Search threw up a couple threads, but nothing particularly recent, so just wondering if there's anyone with any of these or something similar than can offer some real-life input. I'm looking to replace both an ageing XPS M1330 and a Transformer Infinity with a single hybrid/convertible device. This has to be windows based on account my wife's work (in reality it will be hers, but I'm going to make sure I steal it lots when I can). I've got a shortlist at the moment of a few, but I'm not sure there's a clear cut winner. I don't have an intention to swap from whatever I get to something new any time soon so want to make sure I get it right, so very interested in any issues which may rear their head in ownership that might not be flagged in any reviews. General considerations - many of these are considerations for longevity, pre-empting what I might need in 3-4 years, as opposed to something I need today. - Must be windows based - 13" give or take - The thinner and lighter the better - Has to be touchscreen. I feel like this might be a deal-breaker in 3 years, clearly all hybrids will be though. - Needs 8GB memory up front or be upgradeable. (Most seem to be soldered, so probably up front) - The higher resolution the better. 1080p at a minimum, however as with much of the rest of this list, I feel like having an even higher res will be of benefit down the line when more is optimised for high DPI. - Should be a competent workhorse in laptop mode but also be able to morph to a tablet (albeit an oversized one) for casual use. Current shortlist is: Lenovo Yoga 2 Pro + That screen + That screen + Did I mention the screen? + Conventional form factor for laptop use, but... + Seems like the hinge mechanism would be the most robust out of the options - Keyboard on the back in tablet mode is a bit weird - Forum claims of relatively high fan noise... but then some that say there's not, could be patchy - No on-board 802.11AC, fairly onerous upgrade process Lenovo Yoga 2 - same as the Pro but... - "Just" 1080p compared to the pro - Little bit heavier and larger than the pro + In theory should be cheaper than the pro, but I can actually get the Pro for £10 less at the moment + Passive design, zero fan noise (or so claimed by a review) Dell XPS12 - Seems like the flip mechanism would be a likely point of failure over time + Most conventional form factor for both laptop and tablet use - Marginally larger than the others - Not really much of an "ooh" factor for me... can't quite put my finger on it - Supposedly the binary on/off/on/off fan control is mega annoying. May be sorted with BIOS update, maybe not. + Dell XPS support is a known quantity, and excellent Sony Vaio Duo + Mental batter life - Slightly odd screen angle in lappy mode - Tiny touchpad + Stylus... - Which is bound to get lost - Seemingly flimsy hinge mechanism - Uncertain future of Vaio line - Potential wifi issues - No 802.11AC and again upgrade seems to be a pain They're all in the same £1000 ballpark, but I'm not averse to spending more if it's warranted. Similarly, saving a few pennies is a bonus as well. Mrs_Tad is a full time student, so has access to education pricing. I seem to have written far more than I initially planned, so I'll stop now. Anyone with able to lend any experiences with these or some alternatives that might send me one way or another?
No pokes or prods in any particular direction? Preference currently leaning towards the Yoga 2 Pro i7 4500u, 8GB, 256GB model - a relevant voucher code or Quidco promo would likely give me the final push at the moment, as I'm in no huge hurry otherwise.
I really like the Yoga form factor, but the Yoga 2 is just too expensive at the moment, and in an odd way the Lenovo Yoga 2 Pro is a little bit outdated (no Haswell). The huge screen resolution worries me as much as it appeals too, regarding scaling issues and power consumption. In a way I'd prefer the safety blanket of 1920x1080, partly because it's nice for duplicating on external displays. I think my next laptop/hybrid/convertible type thing will be a Yoga, but I'm hanging on for the Yoga 2 to drop in price or maybe save for the Thinkpad Yoga with a stylus: http://shop.lenovo.com/gb/en/laptops/thinkpad/yoga-series/yoga/ rather than the Yoga 2 Pro.
You may be pleased to find that the Yoga 2 Pro isn't outdated at all and has haswell in tow across the range - http://shop.lenovo.com/gb/en/laptops/ideapad/yoga/yoga-2-pro/ I get you with the worry around screen resolution - I like to think it would be a bit of a pain for 8-12 months though, and a boon thereafter. Seems to be quite the premium on the ThinkPad Yoga once you've specced it to match the Yoga 2 Pro, that's a lot to pay for a pen.
Glad they updated them. Last I looked you could get very good prices on the Ivybridge model but there was no Haswell and I hadn't heard any news that an updated model was coming. For what I'd want to use it for the active stylus is quite a big bonus and the Thinkpad-y-ness of it appeals too. Specs aren't that important to me other than maybe an SSD as long as they are sufficient and up to date. It's a little bulkier and heavier, but then it's maybe more rugged. That said, depending on what you value they both look like decent buys to me, and the Yoga 2 would be too if it was more like £750-800. It's way to close in price to the Pro at the moment. Like a said, I'm pretty much sold on the Yoga form factor. Both tent and easel modes seem properly useful rather than gimmicks. My plan is to (if saving goes well) use the Thinkpad Yoga with an external monitor on my desk as a sort of second screen/graphics tablet. It should have more than enough power for Photoshop etc, and it would be a really capable system for travelling too.
I liked the look of the asus td300 but not sure if its out/coming out, failing that I've not seen much better than the yoga
Cheers for the input, definitely food for thought. You may have just thrown me a curve ball here, I'm now thinking the same with regards to the stylus... I'm just not sure how much I'd actually use it on an ongoing basis once the shiny wears off. Decisions, decisions. The mega-res is really appealing to me though, at the same time. A combo of the stylus and the res would do it for me... why must everything be a compromise.
The other downer with them is the HDMI rather than DP so while they can drive a high res monitor in the pro you can't run a big 4k external screen which seems poor.
Been trying to convince my boss to get me a dell xps 12. Mainly down to cost as you can pick up food deals from the outlet.
Thread revival - I finally caved. I've just ordered the Thinkpad Yoga, the rationale being the build quality over the Yoga 2 Pro (which felt like I might break it in half in the shop, a little too much flex to inspire a huge degree of confidence), the keyboard and the realisation that 3200x1800 on a 13.3" display isn't really all that much better than 1920x1080 on a 12.5", even once the scaling issues are resolved. Went for the following spec: i5 4200u, 8GB Touch + Digitiser 1920x1080 display 500GB HDD + 16GB M.2 (with the intention of swapping out myself instead of paying a premium for an unknown 256GB SSD) 802.11 AC upgrade 3y onsite next day + battery replacement warranty uplift, which is relatively well priced IMO
When you have used it for a few weeks please put up a little review as its on the list to replace my Acer w510 whose external battery/keyboard has failed.
I'd be happy to. The order confirmation quoted an 8 day lead time, so expect some first impressions in 2-3 weeks. (feel free to poke me via PM if I forget)
Would be interested ro hear how you got on. Im considering one of these for work! Do you mind me asking how much it set you back? Sent from my GT-I9505 using Tapatalk
I can't see you being disappointed, they look brilliant. I'm also interested to hear how you like it for almost the same reason as Bobby; someone in work wants me to supply them a new laptop and is leaning towards a hybrid.
It came to £987 for the laptop and another £134 for the warranty uplift from the Lenovo store for education. Quidco tracked at £28 with some mild link-fiddling.
www.lenovo.com/students/uk Was 10% discount for the TPY, I think it's pretty similar across the board.
First bit of feedback... Lenovo is slooooooooooooooooow Still hasn't shipped, so don't trust the "delivered in 8 days"
That wasn't my experience with them, it was very quick despite travelling all around the world before getting to me, the RMA/refund for the poor quality hardware they shipped me took about 3 months of arguing though, fingers crossed you don't have to experience that.
It's currently in Korea, and it appears that its journey is already fraught with misfortune... 22/05/2014 17:51 Your package missed the processing deadline. You should expect at least one business day delay. 23/05/2014 16:38 A mechanical failure has delayed delivery. We're adjusting plans to deliver your package as quickly as possible.
