Hands On With the UMID Mbook BZ
Important Points
Collapse- Full Windows XP with netbook components
- Only 4.8 inch screen at 1024x600
- Resistive touch screen for alternate control method
- Fantastic system for IT support with LogMeIn Ignition included
I see so many different gadgets that you’d think I’d seen it all, but once in a while something different passes into Mobile Tech Manor. Such is the case with the UMID mbook bz, a tiny clamshell that has a number of features designed to yield a solid mobile work experience. I have been using the UMID for a couple of weeks, and I am still delighted to find new things it can do.
What is the UMID?
Ultra-mobile PCs (UMPCs) take different forms, and the mbook bz is basically an itty-bitty netbook. The hardware components are those of many netbooks, and the clamshell form leaves no doubt it is a close cousin to larger notebooks. The full QWERTY keyboard is not big enough for touch typing, but it has the full complement of keys you will find on the bigger keyboards. The UMID has just the right compromises to make this the most mobile notebook I have used, without creating undue hardships during that use.
What’s in the Box?
The mbook bz ships in a box as small as you’d expect, but they’ve packed quite a bit in the small package. Inside is the mbook device, the battery, wired headset, Quick Guide, VGA dongle, power adapter and the Miccrosoft Windows XP Home Edition CD. A neoprene case from UMID was also in the box but I am not sure if the base package includes it. The packaging is well designed, and impart attention to detail that good things are about to unfold.
Hardware
The UMID mbook bz has I am reviewing is configured with typical first generation netbook components:
- CPU: Intel Atom Z515 (1.2 GHz)
- Memory: 512 MB (DDR2)
- Storage: 16 GB Solid State Disk (SSD)
- Display: 4.8-inch resistive touch screen (1024×600)
- Radios: Wi-Fi (802.11 b/g), Bluetooth 2.0 + EDR
- Webcam: 1.3 MP
- Ports: USB, 3.5mm headphone, 10-pin VGA (dongle included), microSD
- Battery: Li-Ion, 7.4v, 2600 mAh
- Dimensions: 6.33 x 3.79 x 0.75 inches
- Weight: 0.8 lbs.
The unit feels very solid in the hand, with no loose parts. The display hinge is nice and tight, and stays solidly closed without a latch. Opening the screen exposes the 4.8-inch touch screen with a large bezel to accommodate various controls. On the left of the screen is a mono-speaker and the two tiny mouse buttons. On the right of the screen is the 1.3 megapixel web cam, with the optical touch pad below.
The touchpad is an interesting feature for such a small laptop, and with practice serves well. It is hyper-sensitive until adjusted to preference in the control panel, and I find I usually reach for this tiny touchpad before touching the screen to move the cursor. The mouse buttons are too small, making them very hard to hit in a hurry. They must be pushed very deliberately to make sure the click is registered.
Moving down to the keyboard finds 56 keys, with a few keys not positioned where expected due to space constraints. The keyboard is too small for touch typing with even the smallest hands, so it’s a matter of practicing the hunt and peck technique to get used to the key placement. There is a Windows key as expected, and four arrow keys.
Almost every key on the keyboard has an alternate function triggered by holding the blue Fn key. There are the standard functions for F1 – F12, Caps Lock, PgUp/Dn, Ins, Del, Home and PrtScr. UMID has also included controls for the device with Fn key triggers: Brightness Up/Down, Volume Up/Down/Mute, Standby, Battery Status, Web Cam On/Off and a browser home key. There is also a Fn key that fires up the AudioRecorder for recording quick voice notes.
Above the keyboard there is a touch control that fires up a system control panel when touched while holding the Fn key. This control panel gives touch access to change screen resolution on the fly, and even allow for saving of profiles for two different users. You may not want to share your mbook, but you can.
There are two buttons just above the keyboard: Radio On/Off and Power button. To the right of that are two LED indicators: Power and HDD activity. Below the keyboard is one big LED that indicates radio activity (Bluetooth and Wi-Fi).
Included Software
UMID is trying to create a productive device right out of the box, as indicated by the preinstalled software on the mbook.
- ThinkFree Mobile (office suite)
- LogMeIn Ignition
- ThePot (mbook touch interface)
- Bluetooth Soleil (control software)
- USBC Client Utility (mount mbook as USB drive to other computers)
- Touchside (touch screen settings)
ThinkFree Mobile provides word processor, spreadsheet and presentation programs that are compatible with Microsoft Office 2007. The programs are easy to use and work well on the mbook for document creation and editing. The inclusion of ThinkFree goes a long way to making the UMID productive from the first power on.
I am a frequent user of LogMeIn for remote access to my various computers, and the LogMeIn Ignition included on the mbook is a wonderful tool. I have used it to run my MacBook from the little mbook, and the speed is simply amazing. LogMeIn Ignition is optimized to make working with larger screened computers easy to do on the little mbook. This program on the portable UMID makes for a powerful support tool for the IT professional.
ThePot is a special interface included on the mbook to provide touch-friendly control over the system and various functions. There are buttons for playing media, changing settings and accessing the web. The interface can be minimized to an icon on the screen for doing normal work, although the icon always stays on top of other windows negating the usefulness of doing so. The interface has controls for the media player on the bottom of the screen, and user programs can be added to the launcher.
The Bluetooth Soleil is an interface for working with the Bluetooth, facilitating finding new device for pairing. It is a bloated piece of software and I never use it.
The USBC Client Utility is designed to facilitate connecting the mbook to another computer via a USB cable. Files can be copied back and forth, and folders can be synced when connected. I have not used this so can’t comment on the features.
Hands-on Impressions
When I first heard about the UMID mbook bz, my reaction was “why would anyone want a little notebook?” I still had that impression when the evaluation unit arrived, but I admit it has grown on me quite a bit.
I frequently head out the door for short trips, and while I don’t want to bring a laptop along (and the gear bag it requires), I like to have a fall-back position should some unexpected free time present itself. The smartphone is not quite enough for these moments, yet a notebook is overkill. These trips are perfect for the UMID.
The mbook nestled in its form-fitting neoprene case is not much bigger than a phone and it’s great for these outings. I can grab it on the way out the door, and rest easy knowing if I am confronted with time to kill, I can do so with a full computer in my hands. The case has a little pocket on the front just perfect for my Verizon MiFi so I can get online no matter where I am.
The little keyboard on the mbook precludes a lot of text entry; I wouldn’t even consider doing this review on it. But it’s a good way for inputting a modest amount of entry, far more than I’m comfortable doing on a phone, and in a pinch I can do anything on the UMID that I can do on a bigger laptop. That’s pretty liberating for something that fits in a jacket pocket.
I find the performance of the mbook to be as good as most netbooks I have tried, not surprising given the same components are on board. The 16 GB SSD is not very big but it is pretty fast, so things move right along. The screen is very easy to read in most lighting conditions, and the touch screen is nice to have when needed.
I often wish the screen would swivel around into a true slate configuration. I think UMID missed the boat in this one area. The device is the perfect size to use as a slate in the hand, yet it’s stuck with that clamshell form. The screen does go almost all the way back to a flat form, but it’s not the same.
Pros and Cons
Mobile devices are highly personal in nature, and no two people will usually have the same impressions of a given device. With that in mind here are my pros and cons of the UMID mbook bz:
Pros
- Highly portable
- Good performance
- Outstanding remote access via LogMeIn Ignition
- Good software selection included
Cons
- No swivel screen
- Touch screen is too small for easy finger control (stylus is fine)
- Price- the mbook is only available through importers such as Dynamism and is $549.
Thanks to the folks at Dynamism for supplying this loaner device for the evaluation.
Related research from GigaOM Pro (sub req’d):
Do you have an alternative to BlueSoleil that you use? I finally gave up on the Win7 bluetooth program and installed BlueSoleil and love it. I have 3 phones 2 headsets and a second laptop that I flip files and pairings betweeen and have no issues using Blue where using the written in Win7 app choked and wanted a repairing or redescovering constantly. I use Blue in Places mode not Classic mode. The only real complaint I have is it is rather pricey.
I usually just use the Windows stuff to handle BT. BlueSoleil is OK, but it is very bloated.
Any chances for a quick video of this, James? I am curious to this in action. The photos don’t do it justice.
There will be a video later this week.
Your usage scenario is pretty much right on with what I had in mind with the Fujitsu UH900, except instead of the MiFi I’d be using Boingo. Fits in a pocket, no case necessary, pull it out anywhere and work away with the same PC apps you use at home/work.
I don’t think these keyboards are that bad for their size. Back in the day I used a Sharp IQ-8300 organizer, and was able to type quite nimbly with four fingers. While I wouldn’t consider writing a 40-page FCC filing on these newer devices, they’re quite capable of running stuff like Outlook – important if you need to keep tabs on detailed appointments/meetings while on the go, contacts, emails and other typing-centric tasks. Compared to a smartphone, typing out longer notes is also handled much better with the bigger keyboard, especially when you need to type while on a call.
The biggest value for me though is the fact that these diminutive gadgets run a full desktop OS, giving you no-compromise access to standard PC applications. This opens up the same uses you would get on a netbook, albeit fully pocketable. Movies, music, web, GPS, mapping/navigation, business software, games and lots of other software you would use a netbook for that a smartphone would choke on. Need I mention USB connectivity for maximum utility.
Having said all this, a device this small would NOT replace my notebook or desktop. I would consider it a secondary device to use when on the go, and complement my home/work PC’s. More specifically, I can keep important info on the smaller device and have it with me all the time, syncing to either my home or work PC when I reach my destination.
You still haven’t commented on the performance of Skype under the Umid BZ. I’d really like to hear about that. Really, I’d like to see a video.
How about battery life? How is it compare to Fujitsu UH900 battery life?
is it even worth it?
I was looking at JKs pictures and I see that you cant even surf this site without scrolling left/right. Also, the screen is teeny, probably no fun to use a full blown OS like WinXP with your finger. ThePot touch interface looks nice, but $500+???
Thats pricier than any netbook. I understand that it’s cheaper than Sony Vaio P, but really? Should I pay this much? I guess MIDs are too ahead of their time, that’s why they’re not taking off. This looks like a cellphone with big keys to use SMS…Hint Hint Hint UMID!
It comes down to the trade-off of portability vs. usability. Some folks need a device that is mostly pocketable. Others need bigger screens, keyboards, etc. It should be noted that the screen resolution of the UMID is the same as most bigger netbooks (1024×600) so the scrolling thing is no worse on this little guy than on bigger netbooks.
I was drooling until I got to the 512mb of non upgradable ram. I figure they had to do it for a good reason, but it stops one from up grading the OS down the road. I’ll have to pass, reluctantly.
All this time for things to finally get BACK to the Toshiba Libretto form factor. ;-)
Bought it for 420€ (open box, but perfect).
@CTSLICK This is about half the size of the Libretto! It is about 1/3 of the area of my EeePc 901 (8.9″ netbook).
The keyboard is very usable (it is good for both thumb typing and touch typing), the screen resolution (1024×600) is the same as my Eee, but in half the width and half the height, so everything is super tiny and super defined. The mouse/trackpad is quite usable too, will need about one day to get acquainted. It is true that using the touch screen with your fingers to close windows and click tiny windows XP buttons is not the good way to use it, but they give you a plastic thing (not exactly a pen) to help on this, and it is great for some things like making web pages scroll (install Grab & Drag extension in Firefox and you’ve got a wonderful draggable, like on iPhone, browser). I use the mouse to click buttons, and then my finger to make the page scroll. I installed all kinds of software including the Apache webserver with PHP and MySQL, and the Adobe CS4 trial. All is working smoothly.
@JOSHUA
Skype video works great.
I also connected to an external monitor and had it shoot out an AVI cartoon for the kids at 1920×1200 from a thumb drive. I was astonished, it was just smooth. Not 30fps.. of course, but no flicker or loosing frames, high quality and totally enjoyable. (I used VLC as player)