Viliv X70 dissected and reviewed ahead of initial pre-order

We know what you're thinking: too much Viliv X70 news at once and you're liable to go mad as a hatter with excitement. Settle down, and now let's move on. jkkmobile's been playing with the MID for quite some time now, and has posted an epic, 27-minute long review. It's well worth a gander if you're considering the device, and ultimately it comes away as a good slate portable with fast 3G (in Finland, at least), a better MID for newcomers than the S5. Not all is great, and some lag issues aside, points get knocked off for the lack of some mouse-like input. If that's not enough, we've also got pics of it torn asunder piece by piece, so you can get a better glimpse at the innards. Want more? Dynamism's updated its placeholder page to let everyone know of a pre-order special tomorrow, July 6th, where the first 777 customers get a free 1.3GHz upgrade (from 1.2GHz), car kit, leather pouch, and protective film for the screen, and premium model buyers can get an extra battery to boot. Video review after the break, and hit up the read links for everything else.

Read - Review
Read - Dissection
Read - Pre-order page

[blueangel00100 @ Jul 5th 2009 4:25PM]

I love taking apart stuff

[scutr @ Jul 5th 2009 4:43PM]

You are supposed to say FIRST! >.

[OneLove @ Jul 6th 2009 10:02AM]

I really wanted to order one, but the soldered 1GB memory breaks the deal. Who the fuck still does shit like that? (...and then after you buy the 1GB model, they will release a 2 GB model?)

[Uchiha Sasuke @ Jul 6th 2009 3:13PM]

Are there any big difference between the x70 and the s5 aside from the screen size? Currently, dynamism have them on pre-order for the same prize. It's not like you can pocket either one of these so why would you go for the smaller screen.

[ericjcrane @ Jul 5th 2009 4:38PM]

WTF is a hatter?

[Major4Play @ Jul 5th 2009 4:41PM]

"mad as a hatter"

As in the Mad Hatter from Alice in Wonderland you illiterate idiot, try reading a book once in a while, or if you have trouble reading rent the Disney DVD.

[Frostblade10 @ Jul 5th 2009 4:59PM]

Wow, Major4Play. You're quite the asshole.

[Tycho @ Jul 5th 2009 5:00PM]

@Major4Play. don't forget, not everyone is old enough to have read/watched Alice in Wonderland. Calling him illiterate is a little extreme. It would also have done you well to EXPLAIN the phrase and perhaps answer his question (it's a valid question to ask if you don't know the term).

-> Hatters were people who made hats. Mercury was used for curing the felt, which of course led to mercury poisoning. Who then appeared to be "mad" or mentally unstable.

hence, as mad as a hatter.

[Agent .25i @ Jul 5th 2009 5:04PM]

Sure there is the Disney thing... but in reality, Hatter's - people that were in the profession of making hats, would after time go crazy from exposure to toxins in the glues they used making hats.

[dfivetwo @ Jul 5th 2009 5:06PM]

@Major4Play: Yeah, that's not actually the origin of that phrase, you ignorant cretin. Try to be properly informed once in a while, or if you have trouble with that, rent a Disney DVD, you seem to be in the target age group..

http://www.worldwidewords.org/qa/qa-mad2.htm

[loosely_coupled @ Jul 5th 2009 5:08PM]

@Major4Play

Literacy has nothing to do with not being exposed to an element of popular culture. There are a lot of young readers on Engadget, so why don't you tone down the attitude.

[derX @ Jul 5th 2009 5:55PM]

@dfivetwo: ROFL. I haven't heard (read...w/e LOL) the word "cretin" used in a while. Definitely induced a LOLattack. Classic insult. Just classic.

[Major4Play @ Jul 5th 2009 4:38PM]

To view the hardware something Apple fans only expect Steve Jobs to do for them.

[CJ @ Jul 5th 2009 4:40PM]

I'll take one of these with a Capacitive Touchscreen, the Z550 2Ghz Atom Processor, 2GB's of ram, and a better battery. And hey throw in a 10" Screen instead of the 7"

[Steve Paine @ Jul 5th 2009 5:42PM]

I guess now is a good time to plug the full review I did!

http://www.umpcportal.com/2009/06/viliv-x70-ex-umpc-full-review-with-videos

Personally, I think it's the best 7" slate out there, if that's your bag. Huge battery life and fast SSD. Even the on screen keyboard is suprisingly good.
At $599 it's twice the expected cost of a crunchpad but a way lot more portable and capable!

[Cheesus(Crust) @ Jul 5th 2009 7:53PM]

?

[Jeremy @ Jul 5th 2009 7:15PM]

Base price is almost resonable. Base specs are kind of sub-par. Fully loaded system is drastically over-priced for the specs and the specs are nothing to write home about. Good attempt. Nice jumping off point. Still not what I need. Maybe next year.

[kellogz @ Jul 5th 2009 10:05PM]

OT but can anyone tell me what the name of those ribbon-like cables are that normally connect the controller board to the display? Once knew but forgot.

[aawindoze2 @ Jul 6th 2009 10:14PM]

Wow, that looks like a pretty cool unit dude!

RT
www.anonymize.tk

[scott_info @ Aug 9th 2009 4:18PM]

I have one of these X70 EX (low end model with 16GB disk) and soon discover the disk is full. I noted they have a EISA partition that is about 5G. I am guessing this is a recovery partition, but XP says it is 100% free.

I'd like to install a larger SD (maybe Intel x18 - 80GB), but could not get the back cover off. I only unscrewed the back screws and did not peal any stickies off from the batter compartment and I didn't want to pry anywhere. (any tips for this?)

I also cannot find the GPS receiver or serial-com port 1. vilivGPS, which saw it, but no software (Google Earth and StreetDeck - demo) or device manager cannot see it/has a driver for it.
Any help would be greatly appreciated.