Fujitsu's Ultraportable Tablet

This ultra ultraportable features a swiveling, tablet-style screen.

This week, I'm continuing my obsession with--whoops, I mean my "reporting on"--ultraportables.

During the past few weeks, I've compared notebooks onPC World's Top 5 Ultraportable Laptops chart to their bigger brethren on our All-Purpose and Power charts. What I discovered is that the best ultraportables aren't far behind the best all-purpose and power laptops in terms of overall quality and performance. But ultraportables are pricey, and they can weigh nearly as much as an all-purpose laptop, once you factor in an AC adapter and other peripherals.

In last week's column, I reviewed the slick, stylish Sony Vaio VGN-TXN15P/B. My assessment: It's a pricey but compelling ultraportable for folks who don't mind a smallish screen and keyboard.

Now, the last chapter in the saga (for now, at least): a look at Fujitsu's LifeBook P1610, an ultra ultraportable with a swiveling, tablet-style screen. As with the Vaio TX, I've given the LifeBook P1610 a grade from A through F for size; screen; keyboard; features; battery life; and price.

By the way, my colleague Melissa Perenson recently reviewed the LifeBook P1610 as well.

Weighing 2 pounds, 3 ounces (according to my digital postal scale) with a standard 3-cell battery, and measuring 9.13 by 6.5 by 1.4 inches (according to my tape measure), the LifeBook P1610 is roughly the size of a standard hardcover book and not much heavier. Even with an AC adapter added, the combined weight is still under 3 pounds.

However, the notebook lacks a built-in optical drive. Fujitsu's external dual-layer DVD writer ($269) and its AC adapter weigh 1 pound, 11 ounces, bringing the total travel weight--including notebook, DVD writer, and their AC adapters--up to 4 pounds, 9.7 ounces. That's still svelte, but it's nearly a pound heavier than the Vaio TX notebook (which has a built-in optical drive) and its AC adapter, with its combined weight of 3 pounds, 8.9 ounces. Grade: B

The LifeBook P1610's 8.9-inch touch screen swivels into tablet mode. You can even use your finger as an input device (some tablet PCs require a special stylus for touch screen input). The unit I tested came with Windows XP Professional, though Fujitsu also offers Windows XP Tablet PC Edition 2005 as an option.

The screen features a coating that makes images and text legible in outdoor as well as indoor lighting. If you're looking for a portable to take to the park on a sunny day, this one's a good candidate.

The screen's native resolution is 1280 by 768 pixels, which makes the icons and system fonts extremely small. Folks without 20-20 vision will get all crinkly around the eyes from squinting. The notebook delivers up to 1600 by 1200 pixels to an external monitor, however. Grade: B+

According to Fujitsu, the LifeBook P1610's keyboard features a 16mm key pitch and 2mm key stroke. In comparison, a standard QWERTY keyboard has a key pitch of 19mm and vertical key travel of 3mm to 4mm. The result: You could end up with some achey-breaky fingers after typing on the LifeBook P1610 for an extended period of time. Grade: C+

The LifeBook P1610 provides a basic set of features that will serve most users' needs on the go: 802.11 a/b/g and Bluetooth wireless connectivity; two USB 2.0 ports; headphone and line-in jacks; RJ-11 and ethernet ports; a VGA port; a Secure Digital card slot; and a PC Card slot. As I mentioned earlier, there's no built-in optical drive. But other than watching movies on a plane or installing software, how often do you use one? Grade: B