to set up profiles for one-time use or multiple-use connections, and detailed configuration for each profile. When I'm at home, it picks my home network and signs on. At work, it picks the proper network again and signs on. Not that the Windows XP and ConfigFree utilities don't do this, but there are lots of configuration options available for the PROSet that aren't (or aren't easily accessible) in the others. To set up the PROSet application as I have, simply turn off ConfigFree from booting when Windows boots, there is a checkbox in the options of ConfigFree to that effect. Then start the PROSet tool, and allow it to take over for Windows (which will still be the default wireless software if you haven't changed it to ConfigFree or something else).
The power profiles are a GREAT feature of the M4, I can't get enough of them. There are default profiles for Full Power (I use this for gaming), High Power (I use this for large applications where the computer won't be operating at full power 100% of the time), Normal (I use this on AC just to browse the net and chat), DVD Playback and Presentation I have not yet used, and Long life which I use on battery power. On Long Life, I have defined 4 levels of screen brightness for 0-25%, 26-50%, 51-75%, 76-100% power. They are 1, 3, 4, and 5 respectively, and I'm consistently getting about 2 hours and 30 minutes of use from a full charge. While this isn't that much, it's enough for any length of time I'd need to go before being back on AC. Most of my classes are only 75 minutes, and besides, most of the rooms have AC available anyway.
I have set up the Cross Menu with my favorite/most-used dozen or so applications, so they are easily accessible in tablet mode. To set up the Cross Menu, hold down the button (closest button to the hinge ON the tablet's screen) for about 2 seconds. Go to the second menu down, and the leftmost icon, then press the button. When you add a menu, you can drag shortcuts to it from the desktop or Start menu, and they will appear when you hold the cross button (tap the button down a few times to see your customized menus). I've got Journal, OneNote, Math Journal, Firefox, and some other applications on there.
APPLICATIONS
For me, the application that's caused the most trouble so far is the TIP. It has stopped responding numerous times, in which case I have had to end it (ctrl+alt+del) and Run it again (TabTip.exe). When it works, it does work fairly well. I would not say there isn't room for improvement - in fact there is quite a bit. It usually recognizes my n's as r's (they resemble cursive r's, I suppose), and its awful at words that aren't in the dictionary. Fortunately I'm able to add words to the dictionary, and when I do that they are generally recognized better. All in all, just writing a paragraph (this one for example) would get 90+% recognition, which isn't bad. But in a long paragraph, correcting even 5% of the words is a royal pain. The handwriting recognition simply isn't there yet. But to be honest - that's not why I got the tablet. I got it to write on, not to type on (well, that's what the keyboard is for anyway).
In the writing department, I have yet to be absolutely stunned by every program that uses ink. So far this includes Journal, OneNote, everything in the Education and Experience packs, every ink-enabled PowerToy, Math Journal, MSN Messenger, Office 2003, Alias SketchBook, and the TIP (when it works, which is about 98% of the time - not enough considering how much I use it). I haven't used Journal aside from demo'ing the tablet yet, but when I do demo it the handwriting recognition is generally superb. There just aren't enough features to make it a worthwhile application to use a lot - it really is the NotePad of the Tablet PC, and it does its job perfectly. When I do need to take a quick note, I can see how it would come in handy.
However, for most of my note-taking so far I've used OneNote. OneNote is great, except when its not (which isn't very often). So far the only problem I've encountered is trying to draw where the little "handle" you can grab is. Instead of drawing, I either grab the handle or draw something weird looking. Today I wanted to put a dash in the front of a list entry, but the handle kept popping up where I wanted to draw it. Very frustrating. Aside from that little nuisance, I've set up folders for each class I have this semester, and a few sections in each folder (lecture notes, lab notes, homework, etc). I'm a math/physics major, and so I do a lot of drawing or writing equations. To that effect, when I am taking such notes I generally turn off the "input as handwriting" and leave only drawings, or turn off ink groups entirely (SP1 required to do this). I haven't had any actual classes yet, they start tomorrow. But I have been taking research/lab notes every day on the tablet since Monday. For that OneNote has performed its duty wonderfully.
MathJournal has fairly poor handwriting recognition, as far as I can tell. To pitch in my hand to remedy that, I've sent in a few hundred samples so far [http://www.xthink.com], so that hopefully MathJournal 2 will be better (and free!). When it does recognize what I'm trying to input, it is a neat little application. I guess it just doesn't like my handwriting - but I can't mold my handwriting to fit every application that comes out and takes a different style. I will wait until it is better, and until then use my trusty TI-89.
There are a ton of other programs and toys to talk about, but I will end this post here with a few comments:
Counter-Strike: Source and Guild Wars look and play FANTASTIC. i've got CS:S set on the reccomended "Advanced" settings but upped to 1400x1050 resolution, and get 31 FPS in the stress test (GF6600 Go). Guild Wars is completely maxed out and performs wonderfully and virtually framerate-skip free, even in big fights.
AIM and Google Talk work well with the TIP (it pops up over textboxes, as expected). Firefox doesn't. For Firefox, I'm always writing on the TIP at the bottom (which is a nuisance). URL recognition is horrible.
Keyboard layout/key placement is wonderful and well thought out. I RARELY use the Windows key, and more often than not it is just a nuisance (especially for those of us who use full screen games). I use the tilde fairly often, especially in games. It is in a convenient location, although it does sometimes get in the way of Alt (though I haven't had a lot of time to adjust yet).
The dual pointing device setup is also great. I have the little blue touchpoint set up as a multi-directional scroll wheel, the upper two buttons as back/middle-click, and the lower two as left/right. The touchpad also has scrolls which I use frequently, and a different application (customizable) can be set up to launch when each of the four corners is tapped.
The screen brightness is great anywhere 4 and up for most lighting. In high flourescent lighting, anything below that is likely to be a problem. In very bright flourescents, I could just barely see the screen at a brightness of 1. Not a condition I would like to work in. The viewing angles are admittedly poor, but this is not one of the strong/selling points of the M4. When in tablet mode laying in front of me on a desk of standard height, it is easily useable. But anyone sitting off to the side or using a high desk would need to lean over to get a clear view.
I highly reccomend a mouse and external monitor for your most-used computing stations (for me: the research lab and my home). If you can afford it, the Multi Dock looks awesome and I think I'll get one eventually.
The bag I purchased (Wenger SAHARA Backpack - Wenger is the Swiss Army Knife company) fits the tablet snugly without much room for jitters (and lots of padding).
PICTURES
(Click the small version for a medium-sized picture. Click the "Large" button for the ultra-high resolution photo.)
Back of the tablet:
Large
Bottom of the tablet:
Large
Front of the tablet:
Large
Left side of the tablet:
Large
Right side of the tablet:
Large
The keyboard:
Large
The hinge:
Large
The tablet:
Large
My setup:
Large
Well, that's all for now. I'll report back after a few more days of class. Please don't hesitate to request any pics/reviews about the M4 or any piece of software you would like to know more about before you purchase. I'll post some more pics of the tablet (with annotations showing what all the ports are), the backpack, and anything else I can think of when I get some more free time. Until then, Sayonara.
Despite FedEx's claim that the tablet wouldn't arrive until Wednesday (today) at 10:30 AM, it arrived over 2 days earlier on Monday at 9:30 AM. I said I wouldn't post again until today before I knew the Tablet would be arriving so early, but I decided to wait anyway as that gave me some time to get to know it a bit more.
My desktop PC is a custom built Athlon XP 1600+ with 1024MB of RAM and a GeForce 5600. The Tecra M4 totally blows it away with the Pentium M 1.6 GHz processor, 1280 MB of RAM and a Geforce Go 6600. In fact, I haven't booted the desktop since I got the M4 - it can run everything the desktop can, and better too. (The desktop will soon be my Linux machine, and also empty space to back up this machine's data.) The SXGA+ (1400x1050) resolution looks extremely sharp. With the ClearType [http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/downloads/powertoys/xppowertoys.mspx] PowerToy from Microsoft, the text looks fantastic. My brother says it is a bit small for his liking, but for reference the text looks almost exactly the same size as your standard 12 pt font in Microsoft Word after it's been printed out. (Of course, that varies a bit depending on the application you're in, if you change the screen's resolution, etc.)
I am happy to report that my Tecra came with ZERO dead/stuck pixels, as opposed to some of the other reviews out there. [http://www.tabletpcreviewspot.com/default.asp?newsID=282] Unfortunately, I do notice a small area of shading in the bottom left and right corners of the tablet. From the corner up and over about 1 cm, there is a small triangle that is just a bit dimmer than the surroundings. It is not abrupt and barely noticable, but if I look for it, it can be somewhat annoying. The top corners are fine.
SETUP: OS/Hardware
As soon as I got the Tablet, the first thing I did was boot it up (of course), and make "a backup CD" of the hard drive image. Toshiba provides an easy to use utility for this, but the reason I say "a backup CD" in quotes is that its actually spanned across 8 CDs, and since I didn't get the DVD burner I had to use all 8 CDs. It took about 5 minutes per CD (twice that to verify the data), and when I was done I inserted in the first CD and rebooted. Nothing happened. I checked out the users manual, and the instructions said to put in the first CD and reboot. Nothing happened.
Turns out, you have to enter the BIOS (hold down ESC after booting the computer, and then press F1 when prompted). On the right side, in boot priority, make sure the CD or DVD drive is first (leftmost), and don't worry about the order beyond that. (I had to use LAN as second boot priority, the BIOS apparently won't let you set the priority manually, but gives only a few select presets to choose from.) Then the CD booted properly, and I did the restore that gives back the used HDD space (option 3) which took about an hour. First step on the new boot was to disable Themes and all visual effects (Control Panel->Performance), except for smoothing of font edges. Once I had deemed everything good and working, I shut down and installed my 1gb stick of memory from Newegg. I was planning to take pictures as I did it, but it turns out to be so easy I decided against it. Unscrew the cover, slide in the memory (it only fits one possible way, and it's made obvious by a little notch in the front end), and push until it clicks. It took me all of 10 seconds, and the User Guide instructions are more than adequate for the novice computer user. Then comes the fun part.
Spamware galore.
SETUP: UTILITIES
I know it's been said on every other review and blog out there, but there is a LOT of junk on this machine. I won't bother to list everything that was installed, but there was a lot, and I removed all of it. Simply go to Start->Control Panel->Add/Remove Programs, and remove anything that you know you don't want. If you don't know what it is, I'd suggest leaving it. I also suggest leaving all of the Toshiba Utilities (they all start with the word "Toshiba"). After I cleaned out Add/Remove Programs (except for AOL - it wouldn't remove, and I'm contemplating calling Toshiba to figure that one out), I turned off some of the applications from booting. To do this, simply go to Start->Run, and type "msconfig" (without quotes). Select the "Startup" tab, and deselect anything you don't want to boot up. I deselected msmsgs, CFSServ, and a few others. If you aren't sure what it is - leave it. That's my general rule of thumb. One thing that bugged me a helluvalot was the sheer number of system tray icons that come stock on the tablet. If they bug you too, you can remove them from startup through msconfig, or if it is a process you want running but don't need to see all the time, you can usually find a "hide icon" box in the applications preferences. I've since reduced the number to 6 on a default bootup:
tablet/pen settings
wireless
hdd protection
power
crossmenu
"safely remove hardware"
The "safely remove hardware" icon is related to the CD drive, and I'm not sure if there is a way to make this go away without just hacking the registry. (Let me know!)
The tablet/pen settings icon simply launches the Control Panel applet, but I can't figure out any way to make this go away. It's not something I click often, in fact I've never had to other than a few times out of sheer curiosity or to remember what was in there. Let me know if you know how to make this go away.
Wireless: Toshiba, for some reason or another, ships the M4 with 3 wireless management applications. The default is Windows XP itself, then there's Toshiba's own ConfigFree utility, and then there's the Intel PROSet application. The Intel PROSet application is far superior, it allows you to set up profiles for one-time use or multiple-use connections, and detailed configuration for each profile. When I'm at home, it picks my home network and signs on. At work, it picks the proper network again and signs on. Not that the Windows XP and ConfigFree utilities don't do this, but there are lots of configuration options available for the PROSet that aren't (or aren't easily accessible) in the others. To set up the PROSet application as I have, simply turn off ConfigFree from booting when Windows boots, there is a checkbox in the options of ConfigFree to that effect. Then start the PROSet tool, and allow it to take over for Windows (which will still be the default wireless software if you haven't changed it to ConfigFree or something else).
The power profiles are a GREAT feature of the M4, I can't get enough of them. There are default profiles for Full Power (I use this for gaming), High Power (I use this for large applications where the computer won't be operating at full power 100% of the time), Normal (I use this on AC just to browse the net and chat), DVD Playback and Presentation I have not yet used, and Long life which I use on battery power. On Long Life, I have defined 4 levels of screen brightness for 0-25%, 26-50%, 51-75%, 76-100% power. They are 1, 3, 4, and 5 respectively, and I'm consistently getting about 2 hours and 30 minutes of use from a full charge. While this isn't that much, it's enough for any length of time I'd need to go before being back on AC. Most of my classes are only 75 minutes, and besides, most of the rooms have AC available anyway.
I have set up the Cross Menu with my favorite/most-used dozen or so applications, so they are easily accessible in tablet mode. To set up the Cross Menu, hold down the button (closest button to the hinge ON the tablet's screen) for about 2 seconds. Go to the second menu down, and the leftmost icon, then press the button. When you add a menu, you can drag shortcuts to it from the desktop or Start menu, and they will appear when you hold the cross button (tap the button down a few times to see your customized menus). I've got Journal, OneNote, Math Journal, Firefox, and some other applications on there.
APPLICATIONS
For me, the application that's caused the most trouble so far is the TIP. It has stopped responding numerous times, in which case I have had to end it (ctrl+alt+del) and Run it again (TabTip.exe). When it works, it does work fairly well. I would not say there isn't room for improvement - in fact there is quite a bit. It usually recognizes my n's as r's (they resemble cursive r's, I suppose), and its awful at words that aren't in the dictionary. Fortunately I'm able to add words to the dictionary, and when I do that they are generally recognized better. All in all, just writing a paragraph (this one for example) would get 90+% recognition, which isn't bad. But in a long paragraph, correcting even 5% of the words is a royal pain. The handwriting recognition simply isn't there yet. But to be honest - that's not why I got the tablet. I got it to write on, not to type on (well, that's what the keyboard is for anyway).
In the writing department, I have yet to be absolutely stunned by every program that uses ink. So far this includes Journal, OneNote, everything in the Education and Experience packs, every ink-enabled PowerToy, Math Journal, MSN Messenger, Office 2003, Alias SketchBook, and the TIP (when it works, which is about 98% of the time - not enough considering how much I use it). I haven't used Journal aside from demo'ing the tablet yet, but when I do demo it the handwriting recognition is generally superb. There just aren't enough features to make it a worthwhile application to use a lot - it really is the NotePad of the Tablet PC, and it does its job perfectly. When I do need to take a quick note, I can see how it would come in handy.
However, for most of my note-taking so far I've used OneNote. OneNote is great, except when its not (which isn't very often). So far the only problem I've encountered is trying to draw where the little "handle" you can grab is. Instead of drawing, I either grab the handle or draw something weird looking. Today I wanted to put a dash in the front of a list entry, but the handle kept popping up where I wanted to draw it. Very frustrating. Aside from that little nuisance, I've set up folders for each class I have this semester, and a few sections in each folder (lecture notes, lab notes, homework, etc). I'm a math/physics major, and so I do a lot of drawing or writing equations. To that effect, when I am taking such notes I generally turn off the "input as handwriting" and leave only drawings, or turn off ink groups entirely (SP1 required to do this). I haven't had any actual classes yet, they start tomorrow. But I have been taking research/lab notes every day on the tablet since Monday. For that OneNote has performed its duty wonderfully.
MathJournal has fairly poor handwriting recognition, as far as I can tell. To pitch in my hand to remedy that, I've sent in a few hundred samples so far [http://www.xthink.com], so that hopefully MathJournal 2 will be better (and free!). When it does recognize what I'm trying to input, it is a neat little application. I guess it just doesn't like my handwriting - but I can't mold my handwriting to fit every application that comes out and takes a different style. I will wait until it is better, and until then use my trusty TI-89.
There are a ton of other programs and toys to talk about, but I will end this post here with a few comments:
Counter-Strike: Source and Guild Wars look and play FANTASTIC. i've got CS:S set on the reccomended "Advanced" settings but upped to 1400x1050 resolution, and get 31 FPS in the stress test (GF6600 Go). Guild Wars is completely maxed out and performs wonderfully and virtually framerate-skip free, even in big fights.
AIM and Google Talk work well with the TIP (it pops up over textboxes, as expected). Firefox doesn't. For Firefox, I'm always writing on the TIP at the bottom (which is a nuisance). URL recognition is horrible.
Keyboard layout/key placement is wonderful and well thought out. I RARELY use the Windows key, and more often than not it is just a nuisance (especially for those of us who use full screen games). I use the tilde fairly often, especially in games. It is in a convenient location, although it does sometimes get in the way of Alt (though I haven't had a lot of time to adjust yet).
The dual pointing device setup is also great. I have the little blue touchpoint set up as a multi-directional scroll wheel, the upper two buttons as back/middle-click, and the lower two as left/right. The touchpad also has scrolls which I use frequently, and a different application (customizable) can be set up to launch when each of the four corners is tapped.
The screen brightness is great anywhere 4 and up for most lighting. In high flourescent lighting, anything below that is likely to be a problem. In very bright flourescents, I could just barely see the screen at a brightness of 1. Not a condition I would like to work in. The viewing angles are admittedly poor, but this is not one of the strong/selling points of the M4. When in tablet mode laying in front of me on a desk of standard height, it is easily useable. But anyone sitting off to the side or using a high desk would need to lean over to get a clear view.
I highly reccomend a mouse and external monitor for your most-used computing stations (for me: the research lab and my home). If you can afford it, the Multi Dock looks awesome and I think I'll get one eventually.
The bag I purchased (Wenger SAHARA Backpack - Wenger is the Swiss Army Knife company) fits the tablet snugly without much room for jitters (and lots of padding).
PICTURES
(Click the small version for a medium-sized picture. Click the "Large" button for the ultra-high resolution photo.)
Back of the tablet:
Large
Bottom of the tablet:
Large
Front of the tablet:
Large
Left side of the tablet:
Large
Right side of the tablet:
Large
The keyboard:
Large
The hinge:
Large
The tablet:
Large
My setup:
Large
Well, that's all for now. I'll report back after a few more days of class. Please don't hesitate to request any pics/reviews about the M4 or any piece of software you would like to know more about before you purchase. I'll post some more pics of the tablet (with annotations showing what all the ports are), the backpack, and anything else I can think of when I get some more free time. Until then, Sayonara.
posted by Greves at
22:33
|
5 comments
