Pinebook – Powerful, Metal and Open Source ARM 64-Bit Laptop

Linus Tech Tips put out a video this week on Floatplane about the Pinebook (not the Pro edition) and it was woefully underpowered. CPU was compared to the PS3 and GPU was compared to the original Xbox, for reference. It barely ran with the stock software (they had to install updates/new software to get it running) and was unable to play a 480p YouTube video fullscreen without noticeable frame drops. The hardware in it and their tablet and phone prototype are several generations out of date (easiest example is WiFi only being 802.11n and single band). They were also unable to get Windows running on it when they tried using a Raspberry Pi image, if that is something you care about. Pine64 themselves claim that the machine is not a daily driver.

The Pinebook Pro looks more respectable hardware-wise, but I would avoid looking at it as a daily driver until you can find reviews of it saying otherwise. I had been looking at the phone a few days before and was astonished at how outdated the hardware was, even for an open source device that is possibly upgradeable.

The ISO keyboard is unfortunately a true bummer. I hate that layout with a passion and would gladly pay extra to have an ANSI layout keyboard (the one with the flat Enter and the backslash above it) and even install it myself if it's feasible.

And IMO that on/off button as part of the keyboard is so stupid: I've used a cheap Asus laptop with the same arrangement and it was a painful experience. Just why? To save half a fraction of a buck perhaps? Then bill me the cost for a proper keyboard and I'll be glad to pay more for it. The on/off button belongs to an area where the user cannot hit it by mistake, and the writing surface can't be that place.