Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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49 of 50 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
The Ultimate UMPC - Excellent, October 26, 2007
After researching for the best UMPC for 2 months. I finally settle on the U810.
PROS
This UMPC is actually quite fast for the the specs. It can play all types of video smoothly and handle intensive website with tons of flash very well. Internet connection is as fast as my Asus G1 (2Ghz duo core 2). LCD is sharp and clear but text a little hard to read. But this is easily overcome by increasing the dpi from 96 to 125. Now I can read at an arm's length. The keyboard is what I like most. Its small but manage to type at quite a good speed. Keyboard has also a good feel. Battery is impressive. It runs 5 hrs with normal usage (surfing and running office). I also like the clam shell design. Its actually quite 80s looking (which I like) but yet has a modern feel. I also like the fact that it is slim compare to oqo2. Mouse control is also good (I am use to IBM little red dot type) and u can actually click on it.
CONS
Thumb typing is slow. Its too big to thumb type. Unless u have big foot's hands u will make alot of mistake typing. THis is made worse by the fact that lots of keys has 2 or 3 function. So if u need to use the arrow key u need to press the FN key and arrow key together. But u can remap the key with "keytweak". Works like a charm. This thing also heats up quite fast and the hot air blow directly at your right hand when using hand held mode. The fan is also loud but its typical for any laptop.
Why I choose U810 as compare to other UMPC
1) Can load youtubes, intensive flash webpage and runs DVD quality video w/o stuttering. (Nokia N800, samsung q1 ultra & everun fail this test. They all stutter and freeze once in a while)
2) Screen size is good at 5.6" 1024x600 (I actually want to get sony UX but I realise that the screen is too tiny for a 1024x600 - but sony screen is way better in terms of contrast and is ultra sharp.)
3) A real Keyboard (beats all UMPC except Kohjinsha - 2nd best is oqo 02 but oqo cost much more in terms of similar performance)
4) A Laptop + Tablet design and in small form (10 stars for that) - This is the cutest Laptop I have ever seen. Small and powerful. (There is no UMPC like this - closes is KohJinSha and flip start. But flip start is too expensive beside u810 can do flip start at $500 lower)
5) One of the fastest UMPC now. And for the price and performance (I mean not specs but real performance) - no other UMPC can beat
One more thing I wanna add. Get the Vista version. Lot of ppl will oppose me but I think Vista is the future. I have done an XP /Vista comparision. I prefer vista cause its faster (not application performance) but launching programs. Vista has a superfetch function which store your most use program in its memory. I can launch my email, firefox and winamp faster than XP - cause Xp runs from the HDD (which is 4200rpm). 1 Gb of ram is actually more than enough. I actually scale down my VISTA to a VISTA "lite version" by turning off all those services i dun need (a whopping 20% of memory), Tune down aero display and use Tune up utilities to optimize it. Right now my u810 uses only 418mb of ram (before was 770mb) and leave the rest for superfetch.
In conclusion, this UMPC works like a laptop yet small enough to flip start anywhere & can handle application at reasonable fast speed. I would have given 5 stars if not for that stupid fan blowing my hand and over mapping of keyboards.
Update dec 10 2007: I have reply to a comment on how to improve U810 performane. Click on the comments.
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36 of 37 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
The Most Complete Review You'll Find, May 13, 2008
Fujitsu U810 Ultra-Mobile PC (UMPC) Review
SCREEN
The screen is surprisingly clear and bright. As with most laptops, there are handy brightness controls built into the keyboard by way of the Function key (and S and D keys). I was pleasantly surprised at how dim I could kick the screen down in low light environments (saves battery power). There no graininess, the screen quality is surprisingly clear. Crystal clear, in fact - something I was not expecting. There is only a slight lighting/brightness issue that is based on viewing angle because the U810 makes use of basically a large PDA screen (stylus/touch capabilities). If you're looking at it fairly straight, it's nice and bright, but fades if you're trying to look at it from an angle (lust like any other LCD screen). Since the screen is also touchscreen, the U810 has a stylus. The touchscreen, by the way, works great if you go into Device Manager and tweak it so that it doesn't desensitize itself to save power - that keeps it nice and sensitive with no need for multiple taps to "wake it back up" after a few seconds of activity. The screen's resolution is sharp and clear at 1024x600, and with these last remaining years of this 40 year old's perfect eyesight, represents no problems for me. I'm enjoying it while it lasts, but for those whose time has already come for eyesight correction, the features we're already familiar with in the Windows operating system are there to assist. Further, the unit comes with magnification software preinstalled for further functionality.
KEYBOARD
Ah, yes - the controversial keyboard. You may be interested in knowing that I am typing every bit of this review on the U810 keyboard. Simply put, the buttons are too small for normal touch typing. And no matter what kind of typing style you adopt, it will be slow and you will be making lots of mistakes. Due to multifunction operation of arrow and tab keys, not to mention completely absent end and home keys (which can be re-added by programming the programmable keys - keep reading), quick cursor position changes are fairly cumbersome no matter what combination of keys and built-in mouse you use. You WILL be coming up with your own method of typing, and I'm willing to bet it involves your forefingers. I've read a lot about how people are trying to figure out if the size of their hands will help/hinder their use of the U810's keyboard. Pay attention to this statement, it's important: No matter how big or tiny your hands are, they are too big for normal typing on the U810. Got it? Good. I personally use both forefinger and middle finger on each hand to type and usually hold the unit still in my lap with pinky fingers on the sides and thumbs in front if the ride is bumpy enough. Next important statement: You will also find that the unit is really too large to thumb type with PDA/"Crackberry" style, and if you do hold it that way, (by it's sides), you'll have a little tiny jet of warm air blowing on your right hand/forefinger, as the cooling fan exhaust is right under the mouse control. Further, thumb-typing might produce too much pressure on the true laptop keys, which are very sensitive and only require very light contact. Buy the U810 knowing that you will be learning a new (but easily adapted) way to type.
COOL ADDITIONAL KEYS
Fuji was smart enough to add a few things to ease the uncertainty about that keyboard. There is an additional button on the right side of the screen right under the fingerprint reader. It has a symbol on it that looks like "CaltD", but much more symbol-like. I could not figure out what it was, so I just hit it for the sake of it to see what would happen. Lo and behold, it is a CTRL-ALT-DEL button. Now that's handy! Almost as handy as the other programmable keys by the mouse stick, which allowed me to get my HOME and END keys back! Also, there are three buttons at the bottom middle of the screen itself. The left-most button turns the keyboard headlights on and off (see next review item). The middle button brings up the on-screen keyboard for tablet mode. The right-most button changes the screen orientation from panoramic to tablet mode and back again (orientation can be changed to all 4 sides).
KEYBOARD HEADLIGHTS
As for the keyboard lighting with the little LED headlights, it's cool - and important - enough to get it's own mention. I've read mixed reviews about the keyboard "headlights" (well-named by Fuji). I actually think Fuji hit a home run and people are too dumb to realize it. Allow me to explain. Since nearly all regular laptops don't have lit keyboards of any kind, and since PDAs and cell phones don't have real keyboards of any kind, I think Fuji found a brilliant combination here, a perfect match. Had the 6x2.5" keyboard been backlit like a smartphone, it would have used too much of the battery, warmed up the keyboard that much more, and the real laptop keyboard would have to be replaced with one of those annoying, cheapo, touch-style smartphone keypads (no thanks, I'm sick of those things and I hate the way they feel - it's the last thing I want to see on a laptop). Though the headlights are not perfect and do not light up the keyboard brightly (which would be annoying actually), the headlights DO work and you actually can type in total darkness. They also use barely any battery power (they're LEDs - bright ones for their size), and will make any laptop owner jealous when they see you don't have to annoy other passengers on the redeye flight by turning on overhead lighting (the other passengers trying to sleep next to you will love you for this). This was an extremely welcome feature of the unit, and it's also different enough to turn heads in such an "everybody has a toy strapped on" environment, which I thought was a lot of fun. I also have to mention that the headlights are hidden brilliantly - when they're off, you can't even see where they are on the unit. Brilliant camouflage. Matter of fact, they're 100% invisible.
AND DON'T FORGET...
One last item to cover on the keyboard. Do not forget Vista's built-in voice control. I have not tried it yet, but the U810 has a great microphone for the job. Think about the possibilities here.
PORTABILITY/WEIGHT/SIZE
The first time you open up the box and pull it out of the styrofoam, you immediately recognize that this unit is heavier than it looks. You are instantly woken up to the fact that this is a real laptop and not some cheap little plastic toy. I feel it important to stress that this thing is too big and heavy to put in a pocket (in other words, it's small and light , but not that small and light), which means I can't slam it around like I do with my PDA (PocketPC). It needs to be carried in a protective case of some type (see next item). The portability of this unit is fantastic. I find myself taking it with me to restaurants on lunch breaks. And it's so dinky that when the food shows up, I sill get to leave it on the table while I eat. Years of PDA ownership has allowed me to grow accustomed to watching movies with headphones on while I eat. Compared to my PDA, the U810 makes it feel like I'm sitting in front of a plasma. :-)
PROTECTIVE CASE
Take heed - The U810 does not come with any protective case of any kind whatsoever. I went with the "convertible bump case" (there is a non-convertible version), it's absolutely fantastic. Some real brilliance went into that case. The convertible bump case is vented and accessible, and it allows you to use the unit in any mode while still in a protective case (think about that for a minute). It also has a shoulder strap that connects with heavy duty metal clips, which causes the U810 to become a true, sturdy road warrior package. I will state that the case also covers up the front status lights quite a bit, so I often find myself pulling down the edge of the case a bit to see if the hard drive is busy. The case/U810 is so small, I carry my U810 right under and slightly behind my right arm, slung over my left shoulder and UNDERNEATH my jacket - the world's first "concealed carry" laptop. Without taking the sling (holster?) off, I just whip it around and set the unit on my lap (if something else is on my lap as a booster) or any table in front of me and start working. When I gotta move, I just close the lid (which I have set for hibernate), zip 'er up, flip it down to my side and off I go. The unit might be too big and a tad too heavy to stick in a pocket, but slung over the shoulder in the convertible bump case makes it virtually disappear - a grin will creep across your face knowing that this t little tiny thing over your shoulder that you can barely tell is there is a full-blown laptop.
STYLUS
Not much to say about the stylus other than it's your standard everyday PDA variety stylus. I saw someone complain about the size of the stylus and that it was too small to use. That person was probably unaware that the stylus is telescopic and expands out a full additional inch - and a very critical inch, too. Placement of the stylus at the top of the screen is the only realistic place it could have been mounted. If I had designed this unit, that's exactly where I would have put it. I do note, however, that the stylus is covered up by the bump case - which explains why the bump case has a place where you can relocate the stylus.
FINGERPRINT/BIO SCANNER
I did set up the fingerprint scanner to see how it worked. It's a little slow for the scan prompt to come up, but the scanner itself works great. The OmniPass software must be installed before you can make use of it (OmniPass install files come pre-loaded on the U810, just waiting for you to click on the install icon). It's cool if you need that different kind of security, but I don't...
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14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Closest thing yet to the UMPC ideal, January 3, 2008
Microsoft's UMPC or Origami specification, like many of their speculations such as the first iterations of Dot Net, was fuzzy and left people wondering might emerge. Now as the Microsoft Tablet PC spec celebrates its fifth birthday, Fujitsu has, in my opinion, come the closest yet to realizing the UMPC goal: a very small, lightweight, affordable computer that runs Windows with few, if any limitations, anytime, anywhere.
To be sure, Fujitsu calls the U810 (U1010 in outside the US) a mini-laptop.
Many of us lusted for the Toshiba Libretto when it was released several years back or the various lightweight ultra-portable Sony Vaio computers.
Fujitsu has essentially pushed past them and others including the OQO. There is nothing remotely near the U810 at this price point. The Asus Eee doesn't qualify because it lacks the 40GB hard drive of the U810.
In terms of operation, the U810 is distressingly far from perfect. In fact, if you are going to live with the U810, you're going to have to change the way you think and use computers. But the changes are worth it.
The package itself is small. You can put it in a large jacket pocket. The 5.6" screen is wonderful, tack sharp. To deal with the high resolution, I had to default to a Windows theme with extra-large icons and use the Windows Accessibility options to set the default screen font and icon size larger. Once I did that, my aging eyes had no problem with the screen. In web browsers, like Firefox and Internet Explorer, you will find yourself using the Zoom option frequently especially with poorly designed pages that have abnormally small fonts to begin with.
This is a full bore Windows machine. This model is shipped with Windows Vista Business and includes a Windows XP "downgrade" disc. With only 1GB of RAM and a relatively slow CPU, I "downgraded" to Windows XP within a couple of days. Vista is simply too bloated and slow and user unfriendly for the U810.
On the other hand, Windows XP Pro SP2 runs beautifully. I typically have a half-dozen applications open and processing speed is more than adequate.
My first thought was that the 40GB hard drive would be insufficient. However, throw a 16GB Compact Flash in and you have plenty of storage for music and movies. You can also us SC cards up to 2GB. Be aware that the U810 may not support some SDHC cards.
I do wish there was more than the one USB port.
WiFi reception is excellent. I've tried it up to 50 feet from my access point with no problems. Bluetooth is also excellent. No problems pairing so far with any of the devices I have tried.
Bluetooth is unusually important with the U810. The U810 keyboard is definitely not amenable to touch-typing. I've adopted a two-finger style and can crank out maybe 15 - 20 words a minute tops with a fair number of typos. You can thumb type, but it is a little too large for convenience and accuracy.
Add a USB or Bluetooth mouse and a Bluetooth keyboard like the iGo Stowaway, however, and you have a set-up that will work well for just about any ordinary productivity task available in Microsoft Office in a package that weighs less than two pounds. I haven't had any need to travel since I acquired the U810, but I can tell you right now that this device is my new travel computer. Goodbye to carrying a heavy laptop and assorted paraphenalia. The U810 with a mouse and Bluetooth keyboard, an extra battery or two and a cellphone that I can tether to is all I'll need as my basic travel kit.
The U810 is definitely not perfection. The keyboard is the biggest disappointment. It is just too small to be practicable for touch typing and too large to be convenient for thumb typing. Another half-inch to an inch in width would have made it well suited to touch typing. The touchscreen which does not have an active digitizer is difficult to use for inking. If you rest your hand on the screen while inking, you get vectors all over the place which prevent handwriting recognition. Keeping your hand off the screen forces you to hold the pen awkwardly which leads to rapid fatigue. The provision of two LED "headlights" to illuminate the keyboard is, unfortunately, merely a marketing gimmick. They don't work well at all. A backlit keyboard would have been extremely useful.
Fujitsu does not include the Microsoft Touch Experience pack which would have allowed the user to make the QuickLaunch, TaskBar and scroll bars larger. This is a big mistake. The Touch pack features are required here.
Finally the stylus provided with the U810 is way too small to be useful. You are much better off getting a hefty third-party stylus.
Even with these defects and shortcomings, however, the Fujitsu U810 is the realization of dream that many have had: an affordable, ultra-portable computer. The U810 will truly let you handle any workday task with ease: email, browsing (including Flash videos), streaming music, any Office type application and even some lighter-weight image processing apps. Battery life is excellent. I have yet to run the battery all the way down. I estimate about four hours run time using WiFi and Bluetooth, but please not that this is just a guesstimate.
Fujitsu is an under-recognized company. They have been in the tablet computer business for a long time and have come out with a number of innovative tablet PC products such as their T42xx line, the P1610 and now the U810.
The U810, in my opinion, is truly a showstopper. If you can live with the deficient keyboard, it really is a great ultra-portable computer.
Jerry
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