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Chuwi Minibook X

tylercipriani.com

151–160 of 318 posts

Re: Chuwi Minibook X

#151
post #98

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This laptop has a 10” screen, weighs 900 grams and runs an efficient N100 cpu. Different category to a 15” 2kg cheap 5 year old dell.

A used x1 carbon is a better deal, faster, and weighs about the same with a bigger screen.

My x1 carbon gave me nothing but trouble from the beginning. I couldn't even move it too fast lest I risked it locking up. Additionally, my wrist strain got considerably better after ditching it for a comparably priced M2 that blows it out of the water in every conceivable category.

Re: Chuwi Minibook X

#152
post #137
post #99

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"Bigger screen" (i.e. being bigger on the length/width dimension) is a bad thing in this discussion. Some people want a programming/writing laptop that fits in a handbag, so that they don't have to decide to bring it, but can just leave it in their bag the way many people do with an iPad.

Switch to a backpack or just leave the laptop in your car...?

Or get what fits your preferred routine if available, instead of changing to match others?

Though my experience with this brand is mixed at best so I'd personally give this one a miss, especially given the reviewer's comments on the keyboard.

Re: Chuwi Minibook X

#153

Used laptops are such a good deal that you could something high quality in excellent condition for so little that I almost can't justify buying something like this. Like used Dell XPS laptops are ridiculously cheap and they're amazing for the used price. Or really buy any laptop rated highly by Dave2D or other reviewers that's 4 to 5 years old.

This laptop has a 10” screen, weighs 900 grams and runs an efficient N100 cpu. Different category to a 15” 2kg cheap 5 year old dell.

Surface laptop go/surface go match perfectly. Same size screen, with decent build quality and no software quirk afaik.

Re: Chuwi Minibook X

#154
post #98

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This laptop has a 10” screen, weighs 900 grams and runs an efficient N100 cpu. Different category to a 15” 2kg cheap 5 year old dell.

A used x1 carbon is a better deal, faster, and weighs about the same with a bigger screen.

The whole point is people want to pay extra for superior portability. There is no x1 carbon with this weight and form factor.

Re: Chuwi Minibook X

#155
post #140

Glad to still see options for small portable laptops on the market, but nothing out there has drawn me away from the 2015 11" MacBook Air. Good keyboard and trackpad, and single core speed is comparable to the newer (albeit lower TDP) Minibook. It's enough for everyday use, and the fan allows for better sustained performance (though it's rarely needed). My main pain point is RAM (even with zram), but considering the…

A 2011 mb air weighs almost half a pound more than this and is slightly larger. Also you are forced to run on 1) MacOS (which I like but is a limitation for many) and 2) since it’s unsupported will have many (especially modern) apps and such not work. I love my 2016 MBpro. Can still render edit and render 4K video, pulls solid work. But it’s limited. Can’t even download Final Cut on it anymore because Apple won’t let me pull the latest supported version of the app. Luckily resolve does.

Re: Chuwi Minibook X

#156
I have a couple of x86 tablets from Chuwi where I run Debian with plasma-mobile.

Battery life is crap, on the new one the webcams aren't supported by linux because they aren't v4l.

With plasma-mobile there is no need to mess with configuration about the orientation since it just flips the screen the way I'm holding it.

I contributed a couple of patches to KDE to improve the experience on touch devices but overall there is lots of applications that already work fine on a touchscreen. Alligator, kasts, a few kdegames, angelfish.

Re: Chuwi Minibook X

#157
post #99

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"Bigger screen" (i.e. being bigger on the length/width dimension) is a bad thing in this discussion. Some people want a programming/writing laptop that fits in a handbag, so that they don't have to decide to bring it, but can just leave it in their bag the way many people do with an iPad.

A "programming" laptop should be powerful enough to run code, no?

Depends what code you are programming. Unless you are doing significant number crunching, 3D work, or local GenAI, there is an awful lot that spec can do. If you are working on a multi-user system and it is slow processing your actions as a single tester on this, then you have a heck of a lot of optimising ahead unless you want your production users to hate you!

Maybe you'd save running a large test suite until back at base with the branch checked out on something beefier, but for on-the-go coding I expect this spec would do just fine for many. The reviewer's comments about the keyboard would be my concern, not the limits if what it can run.

Re: Chuwi Minibook X

#158
This is how I feel about Emacs.

The appeal isn't necessarily the end result. It's the process of tinkering, learning, and gradually making the tool your own.

Re: Chuwi Minibook X

#159
post #6

The Minibook X is obviously targeted at the netbook form factor in the traditional sense, i.e. small and cheap. If you're like me and appreciate the netbook/UMPC form factors (for travel purposes in my case) but also need better specs to actually get any work done -- and you're willing to fork out a bit more to get that -- I would recommend looking at GPD's Pocket and MicroPC series. I own both a Pocket 4 and MicroPC…

The specs on this thing look pretty great. Which part do you find insufficient?

The CPU is just too underpowered; I'm sure it's fine for basic computery stuff, but building software and running medium/large test suites on it would be far too slow. Also not enough USB ports; I don't want to carry a USB hub with it.

Battery life on it is comparable to the MicroPC 2, but for the netbook form factor, it should really be compared to the Pocket 4. Similar story for the RAM, as well as the odd screen refresh rate.

Minor points: I do also appreciate the Ethernet ports on the GPD devices, and their approach to touchpads (buttons and placement in particular).

I guess my issues basically all boil down to the Minibook X not having enough functionality for the form factor when compared to GPD. That's mostly understandable for the price, but my point is just that if you're willing to fork over some more cash, you can get a whole lot more laptop in the same form factor (Pocket 4) or slightly better specs in a smaller form factor (MicroPC 2), and at least for me, that's the only way I could even have seriously considered these form factors for my work.

(Just to be clear, I have no particular brand loyalty to GPD; they're just the only player in town for high-end netbooks/UMPCs at the moment.)

Re: Chuwi Minibook X

#160
post #107

Zimablade chose the same 12v/2a power. It's in the original spec for usb-c pd negotiation. Client side (device) sets the current draw. Weird take to not use the supplied psu.

Pretty sure a power supply that just puts out 12V on USB-C without any negotiation is not in spec and should be illegal. As the article mentioned, it would damage anything that wasn't expecting 12V, like most things that take 5V USB power.
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