Next version of Atom, worth waiting? (Thinkpad Tablet2).

[Shyatic]

I'm in the market for a tablet/laptop like the Thinkpad Tablet2, but I'd like a bit more "oomph" in the processor department. Will it take long to come to market, you think? Or is it worth buying the Thinkpad Tablet2 now?

 

[tuxberg]

I don't know what the claims are for the next gen atom, but the current batch are not ready for any kind of significant load. My co-workers' TP2s (three of them left in the office after about a dozen early adopters) bog down hard, much like a galaxy note, with a busy note-taking schedule.

Some find it more annoying than others. Personally, I think they cost way too much to justify taking a huge performance hair-cut from a convertible. I've opted to wait-and-see.

 

[wirednuts]

i wouldnt hold your breath. atoms were never designed to be mainstream chips. they were made to run embedded x86 systems, but manufacturers saw an opportunity to make money so thats why you see atoms in consumer laptops.

if anything, get an e450 or whatever next is coming out from amd. they at least emphasize on the video processing, and it makes a hell of a difference. an e350 machine isnt fast, but its not painful to use either.

 

[Lonyo]

That was first gen Atoms, designed in a different era.
The next Atoms he is probably waiting for are the new architecture Atoms, however it's not due until probably the end of 2013 or early 2014, so it would be quite a long wait still.

http://www.xbitlabs.com/news/mobile...om_System_on_Chip_Already_Up_and_Running.html
They should be quite a bit faster, and will have much better GPU performance (although still significantly behind AMD). And a long way away.

 

[imported_bman]

I would wait for Baytrail, end of this year is the release date, no specifics given. It will be interesting to see how much time is between the release of 22nm Baytrail and 14nm, since Intel wants 14nm Atom asp to compete in mobile.

Maybe not what you are looking for, but the Asus Vivobook looks really nice. This is a Baytrail prototype from IDF 2013, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KBtE6E-c730. Really nice 2560x1600 display on an Atom notebook.

 

[Shyatic]

What about the Haswell chips? I thought those were going to be the best of both worlds?

 

[RU482]

the current "Z27xx" is choked by its mmc drive interface. slow balls

 

[RU482]

What about the Haswell chips? I thought those were going to be the best of both worlds?

most recent spec I saw for the ULX version is an SDP of 6W (down from 7.5W)

 

[lagokc]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16834314013

That should give you a lot more ""oomph" in the processor department." The Ivy Bridge / Haswell chips are in an entire different performance category compared to Atoms and even the 22nm Atoms coming next year.

 

[electronicmaji2]

I believe battery wise it would be.

 

[Shyatic]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16834314013

That should give you a lot more ""oomph" in the processor department." The Ivy Bridge / Haswell chips are in an entire different performance category compared to Atoms and even the 22nm Atoms coming next year.

So the Haswell chips should work well compared to the SB i5/i7 correct? I think given the needs I have, I'd prefer the power of the i3 rather than an Atom, and if the Haswells run better with regards to power, how far off do you think tablets with that are?

 

[lagokc]

You should get small efficiency increases with each generation Sandy to Ivy to Haswell.

IIRC the ultra low voltage Haswell is supposed to actually launch in June but my information may be out of date.