Computex is an event that is held once in a year and during this time major tech giants get together to showcase their devices. This year, it seems like every manufacturer is trying to surpass each other by announcing their powerful entries. Asus and Acer partnered together to launch a Windows 8 tablet at the event. But they are not the only ones launching a Windows 8 tablet at Computex, the Taiwanese manufacturer MSI is also up for the challenge.
Image Source: technoholik.com
The company has some interesting designs of its own, including the MSI Slider S20. The MSI S20 is one of the first slider-style ultrabooks equipped with a full QWERTY keyboard that hides away behind the display when you want to use the computer in tablet mode. Take a look at the hands on review of the MSI Slider S20 Windows 8 ultrabook.
Body
The Slider S20 is made of strong white plastic with silver colored sides and bottom. The plastic body helps keep the weight of the system down and improves slidability fairly. It is less than 0.8 inch thick and weighs about 2.9 pounds. The stark white surfaces along with the blue power light offer a space age look to the notebook. Ports on the device are, as anyone would expect of an ultrabook, slightly on the limited side, though 2 USB 3.0 ports, an HDMI and Ethernet are nevertheless good choices. The keyboard is a bit on the cramped side, may be because propping the screen up makes losing so much deck space. The keys seem well spaced but there is a noticeable flex in the panel. It won’t satisfy those with big hands, but overall it is not that bad. MSI used a different design while using Intel’s Letexo sliding style. It made Slider S20 uniquely convertible, which can be done by slide system and simple touch. The slider feels fine-tuned and smooth, but not so loose that its sturdiness may be questioned.
Processor
MSI Slider S20 Ultrabook is powered by Intel’s Eighth Generation Centrino Platform dubbed as Chief River. It is among the newest chips built by Intel, which offers much improved performance with reduced energy consumption. It may not be as fast as the Intel Core i3, i5 or i7, but the speed and performance are very satisfactory. Considering that it is easy on power, there are lots of advantages it will offer. It runs Ivy Bridge micro architecture SOCs (system on chip).
Screen
The MSI Slider S20 sports an 11.6 inch display with a fairly glossy surface and capacitive touchscreen. It comes with a ten finger multitouch support. The screen has a 1366 x 768 pixels resolution. The device includes a full QWERTY keypad still you can execute your commands through touch. The screen appears fairly bright and viewing angles appear fairly wide from the left and right sides.
Connectivity
As told earlier, the ports include 2 USB 3.0 ports, an HDMI and Ethernet. Apart from that it also supports Bluetooth 4.0 and 3G/4G connectivity.
Verdict
As per MSI, the device is in its prototype form right now. The final model of the Slider S20 will have some design changes, which will be done before shipping. Other details like RAM, battery and price are not known yet. The ultrabook is expected to be out in the stores in the third quarter of 2012.
Video of MSI Slider S20 Tablet Hands On from youtube: