This is truly an awesome slate computer. Here is some startup info which may come in handy since this product has new features which may be confusing to those who are accustomed to standard laptops, etc. I will add more setup info updates as I encounter new issues. Keep in mind, this slate is a full computer. It is not a toy IPad or kindle or Blackberry. This is for business professionals. You can use full programs on this. It also has USB connections for external devices or flash drives. It also uses the micro memory chips. It has every capability as any full computer.
This review includes details on the following subjects:
#1 finding the missing Pen
#2 Discharged Battery. DOA
#3 The first power on & Automated system setup
#4 Login the first time
#5 mini memory card slot
#6 Thumb button for desktop windows
#7 External keyboard setup
#8 USB connection
#9 write down passwords & codes
#10 external devices; CD, hard drive, USB drive
#11 other features
#12 Important settings
#13 Pen tablet functionality & OCR longhand to text conversion
#14 Older devices & software
#15 Glitch warning
#16 comments & extras
#1 The pen is not missing. The computer actually has a very cute hidden compartment on the upper right corner which has a tiny door to open & your pen will pop up so you can retrieve it. You don't need to press hard to write.
#2 The computer will likely arrive with the batteries fully discharged. The purpose is to get the new owner to do a full 8 hour charge. Batteries have memories & if you only do half charges without using the full capacity of the battery, it will shorten the life of your batteries. On subsequent charges, use as much battery as possible before each charge but don't drain it totally because it may harm your computer or data.
#3 If you do a dumb thing like powering up your new computer before it has charged (like I did, even though I know better) you will have activated the computer startup, so you will have to let it finish loading the settings. Hopefully, you will have plugged it in to charge so the startup process is not interrupted. Nor should the charging be interrupted.
#4 Once it has completed the settings, it will want you to enter a username & password. Use your stylus pen. As soon as you place the pen on the screen in the boxes, a keyboard will appear on the screen which you can use with your pen to complete the task. For future uses, you can find a keyboard icon in the lower left corner during logins & after booting, you will have a sliding tab on the left for longhand input conversion.
#5 mini memory card. There is a tiny door on the lower left side of your computer on the rear casing, just behind the USB slots. You push on this tiny door so it will popup. Then you can pull it out & plug in your memory Card. The mini card is easily removed by pushing down on it to pop it up like you did with the plastic door insert. These mini Cards are like the ones used in cell phones. Retain the plastic insert you removed from the computer so you can replace it to protect the slot connections if you later remove the mini card.
#6 There is a thumb button on the right side of the screen to bring up the windows & programs & thumb through a cascade of programs you have open on your desktop.
#7 When you are ready to add the keyboard, & have installed the batteries in the keyboard device, there is a trick button on the bottom of the keyboard near the outer edge of the keyboard battery compartment which is identical to the battery compartment door release. This is the power on button. It will fool you because it looks just like a second battery compartment door release. Next to the keyboard power on button, is an indented Microswitch to press for adding the keyboard device to your computer (after you have opened your control panel to add a Bluetooth device). You really don't need the external keyboard with the pen but it is a neat little keyboard.
#8 To open the USB slots on the left side of your computer, you will need a small screwdriver or paperclip or perhaps your fingernail to pop the doors open. These are very delicate and will eventually break off. Pull outward gently, then swing downward on the delicate plastic hinges to allow clearance to plug in your USB connector in the USB port above the open door. The doors swing downward toward the bottom (back). You can plug in a normal sized USB for your external device. Just make sure the doors are opened and GENTLY pulled downward and out of the way. The doors do not come off so you can reclose them to protect the slot & contacts.
#9 Word to the wise, keep an ink pen & paper handy to write down passwords & codes. It will pop these up without warning during setup of various functions.
#10 You can use the USB connections on your Asus to plug in external CD's, hard drives, USB drives etc. The system should then try to automatically add the device. Or, you can go to control panel and select the option to add the device. Buy an external CD/DVD player/recorder if you don't have one. They are cheap & will allow you to install new software, etc. You also cannot use your system restoration disks without an external CD/DVD device. It would also be a good idea to buy a USB flash drive if you're moving documents between computers. This way you can quickly transfer the files you are working on from one computer to the other.
#11 Other unique features include a USB power connection on the AC cord transformer where you can plug in things like a fan, kindle or hub which use a USB for power or charging. This is not a data port. It is for power only. You also have a button for screen orientation on the top left corner of your slate. 3rd button from the left. If you see a red dot beside the button, your screen is locked into position. If you unlock the screen, it will change orientation based on which direction your computer is held. Basically, which end is up. You can lock it into your preferred viewing position with this button. You also have a camera at the top of your screen. Unless you like sharing your business, I suggest some removable tape to cover the camera unless you wish to be seen at your worst. We can disable the camera & microphone under the control panel but phones aren't the only things that can be tapped by authorities & hackers so make sure you disable them 3 ways. Mechanically, such as tape with easy to remove glue. Disable them under control panel. Then under adobe flash settings. These are the settings which pop up asking for drive storage space when you are watching certain online streaming videos. There is an option on that same tiny screen to deny access to your camera & microphone. Since I never use either, I also remove the drivers. I take no chances.
#12 There are important settings you need to do under your control panel such as your power settings & screensaver. Otherwise, the computer will constantly disable your screen & place your computer into sleep modes while you are in the middle of various tasks & downloads. You can find the Control panel settings much better if you go to the upper right corner to "view by" and select "large icons". It is default set to "categories" but you can see each individual control panel option much better with the large icon option I suggested. Under the power management settings, you will need to select your own timing & actions under the power sittings. Personally, I cannot tolerate a computer which arbitrarily places my computer into sleep mode while I'm downloading a file or reading. You can also access the power settings by clicking on your power icon on the task bar.
#13 The pen interface is excellent. I've been waiting for a full pen tablet computer for almost 30 years. They finally caught up the technology. It is a fabulous device. The Wacom longhand to text conversion is much better than the Bamboo pen tablet. The OCR is much more refined. My only complaint is the pen does not have the mouse click buttons on it. I constantly use these features & my other Wacom pens do not work with this system, so I will have to figure out how to deal with this problem.
You may also wish to disable your touch screen settings or calibrate your pen, especially if you only use the pen for mouse & text & don't use your fingers. Disabling the touch feature under the pen tablet pc option of control panel, will keep you from bumping the screen while writing & crashing your tasks. There are numerous features for your pen. You can also calibrate the pen cursor if it is offset from the boxes as mine was. Be very careful to look in the corners of the screen for the calibration crosshairs. Do not touch the screen with the pen until you find the crosshair in one of the corners of your screen. The crosshairs are overlaid on lines framing the screen & will easily be overlooked. If you tapped your pen on the screen anywhere else, your cursor will be reset so severely it will not function & you will have a problem dumping the new settings if you saved them.
#14 Adding older devices & software. You will also need to go to your administrative windows features & enable the scan & fax options if you plan to install one or use those devices. This can be loads of fun. I strongly recommend keeping your slate plugged into AC during this process because you'll probably run the battery down before you are done. Keep in mind this is a Windows 7 (64) operating system. Most devices are for XP (32) or some other (32) operating system.
· You can plug in your device & see if the Windows system can automatically add your device.
· Then you can try to load your product software disk.
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