Media Consumption device

Media Consumption device.

I mentioned in the previous post that I would post separately for a media consumption device and so here it is.

This was going to be a long post of all the things I would want in a device, but then I got my hands on a Nexus 7.2 and it addressed most of that list. So the below will be based on the N7 and just be differences I would like to see in a revised device. So take all the wants below in context of the Nexus 7.

- Front facing speakers. They have these in the Nexus10 so I'd like to see them in a 7inch form factor. Also, the speakers on the N7 have a large amount of floor noise/hiss at low volumes which I only noticed after the OS update to 4.4.1 kitkat. Not sure if it was there before but I read it was a hardware issue, but some think it may have something to do with the audio optimisation algorithm from Fraunhoffer. Speakers that don't hiss would be good.

- Finger grip/nurl on the back behind the large bezels. I sometimes find I want to hold the N7 in landscape mode with one hand and the slippery front and back on such a thin device made this hard on my thumb joint as I have to lay my entire thumb on the glass to stop it spinning in my fingers. If there were a small indent or ridge in the soft-touch material on the back I could use that to stop the rotation rather than fricton on the front.

- Double-tap screen to wake (and wake on touch app method). I believe it was the LG G2 phone that allows you to wake on double-tap of the screen. THIS SHOULD BE ON EVERYTHING. Of course, you would have the option to turn this off, but I would definitely use this. On a side note, thinking about some of the apps I would like to create, Android needs a method to disable the backlight of the screen without disabling the touch sensor. This would be awesome for digital ports of board games where the majority of the time is spent waiting. When it's not you're turn you could tap a button to turn the screen off hiding your 'hand' (and saving battery), then when it's your turn again, tap the screen. On most devices doing non-3D rendering, the main power draw is the screen backlight. OLED doesn't have this issue, but has other drawbacks.

- Slightly more capable graphics chip. Don't get me wrong. The graphics in the N7 are great. But at 1690 x 1200, I see stuttering in some apps. When I turn on forced MSAA, scrolling performance seems to take a noticiable hit. On paper, something like the Adreno 330 in the Nexus 5 would be a good revision 3 idea. CPU and general compute performance doesn't seems underpowered though so no need to put the entire Snapdragon 800 SoC in there unless there is no economic difference for not doing so.

- Angle the backfacing camera slightly. The selfie/chat camera is angled directly perpendicular to the screen. This makes video chat strange as the angle you need to get your face in the shot and the  position/angle your head is in so you can see the screen straight don't line up on the N7. This would be an easy fix with either the mount for the camera module or the module housing itself.

- Reinforce the micro USB port. One area of the build quality of the N7 I've noticed degrade is the micro USB port. Just having the cable angled slightly towards or away from the screen a few times has been enough to loosen the connection. I suppose this wouldn't be a problem if I had a wireless Qi charger but until I get one, I still have to use the port at least one every 2 days and I can see that as the first part of the device to fail. At such a low price, I think they should have included the flat wireless charge mat and upped the price by $50.

Anyway, that's all for the moment for media consumption devices. Until I think of more at which point I'll add them.

Computer wants

Computer wants.

When I say 'computer' I'm talking about a system that I can do various work on such as browsing the web, retouching photos, creating or watching music/movies, and playing games.
For media consumption devices such as smartphones and tablets, I'll post separately, but this is basically referring to desktop PCs or laptops.

My ideal home setup would be a desktop and a laptop/notebook. With the current desktop solutions available I can pretty much get any configuration I want, it's just a matter of money, but on the portable side of this, it isn't so straighforward.

Here are the traits of a laptop that I want as of 14th July 2013 in order of importance:
- 13"-15", non-touch, matte, 2560x1440 or higher display (pref ~13.3").
- Intel Haswell chipset with Iris (5x00) IGP, maybe with switchable discrete graphics.
- 8/16 GB of RAM in 2 DIMMs.

- 8hrs+ battery life. Removable battery.
- Windows key, separated Function keys, both full sized shift keys, 1+3 arrow keys layout.
- Dedicated trackpad buttons, non-clickable trackpad with defined edge (not flush).
- 256GB or bigger SSD.
- 802.11a/b/g/n/ac wifi.
- 64bit Win7 pro.
- <3 lbs in weight.- 3 or more USB3 (at least 1 powered), HDMI, displayport mini, WiDi/Miracast, SD card reader, LAN port.
- Webcam
- standard screw-type removable HDD, RAM, Wifi card, cover plate.
- Doesn't have to be slim but must be able to sit on lap with screen open @ 135degrees and not fall backwards.
- Non-glossy lid and screen bezel.

The bolded items are the places I'm having the most trouble with.
So far, I haven't been able to find a system that exactly matches the above, but some of the ultrabooks such as the Samsung ATIV 9 Plus and the ASUS Zenbook infinity come close.

Reasoning for the points above.
I want a matte screen because I hate glossy screens and the glare from them. I have 2 netbooks, one with glossy and the other with matte, and I find the matte screen infintely more comfortable to work with. This also ties in with the non-touch screen. Apparently all touch screens are glossy at this point in time. I also don't want myself and people I'm sharing the screen with to touch the screen (it's one of my pet peeves, even on desktop screens) and leaving fingerprints.
The current Haswell chipsets seem to be doing quite well in terms of efficiency which in turn helps the battery life issue. Switchable graphics would help too and depending on how good Intel Iris 5100 IGP performance is, there may be no need for discrete graphics. As long as it can play starcraft 2 decently and accelerate video encode and decode in hardware, that will be fine.
A 128GB SSD would be sufficient, but after formatting and loading most intended programs, I would guess that windows would be reporting about 60GB free. If I was doing video and photo editing, I'd prefer the extra headroom of a 256GB drive or perhaps a large secondary mechanical drive.
The bit about the keyboards and trackpads are just personal preference but given 2 identical systems I would go for the one which suits my input preferences.
Most of the other desires are just borne from having used laptops with these quirks in the past and finding them frustrating and intrusive. Apart from the weight aspect the other attributes all seem doable, but for some reason just aren't available.
The last item about the non-glossy lid may seem strange but hear me out. The ASUS zenbook infiniti prototype had a glass covered aluminium lid. Even though it's gorilla glass3, I'd much prefer just the bare aluminium or if I could get it a carbon fibre one. I also don't care for the light-up logo. That's wasted battery for no purpose other than it's something Apple did/does.

From what I can gather the best CPU options would be:
- Core i7…4558U…Iris 5100…28W…2.8 GHz
- Core i5…4258U…Iris 5100…28W…2.4 GHz

All in all, I'd expect to pay ~$2500 for the above setup. That's how much I expect to pay. What it should cost should be something more like $1900. The difference can be attributed to economies of scale. There aren't a lot of buyers for the particular system described above, so manufacturers shoot for the lowest denominator with the largest market. In a dream world, I'd be able to buy my own empty chassis and equip it with a standards-supporting screen, keyboard, and touchpad of my choosing, with modular motherboard, graphics, and comms. The I/O ports would be plate-based so there would be a single opening on the side of the chassis and a plate insert would dictate what connections were available. If I ever become a bajillionnaire I'll make it a reality. Heck, with 3D printers as good as they are, I can't see why you couldn't get an operation going that supports something like this for a few measely million.

Anyway, please leave a comment if you can see any issues with what I've described above and please post any links if you think you have found a system that meets all the above needs.

-Simon.

Introduction

Hi all,

This is a just a quick slap-dash blog detailing the things that I want, and possibly listing the products or services that currently deliver on or service that need. As I come across new items or decide on things I want, I'll update this.