It’s been a little less than a year since manufacturers started cramming the guts of Windows computers into pocket-sized PC sticks like the MeegoPad T01 and Intel Compute Stick. So far most models have had similar specs, but now we’re starting to see some next-gen models with newer, more powerful hardware.
As Ian Morrison notes, it looks like MeegoPad will be one of the first companies to release products… but keep in mind that this is a company that has a habit of shipping products with unlicensed versions of Windows. If you plan to run Linux, that might not be an issue. Otherwise you might want to wait for confirmation that the retail versions of the MeegoPad T05, T06, and T07 actually have valid Windows licenses.
The hardware, on the other hand, looks pretty interesting.
The MeegoPad T07 features an Intel Atom x5-8300 Cherry Trail processor, 2GB of RAM, and 32GB of storage. It supports 802.11b/g/n WiFi and Bluetooth 4.0, features a USB 2.0 port, HDMI port, microSD card slot, a micro USB port, and a headset jack.
Gearbest and Geekbuying are taking pre-orders for the MeegoPad T07 for about $115.
MeegoPad also offers two more powerful models. Both the MeegoPad T05 and T06 feature Atom z5-8500 Cherry trail chips, 4GB of RAM, up to 64GB of storage, and the same ports found on the T07, with the addition of a USB 3.0 port.
What sets the T06 apart from the T05 seems to be a 300 mAh battery in the T06, which should offer enough juice to keep the system running in the even to of a sudden loss of power (if you accidentally remove the power cable, for example), or while you unplug the PC stick and carry it to another display.
Shenzhen APEC Electronics also has product pages for the APM-D05i and APM-D05F, which have similar physical designs and specs to the MeegoPad PC sticks.
Up until now, most Windows-compatible PC sticks have feature Intel Atom Z3735F Bay Trail processors, up to 2GB of RAM and up to 32GB of storage. We’re expecting to see even more powerful models with Intel Core M chips in the future. But for now, it’s nice to see models with improved specs.
Congratulations, Brad. You are now officially a journalist (if you weren’t before). This article’s statement about MeeGo shipping “unlicensed” (pirated) versions of Windows was cited directly with attribution on Geek.com. A link to this article is included in their article, maybe that will bring a few more readers to this site.
I hope something had been done about the thermal throttling. Even installing a small piece of copper into the T01 did wonders to it.
We want Z8700, it’s about $10 more expensive common, do it!
ditto, might as well take the T07 box straight best buy for ewaste recycling without even opening the box.
Brad, how about an article comparing the two CPUs? (8300 and 3735)
no
Hey, Brad!
https://www.cnx-software.com/2015/08/23/intel-atom-z3735f-vs-atom-x5-z8300-benchmarks-comparison/
Why not a Chrome OS powered stick?, it would boot faster than MS WOS and GNU/Linux and with Crouton almost run anything
My Asus X205 boots to the sign in screen in 11 seconds (Win 8.1). Not sure how much faster a Chrome system would boot.
Here are some initial results: https://liliputing.com/2015/08/tronsmart-ara-x5-now-available-for-150-windows-10-mini-pc-with-cherry-trail.html
Good to know I’m not the only one who hit’s reply to the wrong post. 😉
Thanks! I didn’t catch (or maybe remember) that article somehow. I was wondering about video because the source I did check showed the GPU running significantly slower.