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By Darius Chang, CNET Asia
Sep 17, 2007

When we first set eyes on the Everun, honestly, we weren't impressed. Looking like an ungainly, elongated Treo PDA-phone, we preferred the simplicity of the slate ASUS R2H, slider Sony UX series and even the clamshell Kohjisha SA1F00 and Fujitsu LifeBook U1010. TrendsMobile, the distributor bringing the Everun to the Singapore market, passed us a unit for review and though we still did not really go gaga over the design, we could appreciate its inner beauty. After all, with a battery life of close to 6 hours and a whole slew of upgrade options, the Everun has come closest to fulfilling the UMPC promise of mobile connectivity and all-day computing.

Design
Though the images of the Everun make it look rather huge, the elongated 170 x 83 x 25mm form actually fits into the hands very nicely and resembles a portable gaming console. But unlike a Sony PSP, this UMPC is a full-fledged computing system running on Windows XP Home. We like the fact that the battery, keyboard and sides have a rubberized finish that is non-slip and perfect for those with sweaty palms. Not so hot are the silver borders which, unfortunately, displayed signs of paint dropping despite our utmost care keeping the unit in its included cloth bag when not in use. For a unit that is meant to be used on-the-go, this lack of attention to the exterior hardiness is a little disappointing. Fortunately, the manufacturer is aware of this issue and offers to fix any units which have this problem free. It assured us that future units will not exhibit this symptom.

The Everun weighs a mere 490g. Though the pre-production unit had a charger which resembled those used to replenish handphone cells, the final unit came with a more conventional two-piece device that increased the traveling weight to 802g. The Everun compares favorably with the 580g Fujitsu LifeBook U1010 which has a similar display size and quite a bit lighter than the 7-inch Kohjinsha SA1F00 which is almost 1kg.

There is no lack of dedicated buttons on this machine. Besides the 56-key keyboard and 12 function keys, there is a directional pad, right/left click and scroll buttons as well as two sets of shift, Fn, Alt and Ctrl controls (for use when the unit is in portrait or landscape mode). The top of the unit (in landscape view) contains the audio jacks, mini-USB, USB as well as additional keys to change CPU speeds, resolution and volume mute. The right side holds the volume control and power button. The latter is recessed enough to prevent accidental power ups while still being easy to press. A SIM card slot (for use with the optional HSDPA radio) and proprietary expansion jack are found on the bottom.

Frankly, we would have preferred if the direction pad was switched with the right/left click and scroll keys as this makes navigation a lot more intuitive. The reason for the current layout, however, is for the feature which changes the input from standard to gamepad mode for gaming. Though a laudable effort, we do not think this is necessary as a UMPC is less a gaming device than a productivity tool. There is a slot at the back for the stylus so that it can be used as a stand. However, it is so flimsy that we do not advise doing so.

This UMPC can be used as an external storage device when switched off, allowing you to access the contents without draining the battery. Unfortunately, the mini-USB and charging port are paired too close to allow both to be used simultaneously. Hence, you can either replenish the battery or access the harddisk, but not both.

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