Fujitsu Fujitsu LifeBook LIFEBOOK Notebook

Fujitsu Fujitsu LifeBook LIFEBOOK Notebook

Published April 27, 2009 at 07:04:45 AM, by Thai Tan

Making Way for the Fujitsu LifeBook - Short Review

The Fujitsu LifeBook series has been around for a long time, but there is still much that we can expect from this Japanese laptop manufacturer.

Small But Powerful

The Fujitsu LifeBook is small in size and is styled in the way of regular-sized laptops. In terms of looks, it is mostly similar to the unit Vulcan FlipStart 1.0 in clamshell design. The Fujitsu LifeBook is a bit wider than the Vulcan FlipStart but sheds off around half an inch to make it thinner. It is well-loved by those who like to take their computers with them as this unit can easily fit in your jacket pocket. However, bulging bits are also evident because of the large-ish battery that protrudes from the rear side.

The Lifebook has a black keyboard and screen bezel. The lid is finished is matte white and at the moment there are no reported color schemes aside from this one. Instead of this, the United States version will come out in all black, too. This keyboard is perhaps the best innovation on the LifeBook series. While it looks like a lot of the other laptop keyboards out there, the diminutive size presents several compromises:

• Keys need to be forced in order to perform double and triple duty
• Shift selection keys are a bit off – such as the alt-key choices
• Tab keys and arrow keys can be accessed only when the function key is held down (which is especially annoying when you have to scroll through different web pages or other web forms, where the Tab key and the navigational arrow keys are very important)

Despite these three compromising things about the keyboard, the Fujitsu Lifebook, as a UMPC, is also still one of the best when you consider using it for text input as regular keyboard style or texting using your thumbs.

Other Specs: Intel A110 Processor 800 MHz), 1 GB DDR2 SDRAM, 1.6 pounds weight

Summing it up, here are the positive and negative aspects of the Fujitsu Lifebook UMPC device:

Thumbs Up

• Despite limitations, this appears to be the best keyboard for an ultra mobile pc
• The tablet functionality works as another option for input – especially since you can easily access a pointing stick while the entire unit is closed
• Price points dictate that the Fujitsu Lifebook is relatively inexpensive for ultra mobile devices – which will usually cost you an arm and a leg.

Thumbs Down

• Too many of the keys are double mapped – especially hard when surfing and navigating the Web
• Absence of mobile broadband at the moment
• Stocky screen build makes the entire display look a lot smaller
• Limitations in terms of ports and connections – necessary to keep the unit multi-functioning

Conclusion

Being a relatively inexpensive ultraportable device, the Fujitsu LifeBook bests its competitors in this range. But as ambitious as it, design engineering greatly puts a damper on the overall ease of use of the unit. Sure you can easily pop it in your bag for ease of portability, but it gets pretty annoying once you start struggling just to get things done on the small keyboard. Perhaps Fujitsu should have done away with the traditional laptop design and instead focused on what would make ergonomically efficient to help users get more comfortable with it.

No User reviews for this product! Be the first to write a review on Fujitsu Fujitsu LifeBook LIFEBOOK Notebook

To post a product-review you have to be a registered member.

Technical Specifications

No specifications are available.