UH900
Latest
Fujitsu's LifeBook UH900 gets reviewed, notable flaws found
There's no question that Fujitsu's LifeBook UH900 is a niche device; much like Sony's VAIO P, there's just not a lot of demand for an expensive clamshell with an extremely high resolution and an exceptionally cramped keyboard. That said, there's a curious seduction surrounding this thing, and critics over at Pocketables seemed to agree. After spending some long days (and nights, don'tcha know?) with the Japanese version of this here device, they came away with a huge mixed bag of emotions. On one hand, the snappy performance and excellent portability made it difficult to put down, but the downright dreadful 2 - 2.5 hours of battery life more or less forced them to. There's also more gentle gripes about the screen color, the "toy-like" build quality and "useless multitouch." For us, that's probably one flaw too many to accept, but the forgiving among us should definitely check out the full skinny before making a final call.
Fujitsu's LifeBook UH900 gets unboxed, sized up against the competition
Fujitsu's LifeBook UH900 started shipping to Americans just over a fortnight ago, and now one has landed into the capable hands of Pocketables. Boasting a 2GHz Atom CPU and some of the most unsightly adapters we've ever seen, this flip-open handheld -- which just looks too lovely to be saddled with the "UMPC" moniker -- strangely stirs something within our heart. It's one of those "I know I don't need it, but I just have to have it" things. Don't agree? Hit the source link, scroll all the way down, think about the upcoming weekend, and then see how you feel. Oh, and feel free to check out those size comparisons if you need extra encouragement in the "ooh" and "aah" department.
Fujitsu LifeBook UH900 now available in US for $850
Remember back at CES, when we got ahold of Fujitsu's LifeBook UH900? Well, it looks like you won't have to wait any longer if you were dying to get one of your own -- you can grab one up on Fujitsu's US website now. The 5.6-inch, multitouch-boasting little guy's got a 1.6GHz Intel Atom Z530 CPU, 2GB of RAM, a 62GB SSD, 802.11b/g/n WiFi, Bluetooth, and GPS, and it comes with Windows 7 installed. The suggested retail price on this puppy is $999, but Fujitsu's offering it right now for $849 -- that's a lot more than many MIDs, but the spec sheet is enough to keep us interested.
Fujitsu LifeBook UH900 hands-on
We just got a short and sweet look at the UH900 and, lo and behold, it's pretty much what you expected: The keyboard size seemed sufficient for short bursts of creativity (if not composing your entire epic pome or tome), but the display seemed to be too little payoff for the bulk of the thing. Multitouch is a blessing, but we'll have to see how well it performs in the real world (and we imagine we will find out, soon enough). But that's enough blather -- get a closer look in the gallery below. %Gallery-81844%
Fujitsu LifeBook UH900 in action: good benchmarks, so-so multitouch
Step aside, VAIO P, Fujitsu's managed to take too-small screens on netbooks to new heights with the UH900, and the addition of a touchscreen makes you seem seriously early 2009. So, how does it perform? UMPC Fever is feeling it, with a CrystalMark score helped along by the UH900's SSD, even if done few favors by the 1.6GHz Atom Z530 processor. Unfortunately, while the touchscreen display does offer multitouch gestures, they seem rather laggy -- as demonstrated in the video after the break. And thus we witness the odd disconnect of "laptops" and "phones," as the screen size and processor speed borders on a merging point and the interaction styles (or at least the execution on those styles) almost couldn't be further apart.
Fujitsu LifeBook UH900 spotted in the wild, courtesy of shouting speech bubbles
There could only be two reasons for why we got a bit excited upon the discovery of this Asia Pacific-only, $1,415 Fujitsu UH900 in Hong Kong: one was the sugar rush from two custard tarts earlier in the day, and two was the speech bubble overload on this smartbook laptop thing. We quickly sobered up when we heard about the two-hour battery life -- more pessimistic than Fujitsu's own press release, which promises three hours in ECO mode. While there was no hands-on opportunity to try out the multitouch screen -- a self-proclaimed world's first on this form factor -- we weren't impressed by the overall glossiness and the dull side bezel, but kudos to the guy who managed to keep a straight face while revealing the petite battery life. %Gallery-80607%
Fujitsu LifeBook UH900 has multitouch, world-beating ambitions
What's in a name these days? If we didn't call this a UMPC or told you it can run Windows 7, it could just be a pretty huge clamshell smartphone. The freshly announced LifeBook UH900 sports a 5.6-inch "vivid glare screen," (we'll put that down to a bad translation), 3.5G wireless connectivity, and even goes so far as to lay claim to being the world's smallest multitouch-capable PC. Take that, VAIO P! Still, the 62GB SSD and WXGA display resolution obviously set it apart from the phone crowd, as will the Atom Z530 inside -- it might outperform your ARM CPU, but will also ensure you never leave the house without a charger (just 3-hours in eco mode). Fujitsu has yet to spill pricing details, but CNET informs us the non-UMTS version will be ready in January, with the more advanced hotness coming at a later date.
