

Here come the Windows 8 hybrid all-in-one ultrabook tablet transformers - doc4t
http://www.extremetech.com/computing/135283-ifa-here-come-the-windows-8-hybrid-all-in-one-ultrabook-tablet-transformers

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Roritharr
I'll probably get a Microsoft Surface pro. I just hope for a great
Dockingstation. This kind of All-in-One Device is right up my alley. I hope
that in a few years i can use my phone as that all-in-one device, that powers
my work environment...

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fumar
The Sony Duo design is different from the other "dockable" tablets. It is not
the first by any means to have the slide form factor. Yet, I can not help
think, how cool it looks. It looks "Sony" to me. The worst part is that
cramped looking keyboard. I hope it comes to the US.

I have an HP Touchpad running ICS and hardly use it. I use my Gnexus most of
the time. But, I have been looking at more "robust" tablets with pen
capability. The Modbook Pro looks neat. <http://www.modbook.com/modbookpro>

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Too
Would power and battery life be extended when you dock it with the keyboard?

I think it would be hard to fit a powerful GPU or a big battery in the screen
alone. Some extra storage in the keyboard wouldn't hurt either.

Nice to see the hardware manufacturers joining microsofts new paradigm of
tablet/laptop combo in windows 8. I bet those who complained about a combo OS
before are quieter now.

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rbanffy
> Would power and battery life be extended when you dock it with the keyboard?

At least the HP model prefers to use the keyboard battery when connected in
order to preserve the one on the tablet side.

The problem with having too much smarts on a detachable piece is that you
start running into interesting engineering problems when dealing with sudden
disconnects. What do you do if your data disk suddenly becomes unavailable?

I remember being able to add and remove CPUs and memory on Sun machines
running Solaris, and I remember reading about Linux having something like that
for CPUs and memory - although you should tell the system you are about to
unplug something so that data and processes can be moved somewhere safe. IIRC,
you can just yank out a CPU module from a live IBM mainframe with not that
many ill effects too, the price you paid for the ability excepted.

At least in theory, you could have a very low power processor on the tablet
side and some extra memory, a faster processor and extra storage on the
keyboard side, but, again, this would be an interesting problem for less
careful users. Unless you design a lock mechanism where you press a soft
undock button and, when the OS considers it safe to undock, it would release
the locks that keep the mobile portion docked.

In any case, transparent hardware removal is something one would expect on
serious server iron, not a laptop running Windows.

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option_greek
I wonder if apple would dare to block these new windows tablets through
litigation.

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gnaffle
I'm not sure how they could block them through litigation. My guess is that
they will sit quietly and watch the PC makers having another go at this "no
compromise" form factor.

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bitdiffusion
I would favour a first-party device like the surface pro in this case rather
than one of these as my perception is that something is likely to "just work"
if hardware and software are from the same vendor (see: apple).

Should be interesting to see how the likes of asus can compete in the long run
(I am guessing price and slightly garish features will most likely
differentiate); having an actual product on the shelves surely gives you a
head-start.

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rbanffy
For me, it's exactly the opposite. If I'm ever going to find an x86 machine
designed to not run Linux reliably, it's sure going to have Microsoft's logo
on it.

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Tyrannosaurs
I'm not saying that anyone should sue over it but that ASUS keyboard / docking
station looks on hell of a lot like the bottom half of a MacBook Air fell off.

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freehunter
Have you ever seen the HP Envy (minus the Spectre line)? It looks like an
entire Macbook Pro fell off and was caught by Meg Whitman. Something tells me
either Apple doesn't have the look of the Macbook protected or perhaps that
they just don't care.

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grecy
Those keyboards look so familiar.....

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Toshio
Yes, here they come ... and they are all going to be heavy and pricey and
noisy and have poor battery life.

