A new ultraportable laptop option

bohous · Feb 24, 2015

Whaaaaaa?

Lefty on the Mound · Mar 8, 2015

I bought one of these and started migrating my stuff over to it on Friday. 
 
This thing boots up from full shutdown in seven seconds. 
 
The 256 Gb SSD drive comes divided into two logical drives. Drive D has 128Gb free and Drive C has the operating system. 
 
Windows 8.1 will take some getting used to. It sucks less than Windows 8. 
 
It will take me a while to get used to the left and right trackpad buttons which are actually just the lower edge of the pad. The whole pad rocks when you click one of the "buttons". Without physical separation between the buttons and the pad, I've found myself inadvertently moving the mouse pointer. I expect to adapt to it. 
 
The screen display is mallet than I had before (Dell) but the quality of what I'm seeing is better. 
 
All in all, I like it very much. Based on the price, I like it very, very much. 
 
So far I like

Nick Kaufman · Mar 8, 2015

Does it make sense to partition the drive into two logical ones?

SumnerH · Mar 8, 2015

Nick Kaufman said:
Does it make sense to partition the drive into two logical ones?

In this case I'd definitely prefer having a single partition unless I had an unusual usage pattern in mind; as it is the main upshot of partitioning it this way is that you could wind up over- or under-allocating space to the OS, either depriving yourself of storage or making it harder to clear up enough space for a future OS upgrade or whatever.

SumnerH · Mar 9, 2015

Couperin47 said:
It doesn't 'waste' any space. It allows far easier/smaller backup of what many consider essential. If you want to backup everything that only requires you specifiy a 2nd letter. I've never been able to identify a downside.

Not that it's smart*, but the backup thing is a total red herring; you can just as easily specify to exclude \Windows or whatever directories you want as you can a drive letter--indeed, partitions are a completely orthogonal concept from drive letters, and most OSes don't even have that absurd distinction to begin with (a unified namespace is a good thing). You can separate the OS into its own directory (with its own permissions) without imposing an arbitrary restriction on how the free drive space can be used by partitioning things.

In the case of a single SSD, partitioning things off is nothing but downside in the common case.

*starting with a full backup is asking for trouble. Even if you think that you have all the media to do an OS install on its own, you're liable to pick some different options during the install or not tweak some settings the same way after or something. It's trivial to do incremental backups after that.

Nick Kaufman · Mar 12, 2015

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dAuB0konzzQ

bowiac · Mar 13, 2015

Couperin47 said:
Now that we have seen the latest MacBook, and it's prices, the Asus looks even better than it did beforehand....btw since some may, like, actually want to connect their new laptop to well anything .... don't forget to add in the extra $79 for the passive dongle you need to buy...( afaik they have not figured out a way to prevent Monoprice from offering a $5 option to this). I guess it makes you an Apple hater to suggest they are actually trolling their fans......

It actually does make you a hater, yes.

The Asus looks like a decent machine, though I'd still probably rather pay the extra $100 for the i3 version of the 2015 Dell XPS 13.

Marceline · Mar 13, 2015

bowiac said:
It actually does make you a hater, yes.

The Asus looks like a decent machine, though I'd still probably rather pay the extra $100 for the i3 version of the 2015 Dell XPS 13.

I ended up picking up the i5 version of the Asus (UX303LA-DS51T) for $850, and it's a great machine, although it's a bit heavier as a result of the touchscreen (3.25 lbs). I had considered the Dell but was hearing of issues with the brightness on the display that hadn't been resolved.

bowiac · Mar 17, 2015

Couperin47 said:
Truth be told, I'd probably never buy any of these ultrabooks, it may be generational, but even at only $700, the idea of a computer that is basically a 2 year disposable item just doesn't compute for me. There is now and there is never likely to be any reasonable way to replace the battery in any of these....even if there ever did evolve a process for factory replacement, you'd still have to lose the thing for weeks and hand it over with everything you have on it... or do a complete backup and then wipe it prior. I'm also guessing the cost would be close to prohibitive...

It is relatively easy to replace the battery on the XPS 13.

Marceline · Mar 17, 2015

Couperin47 said:
Truth be told, I'd probably never buy any of these ultrabooks, it may be generational, but even at only $700, the idea of a computer that is basically a 2 year disposable item just doesn't compute for me. There is now and there is never likely to be any reasonable way to replace the battery in any of these....even if there ever did evolve a process for factory replacement, you'd still have to lose the thing for weeks and hand it over with everything you have on it... or do a complete backup and then wipe it prior. I'm also guessing the cost would be close to prohibitive...

I think they are great - As mentioned above I went with the UX303LA, and I was able to upgrade it to a 512gb SSD (standard 2.5" form factor) very easily. I'm counting on at least 3-4 years of life out of this thing, although at a somewhat higher cost than the UX305FA you were referring to.

On replaceable batteries, I've come to realize it's more of a peace of mind thing than a useful feature. I've always insisted on buying phones and laptops with easily replaceable batteries. However, after giving it some thought, I don't think I've ever actually replaced a phone battery or a laptop battery.

bowiac · Mar 20, 2015

I bought and returned the 2015 XPS 13. The trackpad was just too iffy. No point in a ultraportable that needs a wireless mouse.

In spite of my excitement for going back to windows, I bought a MacBook Pro instead.

Blacken · Mar 20, 2015

Once again for emphasis: if you give even the weakest, soupiest shit about user experience, the MacBook Pro is the only Windows laptop worth considering.

Plus, you get OS X on top of that.

Blacken · Mar 20, 2015

And if you're the kind of neanderthal who touches their laptop screen, you should die in a grease fire.

bowiac · Mar 20, 2015

My once concern was Office for Mac, but rumor has it that the 2016 update preview is pretty decent with respect to Excel.

Comfortably Lomb · Mar 20, 2015

Blacken said:
Once again for emphasis: if you give even the weakest, soupiest shit about user experience, the MacBook Pro is the only Windows laptop worth considering.

Plus, you get OS X on top of that.

So I was using my brother's brand-spanking-new work laptop for a minute the other day... it's one of those workstation grade Dells that basically have whatever the most powerful stuff is right now. The $2-3k package. The trackpad was about the same thing as what my old 2002-era Dell laptop featured. It's worse than my 2007ish Macbook that still had a physical button to push to click and obviously doesn't compare to the modern one. It's amazing that Dell hasn't even tried to keep up with Mac's infinitely superior trackpad.

bowiac said:
My once concern was Office for Mac, but rumor has it that the 2016 update preview is pretty decent with respect to Excel.

Word on Mac certainly behaves slightly differently than on PC. It's infuriating if you're switching back and forth between computers when editing/reviewing docs.

B H Kim · Mar 20, 2015

Comfortably Lomb said:
So I was using my brother's brand-spanking-new work laptop for a minute the other day... it's one of those workstation grade Dells that basically have whatever the most powerful stuff is right now. The $2-3k package. The trackpad was about the same thing as what my old 2002-era Dell laptop featured. It's worse than my 2007ish Macbook that still had a physical button to push to click and obviously doesn't compare to the modern one. It's amazing that Dell hasn't even tried to keep up with Mac's infinitely superior trackpad.

Word on Mac certainly behaves slightly differently than on PC. It's infuriating if you're switching back and forth between computers when editing/reviewing docs.

The Office 2016 beta version of Word for Mac (available here) is much closer in appearance and function to Word for Windows.

And I just bought the new 13" MacBook Pro (retina) this week and I couldn't be happier. The new trackpad design works great. I'd been using it for a couple of days before I even remembered that the trackpad doesn't move any more.

wade boggs chicken dinner · Mar 20, 2015

bowiac said:
I bought and returned the 2015 XPS 13. The trackpad was just too iffy. No point in a ultraportable that needs a wireless mouse.

In spite of my excitement for going back to windows, I bought a MacBook Pro instead.

I know you've been looking for a computer for a while. Did you think about the new HP Spectre x360? http://www.pcworld.com/article/2890334/hands-on-with-hps-spectre-x360-laptop-a-veritable-hp-microsoft-collaboration.html

Blacken · Mar 20, 2015

B H Kim said:
And I just bought the new 13" MacBook Pro (retina) this week and I couldn't be happier. The new trackpad design works great. I'd been using it for a couple of days before I even remembered that the trackpad doesn't move any more.

I haven't gotten hands-on time with it, but it sounds really weird to me. I haven't heard a lot of commentary either way on it, so this is interesting to hear.

Blacken · Mar 20, 2015

wade boggs chicken dinner said:
I know you've been looking for a computer for a while. Did you think about the new HP Spectre x360? http://www.pcworld.com/article/2890334/hands-on-with-hps-spectre-x360-laptop-a-veritable-hp-microsoft-collaboration.html

I've tried one. It remains a piece of shit among pieces of shit.

That Apple can not only do a better trackpad than literally everyone else, but they're the only ones to backport that goodness to Windows, should be embarrassing.

Nick Kaufman · Mar 20, 2015

From the little I ve seen, I like the Samsung Ativ Book 9 series. I wonder why they aren't more popular and not so easy to find in stores. May be it's because they re on the pricey side.

bowiac · Mar 20, 2015

wade boggs chicken dinner said:
I know you've been looking for a computer for a while. Did you think about the new HP Spectre x360? http://www.pcworld.com/article/2890334/hands-on-with-hps-spectre-x360-laptop-a-veritable-hp-microsoft-collaboration.html

I didn't, no. It looks interesting I'll say. I'm going to try and track down a version at Best Buy, so I can try the keyboard and touchpad.

Blacken · Mar 20, 2015

Nick Kaufman said:
From the little I ve seen, I like the Samsung Ativ Book 9 series. I wonder why they aren't more popular and not so easy to find in stores. May be it's because they re on the pricey side.

Microcenter can't give them away fast enough. Huge price cuts when I tried to go buy a Windows machine for game development (and walked out and dual-booted my 15" MBP instead).

(Guess what problem they have, too?)

EricFeczko · Mar 21, 2015

Blacken said:
Once again for emphasis: if you give even the weakest, soupiest shit about user experience, the MacBook Pro is the only Windows laptop worth considering.

Plus, you get OS X on top of that.

Depends on what you're using it for. Apple, insisiting on its "unique" user experience, uses an odd X-wndows configuration that can mess things up if you're trying to login to a remote system via ssh.
Some of the programs we use for imaging analysis can't handle the xkb configuration reported by OS X computers; literally, you can't type things into those programs.
I'm aware that its fixable, but try explaining how to fix it to grad students (not mine) that have never heard of ssh before grad school.

Not to mention that Java sucks on OS X, especially for i/o handling, or at least used to for about a decade.
And where's damn "home" and "end" key?

Don't me wrong. I've got my gripes about windows systems too (Direct X), but the idea that one laptop fits all is simply wrong.

bowiac said:
I bought and returned the 2015 XPS 13. The trackpad was just too iffy. No point in a ultraportable that needs a wireless mouse.

I've never really understood this. In what situtations is the wireless mouse untenable? I'm only asking because I've never found one, and I take my Lenovo Yoga nearly everywhere.

Blacken said:
And if you're the kind of neanderthal who touches their laptop screen, you should die in a grease fire.

Better than using a trackpad with your arms in front of you like a macaque. You do know that the touchscreens can be easily cleaned, right?

bowiac · Mar 21, 2015

I have no great love of OS X. I've been using it since the original MacBook Air, and I still find it harder to use than Windows (granted, this is mostly laziness on my part).

As far as the trackpad goes however, anytime I'm in transit I don't want to be using a wireless mouse. I'm not yet fancy enough to fly business class, so the space needed for a wireless mouse is a big deal.

The other major use is in bed. Like many people, I use my laptop for about an hour in bed before going to sleep. That's a pretty inconvenient time to need a mousepad.

SumnerH · Mar 21, 2015

bowiac said:
As far as the trackpad goes however, anytime I'm in transit I don't want to be using a wireless mouse. I'm not yet fancy enough to fly business class, so the space needed for a wireless mouse is a big deal.

The other major use is in bed. Like many people, I use my laptop for about an hour in bed before going to sleep. That's a pretty inconvenient time to need a mousepad.

Yep. It sucks on the train and plane, and when I'm sitting outside--all the places I use my laptop the most often.

A mouse is fine if I'm sitting at a desk, but that generally means I'm at home or at work in front of my desktop.

HriniakPosterChild · Mar 22, 2015

EricFeczko said:
And where's damn "home" and "end" key?

Next to PgUp and PgDn, right?

SoxFanInCali · Mar 22, 2015

I can't stand touchpads, Apple's included, so Lenovo has me as long as they keep offering the trackpoint.

derekson · Mar 22, 2015

HriniakPosterChild said:
Next to PgUp and PgDn, right?

On the MacBook keyboards, Fn-left arrow is Home, Fn-right arrow is End, Fn-up arrow is Page Up, Fn-down arrow is Page Down.

HriniakPosterChild · Mar 23, 2015

Like I said...

bowiac · Mar 23, 2015

This is a legit annoyance I agree. It's one of those things I wonder if it's just stubbornness preventing them from adopting.

Blacken · Mar 23, 2015

EricFeczko said:
Depends on what you're using it for. Apple, insisiting on its "unique" user experience, uses an odd X-wndows configuration that can mess things up if you're trying to login to a remote system via ssh.
Some of the programs we use for imaging analysis can't handle the xkb configuration reported by OS X computers; literally, you can't type things into those programs.
I'm aware that its fixable, but try explaining how to fix it to grad students (not mine) that have never heard of ssh before grad school.

Sure, XQuartz is adventurous. So's X on Windows, too, though, depending on which version you've got and what your locale is. This is an institutional problem you have somebody solve once and post somewhere, though.

Not to mention that Java sucks on OS X, especially for i/o handling, or at least used to for about a decade.

Hasn't in the entire time I've used it.

And where's damn "home" and "end" key?

Cmd-left, cmd-right. OS X has an emacs-derived set of key bindings and they work in that context.

Don't me wrong. I've got my gripes about windows systems too (Direct X), but the idea that one laptop fits all is simply wrong.

My Mac runs Windows just as well as it does OS X. So, yes, unless you're the kind of gorilla-arming cretin who smears finger-goo on your monitor, a Mac does fit the overwhelming majority of people and will do so to a higher level of quality and ease-of-use than the alternatives. It would be nice if credible alternatives existed, because I have no real love for Apple (and I use no iOS products)--but they don't.

I've never really understood this. In what situtations is the wireless mouse untenable? I'm only asking because I've never found one, and I take my Lenovo Yoga nearly everywhere.

Personally: any. Laptops exist to be used in a portable context. You are officially That Guy when you're using a mouse at Starbucks. Never be That Guy.

I have a mouse for my desk at home, but I also have three monitors and an external keyboard to go with it.

derekson · Mar 24, 2015

After I got used to using the glass trackpad on my MacBook Air, I switched my desktop to a Magic Trackpad (before eventually ditching both for a 15" MBP). The only thing I was still using a mouse for was gaming (when I was still doing some gaming on the computer).

johnmd20 · Mar 24, 2015

Blacken said:
Cmd-left, cmd-right. OS X has an emacs-derived set of key bindings and they work in that context.

It's command-up and command-down to go home and end. But your point remains. The Apple trackpad is ridiculously better than any other laptop trackpad in creation. It's so good I use the apple trackpad on my iMac instead of a mouse. The gestures are especially great.

Blacken · Mar 24, 2015

I wasn't sure if he meant Windows home/end or Mac home/end. (Mac home/end actually kind of sucks, and I'm tripped up every time I have to use Xcode until my fingers catch up because my normal tools all use Windows home/end.)

johnmd20 · Mar 25, 2015

Blacken said:
I wasn't sure if he meant Windows home/end or Mac home/end. (Mac home/end actually kind of sucks, and I'm tripped up every time I have to use Xcode until my fingers catch up because my normal tools all use Windows home/end.)

No worries. I guess I assumed you were talking about Mac b/c PC keyboards have the home and end keys on the keyboard.

HriniakPosterChild · Mar 26, 2015

johnmd20 said:
It's command-up and command-down to go home and end. But your point remains. The Apple trackpad is ridiculously better than any other laptop trackpad in creation. It's so good I use the apple trackpad on my iMac instead of a mouse. The gestures are especially great.

I'm sorry, but the judges were looking for insanely great.

johnmd20 · Mar 26, 2015

It's insanely great.

A new ultraportable laptop option

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