Viliv S7 ‘Micro Laptop’ – Review: Features, Usage, Customers and Round-up.

Posted on 30 November 2009, Last updated on 01 December 2009 by

S7-hand Ben posted an excellent review of the Viliv S7 at Pocketables a few weeks ago and it follows my thoughts to the letter. The Viliv S7 has been working flawlessly here so rather than produce a copy of that review I’ve decided to take a different angle on the device and talk a bit more about the scenarios that best fit the S7 and the types of customers that might be interested in the device.

Firstly though, let me take you few of the key features in a short summary of the device. We have the S7 Premium here with 3G and SSD (non-rotating) storage.

  • The Viliv S7 is an extremely small and light laptop style PC; smaller and lighter than any netbook.
  • It’s not really an ultra mobile computer as it needs a table to get the best out of it. Micro-laptop is probably the best name for it.
  • The S7 includes a touchscreen that can rotate and close back on itself to create a ‘tablet’ that hides the keyboard.
  • The storage is based on fast SSD technology which is quieter, more rugged and uses less power than traditional hard drives.
  • The fast SSD also gives the device fast boot and return from standby.
  • Viliv have used the Intel MID platform which is more efficient than the netbook platform although the CPU is slightly less powerful than a netbook.
  • Viliv have designed a high quality battery pack that can support the device for 5-10 hours and keep the device in standby for many many days.
  • In the version we’re testing here, there’s an integrated 3G module.

Click through for full specifications and details on the Viliv S7

On the negative side, there are two major trade-offs. Screen size and keyboard. Both are very high quality items but the size of them means that they can’t be used for long-term stress-free input or application usage.  The S7 is, in essence, a high quality, highly mobile short-term use PC.

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Full gallery available here.

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30 Comments For This Post

  1. Steve 'Chippy' Paine says:

    New article: Viliv S7 ‘Micro Laptop’ – Review: Features, Usage, Customers and Round-up. http://bit.ly/62KZTR

  2. Oliver Herbert says:

    RT @chippy: New article: Viliv S7 ‘Micro Laptop’ – Review: Features, Usage, Customers and Round-up. http://bit.ly/62KZTR

  3. Alessandro Tucci says:

    RT @chippy: New article: Viliv S7 "Micro Laptop" – Review: Features, Usage, Customers and Round-up. http://bit.ly/62KZTR

  4. jcddvm says:

    Nice summary, although I’d like to see some info on performance and maybe a word or two comparing this device to competitors. I would be particularly interested to know your impressions of the XP or Win7 performance differences between the S7 and the Fujitsu U820, along with usability differences you have encountered (ie, keyboard, screen viewing) since you’ve extensively used both devices.

  5. Chippy says:

    Based on the SSD version, it’s as quick as the X70, which is quick!

    The difference is such that W7 should be no problem on it.
    On a stock, HDD, U820, Windows 7 is a problem.

    Actually the U820 and S7 are very different devices. The U820 is a device small enough for mobile-in-the-hand use. The S7 is a table-top device which is why I didnt call it a UMPC in the review.

    With most mobile netbook gone from the market, the Sony P, T91 and S7 are left. The Sk3 has poor battery life so I wouldn’t consider that.

  6. Corticalsam says:

    I believe that S10 will make all believe in Viliv.
    Corticalsam

  7. Wolle says:

    chippy: has the S7 in tablet mode the same usability as the X70? I don’t care about GPS. Thanks.

  8. Chippy says:

    Its a bit heavier and its noticable. The X70 has the on-screen keyboard too so they are slightly different in tablet mode.

    The X70 is a better tablet-mode experience.

  9. chow says:

    Good points. I have a S5 and I’d say viliv has produced the best mobile computing experience in my opinion. If S7 had multi-touch screen I would have no excuse to buy one immediately. S5 works extremely well in my home city lives- on bus or subway, it’s light and can be fit in my pocket. S7 would be perfect for traveling as it has a keyboard for convenient email typing, and a tablet for drawing too. I am definitely waiting for viliv to upgrade their products to multi-touch. I’m one of their happy customers.

  10. Realty says:

    Chow,
    I almost bought an S5 as I find the size perfect however I was wondering if you find a big overlap between your S5 and your Smartphone? (I am assuming you have a full featured smartphone.) What features did you find you needed in the S5 that was not already covered to some extent in your phone? Do you ever miss not having a keyboard of some type with the S5?

    I have a RIM Storm and have found it is meeting 70% of all my mobile computing needs. If they ever come out with a full featured browser, the Storm would probably meet 90% of my mobile computing needs. I still want Windows on a 5 inch screen but its advantages must outway the existing advantages of a really good smart phone. Id appreciate your thoughts on how your S5 was worth the purchase price while still carrying a smartphone too?

  11. a-non-e-mouse says:

    I can answer the part about the keyboard. The onscreen keyboard is definitely not a perfect substitute for a physical keyboard, because it ends up covering up a large portion of the screen, including the box you may be trying to type in. The keyboard is transparent/translucent, but it can still be hard to read. That also means editing text by pointing, clicking and dragging can mean closing/hiding the keyboard each time. So if you’re looking to do things which require a lot of typing, you should either think of a BT keyboard or something else.

  12. chow says:

    Realty,
    I have developed an habit to draw/sketch with the software Illustrator, back then when I bought a tabletPC 6 years ago. I love S5 because it’s light weight and it runs xp so that I can keep using Illustrator(by the way, surprisingly Atom runs Illustrator real fast). This is one of the factor that S5 cannot be replaced by any smartphone including iPhone. Actually those vector drawing programs in iPhone are pretty immature in my opinion, but I have to admit they are quite near what I need. We’ll see. Other than the artist-side of the S5, I like the fact that it’s a full computer. Those 10 to 30% missing features to you is what I think worth to pay some extra money, not to mention the price tag of an Iphone 3Gs is quite expensive too.
    As for the keyboard, S5’s onscreen keyboard is good. All onscreen keyboards are for short typing only of course, that’s why I said S7 has the both side of the world, especially when you can bring only one computer for traveling. I once took S5 with me oversea, which was good, I just missed email typing.

  13. Realty says:

    So you got it to run specific Windows applications. I have similar needs. May I ask how Illustrator looks and is usable on a 5 inch screen? We know that Windows was never designed to run on such a small screen. I am pretty sure Illustrator was not designed for it either. Any issues with miniture icons, screen scrolling, menu selections? Do you use a finger or stylus?

  14. chow says:

    The 16:9 wide screen of S5 is good for small screen space management. The ‘extra’ screen estate can be put drawing tools while the rest can be the drawing stage. I use ClickNType to create 8 customized buttons for Illustrator’s short-cut commend including zoom, pen and moving tools, which are quite handy to be used with my left thumb(the buttons placed on the left screen ‘extra’ estate). The rest of the screen I have 2.5 x 3 for the drawing stage, not bad at all. I use a stylus, though a finger can do. It just works fine, as good as a real paper notebook to me.
    The Illustrator 100% works on my S5. I love it.

  15. Realty says:

    Chippy,

    Can you compare the S7 to the Sony P and the Fujitsu U820? I think all are aimed at the same customer base and would enjoy your observations comparing usability.

  16. Chippy says:

    U820 is a UMPC where Sony P and S7 are table-top device IMO.

    See comment above too.

  17. Realty says:

    I can understand thinking the Sony P without a tablet layout screen option does not compete with the U820 but I find it interesting that you do not think the S7 is a UMPC like the U820?

    From database
    U810 6.7 x 6 x 1.3 25 oz 52.26 total case volume
    S7 8.3 x 4.6 x 1 29.3 oz 38.18 total case volume

    Both have flipable screens. Is it because it is easier to thumb the U820 or the extra 4.3 oz weight that makes it a desktop machine in your opinion?

  18. Mian arsh says:

    one important negative for me is its girlish white case. Am I the only one who have this concern? In that case perhaps I should correct myself.
    A very good device in general — and I am going to buy it if UMID M2 is not coming out by this Xmas.

  19. MEGAS says:

    exactly the way i feel.
    i wont buy it unless it comes in a black case.
    any info on GPS version?

  20. Fleinsbach says:

    I have the S7 after the X70 until 2 month. I love it, best battery live, very fast for an atom device. The 3G is very usable. Before I have a Sony Vaio P for 4 weeks, very good quality and best keyboard. The keyboard is the only thing I think they can better.

  21. Jim says:

    I’m having a hard time deciding between the S7, X70 and the T91-MT. I’ll be using the device mainly to read and sometimes annotate Pdf’s. The X70 seems good but I’m concerned about the reports of it overheating. The S7 doesn’t seem to have this problem, but if I’m getting a mini-notebook, why not get one with a bigger screen and is not much heavier (and isn’t white)? I’d appreciate it if X70 and S7 users can share their experiences of Pdf reading on their devices and overheating issues.

  22. tom says:

    just want to let you german or european guys know: cartft.com is selling the s5 and s7 premium for 649 and 739 euro.

  23. tom says:

    sorry, its the x70ex not the s7.

  24. phntM says:

    hi chippy!

    thx – could you please tell us sth. concerning the seemingly astonishing hibernating features of this device via winxp…

    seemingly this device has a very quick bios-post…

    interessting would be how long it takes:
    – hibernate with an opened website
    – wakeup
    – 3G connection
    – refresh website…

    tia!

  25. yke013 says:

    One major point is the screen resolution
    and there the U820 is the only one offering decent specs.
    U820 resolution is 1280*800 where all the others are only able to reach 1024*600.

  26. Markus says:

    hey, i have two quick question:

    do you get a free leather case if you buy s7 from “dynamism”?

    is it possible to extend the memory (RAM) of this device?

    thankx guys!!!

  27. JonnyN says:

    Can anyone confirm whether the non-3G s7 has a space for a card to be slotted in without soldering a connector on the mobo? I already have a pci-e hsdpa card and don’t want to fork out extra cash if it’s not necessary. Dynamism don’t seem to know.

    Also, can anyone report on the typing experience compared to the Everun Note?

  28. Pierre says:

    Chippy, any idea how long the S7 battery will last with most peripheral devices off (screen, etc …) but still a few processes running (like 3G, db, webserver) ??
    (just to get an idea if this device would be good in an “always on scenario” : http://carrypad.com/2010/02/22/airlife-100-thoughts-6-days-online-battery-and-pricing/ )

  29. chow says:

    Pierre,
    I bought a S7 after having a S5(I keep them both), so I can tell you how I use my S7 and get average 7 hrs a day.
    I usually set the screen light slightly below the middle, which is quite ok for indoor usage, and I turn on wifi for online and bluetooth for a mouse all the time. I have xampp installed and run appache and mysql by default. And I run AVG at the background. I do a lot of typing and drawing and even animation. On some heavy workload days a full battery can run at least for 6 hrs, while most of the time around 7.
    hope that helps.

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