With computing devices getting cheaper all of the time, we can safely say that we are witnessing the beginning of a mini laptop price war. This is the Fidelity very personal computer (VPU) the company name may be unknown within the computer industry, but they are well known in electrical products. This venture into mini laptop country could spell a disaster for the marketing plans of the big boys.
The 1.5lb VPC features:
Wi-Fi
Onboard USB and Ethernet ports
An SD reader
7″ TFT display with an 800×480 resolution
2GB of internal storage
100 MHz processor
Linux with preloaded programs such as internet browser, spreadsheet, word processor, a media player for movies, music and pictures, e-book reader, dictionary, calendar, PDF reader, email, chat, calculator, file manager
Priced at $199
Source [Chip Chick]
I bought a VPC on impulse a couple days ago, in a retail store. I was able to browse the net via WiFi within about 5 minutes, mostly delayed by my wireless router paranoid security setup. The machine is okay for text, but rather slow for browsing anything graphical. Battery life with WiFi enabled is poor, less than 1.5 hours. The underlying Linux OS is hidden from the user. After I downloaded and installed the software update 1.1, the WiFi stopped connecting, unless I disable my router's security. So this is a first-generation product, with typical problems. It is definitely small and lightweight, and the screen is very nice (but 800×480 so horizontal scrolling is sometimes necessary). I have not been able to get any video working yet. Volume for MP3 playback is way too loud, especially with earbuds. My VPC seems to have 4GB flash memory, partitioned as two virtual drives C and D, and has about 3.5GB available to the user. There is no clear indication of the RAM size. There are hints that the CPU is the MIPS architecture. This is appealing because many virii designed for x86 architecture will not run on the VPC. My early opinion is that the VPC is okay for tolerant techie tinkerers, but is likely to be frustrating for non-techies or people accustomed to blazing fast PC's with big screens. The USB ports might be v1.x because transferring data to/from a USB memory stick is very slow (about 0.5 megabytes per second). I have not mapped out all the rough spots yet. But the machine has promise.
I am considering purchasing the Fidelity VPC – what do you think of it now after having it forsome time now….
Don't buy it. It is slow, unreliable, poorly supported, unpolished prototype quality, and there are better alternatives for portable computing. I wish I had spent my $200 on an iPod Touch 8GB.
Thanks…we actually did end up getting an iPod instead!!!!
this computer is good as a secondary computer
the VPC is horrible it can’t even connect to my wireless with no security. I plugged an ethernet cable in and it still did connect to the internet.
DON’T BUY THIS $%?%! Like Tomwamm say buy a IPOD touch youre going to have more fun…
I also bought this on a bit of an impulse – I wanted something portable that I could connect with either wireless or regular ethernet. So far, I have been unable to access wireless, although it sees my connection (with a strong signal – no problem there). I followed all instructions I was able to find, even purchasing an SD card to use transferring the ‘update’ that my Linksys router apparently needed. Still no joy. I have emailed Fidelity to ask for further assistance – will see if their tech support is as bad as some of the reviews would indicate….
hey guys i bought this
and its not turning on it never moves from the white screen with the big f
I bought this also as a “Lets see what it can do”, well almost nothing. as to being ok for those of us who are “more techy”, well it’s not, BIG TIME NOT. It’s way to slow, can’t even play video with out lagging, even if you don’t play it on full screen. it takes over a minute to boot….and that’s on Linux!! just awful, it’s going back tomorrow and i recommend to everyone to leave this in the store!!
This thing is no short of a joke; a lame excuse for a computer. If you really want something portable to take around with you, you should check out the OpenPandora (open-pandora.com; also openpandora.com has more tech details). It is slightly larger than the DS, and has a full qwerty keyboard.
It has an ARM® Cortex™-A8 600Mhz+ CPU, way better than this Fidelity crap.
It has the same resolution, and its LCD is a touch screen, as well as S-Video output for your TV.
It has USB 2.0 ports, Wifi 802.11b/g, and Bluetooth.
It has dual SDHC card slots (32GB max each) so its capable of 64GB of storage.
It also has a 10+ hours battery life.
oh yeah, it also runs linux 2.6.x and does not hide it.
BEAT THAT, FIDELITY!!!
I’m not trying to spam for openpandora, and I am not connected to them in any way. I’m just an average techie and programmer who has an unwaivering love for gadgets.
Cost? i think it sits between 300-400 CAD (Canadian) so check their sites for accurate prices.
I left out some details, so look for them in their sites.
This product is well worth its price (im ordering one now)
Mine too ! I bought one for my 12 year old son for Xmas and he has never been able to use it..!
Its stuck in the loading mode !!! and wont reset
that seems to be the problem,, thats all I get too.. any suggestions out there?
okk so im using the fedlity i bought today and lets just say this is the worst computer i have ever purchased complete waste of money its going back to the store on sunday i cant beleive i even bought it
In case there are still any more of these around and anyone is considering buying one – the Fidelity VPC is definitely not worth any type investment. Products like this should be found in a bargain bin at Walmart or Giant Tiger for no more than 20 or 30 bucks, and even then I would advise only people who are sort of “techie” to even bother to consider purchasing this. I have had two of these for sale in my store since almost 2 years now, and I haven’t the heart to sell them to anyone. I have even told potential interested buyers not to “waste their money”.
The supplier I bought them from still advertises them on their website for over $200 – wow.
Has any of you been able to get it off the loading screen?
I’m very confused right now.. I’m useing the vpc right now, and I’m not haveing any problems with it… I just got lucky I guess….?