I received a list of new details about the UMID M1 mbook MID from my contact at Justek today and just got the green light to share some of it with you.
You may remember that quality issues caused the Atom-based clamshell to be recalled last month, which is why I don't have the review unit that was scheduled to arrive a few weeks ago, and that a US release was on shaky ground. Worrisome, sure, but don't write off the device just yet! There's some promising bits of info in the list below.
All of the following information comes from a meeting with UMID.
- Improved shell has smoother lines and a smaller battery that doesn't protrude as much. Note: Original casing shown above.
- Release date in Australia and Hong Kong, the first to get the device outside of Korea, has been pushed back to May (conservative estimate).
- US release is still unknown.
- Model without HSDPA will be released before model with HSDPA.
- Fewer white units will be available than black units.
- All models will ship with Linux (in English); XP drivers will be available for download.
- Units come as they are: no upgrades.
- 1-year global warranty included.
Pricing hasn't been finalized yet, but you might want to keep an eye on the product page at Justek if you're thinking of ordering one. Are you?
I’m waiting to see some reviews because there are things that I find worrying – no mouse thingy, build quality. And now a smaller battery? What’s that all about?
smaller battery = reduced battery life?
The 5-hour battery was one of its strong points.
Am I missing something with the interest in this device ?
No pointing device, 5 row KB (as opposed to full Fn keys on U820), Atom (whoo–hooo, big deal), quality issues from day one, battery life qustionable…what about it is interesting ?
this tiny little thing has a touch screen so mousing is not necessary. there are already reports and videos for M1 but unfortunately you have to know chinese to read it.
http://digital.xy.hk/news/?postid=1986
I don’t think it’s a smaller capacity battery. I think it’s just a smaller casing. That’s what I’m hoping, anyway!
There are also hands-on reports and videos in English since the device was shown at CES and other events.
The videso are in english however…as far as the mousing not necessary….it forces you to take your hands off of the keyboard to engage the touch screen which for many may be less than efficient.
I don’t like the exclusion of a pointer either, but what I do find appealing is the size, keyboard (very nice for thumb typing), and power. Atom isn’t powerful, of course, but it’s sufficient for my use of Firefox.
I don’t have anything this size that could provide a true desktop-like browsing experience. The Viliv S5 is similar in size and similarly spec’d, but I need/want a hardware keyboard. The Aigo *still* doesn’t have all of the XP drivers worked out and only has an 800MHz CPU, barely any storage, and a keyboard that isn’t as comfortable to type on. And there really isn’t anything else out there right now that’s comparable to the UMID.
But still with the same incomplete keyboard! If it had a right shift key this would be at the top of my list. The form factor should be right for non-thumb (and non-touch) typing, but the keyboard layout limits it to thumb typing.
Exactly. When comparing the mousing on my OQO to the lack of it on my N810 I know which is far more intuitive and efficient.
I never learned to type using the right shift key, so I always forget to notice if the key is there. It’s definitely more important for thumb typing than multi-finger typing for me.
I was just about to buy one from gmarket, then read this. What if the new battery won’t be compatible with the current model? Now I have to wait for the next model, unless UMID can confirm that the new battery will be compatible.
I’m flabbergasted! I know you are a touch typist, so I have to ask, how do you type capital letters on the left side of the keyboard without using the right shift key?
It actually only affects the Q, A, and Z keys, which I press with my ring finger so my pinky can hit the left shift key. Nothing else is affected at all.
Oh! Well, that does make sense. And since your style of touch typing sometimes requires you to press different keys with fingers on the same hand, you must be a Multitouch typist!
That typing style does impose some limits on the usability of small keyboards, doesn’t it? I think the advantage of my non-touch “multifinger” typing is that it is easily scalable to just about any size keyboard with a standard QWERTY layout (which, in my opinion, includes shift keys on both sides). The obvious disadvantage is that it’s not as fast as touch typing. But it can be much faster than thumb typing.
More storage………..i beg!
Haha. Who knew all those years of playing the piano would pay off on another kind of keyboard! On mobile devices, I usually have to multifinger type because the keyboard isn’t big enough for me to comfortably touch type.
i wonder if the thing only has a micro-usb port how is it ever going to be able to take the usb-flesh, which is by far the most common memory extention used? i find it to be a huge bummer for the device!
I had every intention of purchasing one of these devices, if I could afford its as-yet-unknown price, as soon as it was released.
Then I got a deal I couldn’t pass up on a refurb XP Fujitsu U810. It’s a bit larger than the UMID M1 (as is just about everything else) but it includes many of the features that made me want the M1.
It also has some of the same keyboard-reduction space saving design aspects like only a left SHIFT key and no separate FN key row. For the SHIFT key issue, I activated the WIndows accessibility feature known as StickyKeys. It allows me to hit the SHIFT key first, then hit the key I want to capitalize. Ditto for the CTRL and ALT keys. So I don’t miss the right-side SHIFT key at all.
And I just don’t find it to be a hardship to have to hit a FN key in order to activate the F1-F12 keys. Heck, I don’t even find it to be troublesome to have to hit Fn+SPACE for the TAB key.
I’m sure that making the adjustment to the M1′s keyboard design tweaks, should I eventually get one, will be no more difficult for me than adjusting to the U810′s keyboard layout has been. And yes, I do touch-type on the U810.
I do like the mouse pointer on the U810, though — if the M1 gets a redesign to include one, it would make a nice feature to have in combination with the touch screen.
Given my history of picking up refurbished units of devices I have my eye on, it’s entirely possible that I’ll end up going that route when UMIDs have been available for a while.
Especially since my Immediate Need for a UMPC has been filled. But I will be keeping an eye on news of the M1 with great interest. It looks like it will be a terrific little device.
So, I’m currently in Korea, does anyone know where I can pick up an M1? Maybe somewhere in Youngsan?
Or do I go look for a cheap Sony P in Akihabara instead?
I just want to know why? I looked at the preorder and specs from Dynamism and it only gets up to a 16gb SSD? Why would I even want that? I mean, you put XP on it and there goes like 3, install some software and you’re down to 10.
wonder if the thing only has a micro-usb port how is it ever going to be able to take the usb-flesh, which is by far the most common memory extention used? i find it to be a huge bummer for the device!
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