Samsung GALAXY Note 10.1 2014

[Ravynmagi]

@Bateluer

- Start Screen.
I am also not following. Desktop apps on the Start screen launch on the deskop like normal. Modern apps launch in full screen, but are not locked to full screen, you should be able to split the view. But yes Modern apps are stuck in the full screen Modern UI if that's what you mean. Windows 9 allegedly removes that limitation. Not sure what you mean by having to hit ESC quickly.

- Windows 8.1 forcing Live.
I went with the flow and use a Live account, so I've not had any issues with 8.1 updates. I did read about someone that accidentally converted their local account to a Live account, but they were able to change it back to a local account. I'm not sure if alternate methods of installing 8.1 update are available, I would agree Microsoft should provide a method for updating without a Live account, I would think there would be one for IT professionals.

- Secure Boot.
Some laptops boot fine without Secure Boot as well. So I don't know if this is a Microsoft problem or a manufacture problem. I believe Microsoft only requires Secure Boot on ARM devices.

- Transferring OEM license.
Regarding not being able transfer Windows 8 OEM on your desktop to your laptop. Windows Vista and 7 have the same restriction. Windows 8 is just better at enforcing the rule.

- Tablet terminology, hiding settings.
This is one I can agree on. I don't mind setting being added to the Modern UI, that's good. But don't remove settings from the Control Panel. I find troubleshooting wifi issues to be frustrating since some of the wifi advanced settings have been removed and can now only be accessed from a command prompt.

Windows 8 is a lot of changes. I don't think it's fighting with the user at every step, I think it's just requires users to consider a new way of doing things. And I guess not surprisingly people don't like that idea. I fought against it at first too, took me a couple of months to stop disliking Windows 8. Now I've gone 180 and love it.

 

[foghorn67]

There is no Windows 8 SP2. There's 8.1(Windows 8 Service Pack1), but 8.2 hasn't been official released yet. Although, I did see a version of it leaked, if you're running that?

I was referring to Surface Pro 2. Not a Service Pack 2.

 

[vbuggy]

I'm trying to follow this complaint but I don't understand. Going back to Windows 8, and now 8.1, any program I have pinned to the Start screen that runs in the classic desktop starts windowed liked it always did. Are you only talking about "Metro" apps here?

... indeed, and these are apps which are designed to run full screen, or pinned. I don't get the complaint - especially those who say 'oh it doesn't work on a desktop'.

It's not quite exactly as I like it yet, but I actually really like how I can pin multiple Metro apps in a Surround setup on a desktop (My setups are generally 7680 x 1440, 7680 x 1600 or 4800 x 2560 for non-touch) so you can be in 'casual mode' but still have work stuff going on the side. I would definitely like more flexibility on sideloading though, especially with the Store discoverability being as abysmal as it is right now - but given the concept of the Store I'm guessing that will never happen.

 

[Geekbabe]

Disclosure: as a lifestyle blogger I was sent this tablet for review.

I just received this beauty a couple days ago and it is a flat out pleasure to use. The screen is stunning, beautiful, vibrant color, sharp text clarity. I love the thicker S-Pen, and of course the split screen function. I am also impressed with the build quality, it has a premium look and feels good in the hands. I just put it in a slim Moko case & even with the added weight it is still comfortable to handle. The only thing I wish were possible would be the ability to freely pick and choose apps for the spilt screen while running in the stock software configuration.

 

[zerogear]

@Bateluer
- Secure Boot.
Some laptops boot fine without Secure Boot as well. So I don't know if this is a Microsoft problem or a manufacture problem. I believe Microsoft only requires Secure Boot on ARM devices.

- Transferring OEM license.
Regarding not being able transfer Windows 8 OEM on your desktop to your laptop. Windows Vista and 7 have the same restriction. Windows 8 is just better at enforcing the rule.

Personally I love Windows 8 -- as for the Secure Boot issue, it's an OEM thing. My Surface Pro 2 boots fine with Secure Boot disabled (though it shows Secure Boot disabled on the desktop, they removed that in the latest round of patches).

Microsoft provides UEFI CA for the Surface Pro -- so you can install Linux without disabling Secure Boot. (http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=41666)

Transferring OEM license -- You were _never_ supposed to transfer license, hardware licensed are tied to the motherboard, don't know why that's even on the list of complaints.

I find a lot of people have a blind hate for Windows 8, and their argument is usually flimsy at best.

 

[ControlD]

We are getting ready to ship back our second defective copy of this tablet. The hardware seems nice but from my experience the build quality is not that of a $500+ device. Hopefully the third copy works correctly. I sort of wish we had ponied up the extra cash for a Surface 2 at this point.

 

[Bateluer]

Transferring OEM license -- You were _never_ supposed to transfer license, hardware licensed are tied to the motherboard, don't know why that's even on the list of complaints.

I never said anything about transferring an OEM license from one machine to another, thats always been against ToS. What I said is below.

- This also pertains to W8 OEM laptops. The W8 key is embedded in the EFI. If you were to say, purchase a Windows 8 Ultimate box at Best Buy after drinking 4 or 5 shots of Jack Daniels, you won't be able to install it on the laptop; It'll generate a key mismatch error every time. If you want to upgrade the version of W8 on the laptop, you have to do it through the Control Panel. If you can find it without Classic Shell anyway.

If you were to want to upgrade your Windows 8 OEM laptop to Windows 8 Ultimate or Pro by buying a retail copy from Amazon, Newegg, BB, wherever, you will not be able to install it. At least, on an Acer. This V5 122P of mine will forever be stuck on Windows 8, will never be able to move to Windows 9 or future versions of Windows. On an XP laptop, there was nothing stopping you from buying a copy of Vista from Walmart and installing it. There was nothing stopping you a few years after that from buying a Windows 7 box and installing that. Provided the hardware was resilient enough to last that long anyway.

Not to say that's a huge issue for the V5, it is a fairly low end machine, but imagine it was a high end W8 laptop now permanently stuck on a dead, defective by design OS.

@Bateluer
- Start Screen.
I am also not following. Desktop apps on the Start screen launch on the deskop like normal. Modern apps launch in full screen, but are not locked to full screen, you should be able to split the view. But yes Modern apps are stuck in the full screen Modern UI if that's what you mean. Windows 9 allegedly removes that limitation. Not sure what you mean by having to hit ESC quickly.

Hitting the Esc key is the quickest way to stop it from launching. One of my hands isn't large enough to hit Ctrl-Alt-Delete alone, and launching the Task Manager to kill the Metro app would still take longer.

With MS's new CEO and the executive house cleaning that seems to be going on, we'll see if they get smart and scrub Metro in Windows 9.

Also, not quite on the apps. Metro apps launch screen from anywhere. Example, if you double click on a PDF or Jpeg on a fresh W8 install, they're going to open in full screen locked Metro apps. Thats a pretty serious fail when you have two 27in 1440p panels and just opened a small Jpeg image or needed to have multiple PDFs open alongside LibreOffice and Chrome for school work. And resizing Metro apps simple treats the end user like they're retarded. 'Yes, we know you've been resizing and aligning windows to your preference since Windows 1.0, but we'd like to handle that now because we think two vertical halves is perfect.' No Microsoft, I want to use my desktop the way I want to, not the way you think I should.