Hi, Maemo community.

My E7-00 has arrived a few days ago and I'd like to share my experience with it from my point of view - an honest, hands-on approach.

First, a general feel of E7. The device is sleek (And I mean sleek, watch it it's gonna slip from your hands at a moment's notice), sturdy, has a nice feel to it but it is a bit on the heavy side.

As opposed to N900, the E7 immediately gives the user a sense of owning a phone. Phone app no longer "starts", but has most of it cached and is quite quick and readily available, in spite of missing red/green buttons. The phone is polished, with instant search, voice commands that actually work in a different language, defaults and has little to now slowdowns.

It does, however, feel like a phone. there's a menu that is fixed, with an "app" icon, much like the old N900 had, but icons are larger and easier to see, both because of resolution and because of capacitive screen. If you missed phone functionality in N900, well, that's well implemented.

The downside, however, of being built like a phone is the lower degree of freedom. Much like Android, desktop is set in segments, no longer allowing custom "creative" desktops. On the plus side, they rotate effortlessly.

So that's if for first feel. N900 feels plastic, thick, but has nice grip. E7 is smooth, metallic, but slips.

---------That being said, let us compare----------

* Screen

Well, my first disappointment when I had to take on an E7 was the resolution. They call it nHD, which is polite for "damn small". 640 × 360, versus 800x480. Math is deceiving, however, as N900 has 380KPx, and E7 has 240Kpx. While good on paper, N900 has way too many pixels. One has to look at it very, very closely to see a pixel, and most of us no longer focus like we used to.

E7 is an AMOLED screen, which means that black is sun-swallowing clear, while whites are clear, crisp and well defined. Versus the N900 LCD, there is no comparison. N900 has 16 bit colors, meaning 5 bits per channel, or 32 shades. How much of that is displayed is another story. In contrast, E7 has full gamut, with stunning color and depth, by far the best screen.

And while viewed from 5 cm away one can see the pixels, at any usable distance the screen is clear and visible.

In the sun, E7 is miles ahead. I thought that N900's transreflective TFT would win, because it doesn't have to fight light, like E7 does. And while theoretically it is so, E7 is well equipped to work outside, in 37-40 degrees C summer, full sun. Side by side, E7 is better.

Size kind of matters as well, the 4" AMOLED gives a feel of generosity, deep color, no-bleed, no-spots with video being very clear and downright impressive. Images and video look better by far on E7, even if text is a bit pixelated for small fonts.

Winner: E7 by a mile.

* Touchscreen

Here is the twitchy part. N900 can do stylus, E7 can't. (Don't give me that "stylus for capacitive mumbo-jumbo, I bought one from Nokia and it's worse than the finger).

We all know the story. One does stylus, other does multitouch. And opinions are split down the middle, with no definitive winner.

So it's down to mitigation. What does N900 do to mitigate its downsides? Well, little to none. What does E7 do to mitigate its downsides? Something. Not a whole lot, but more that the opponent.

First, it's very sensitive, which means easy touching and it's quite precise. The OS is built for capacitive from the ground up, apps included, so there is very little that feels awkward. Larger screen realestate means bigger controls, less hassle. There are no IceWeasel-like menus here.

But what strikes is the E7's capacity for precision. On a normal, unzoomed, page I can hit the little links 9/10, which is surprising, seeing how on LG's Optimus One I had 1/10. Zooming is natural, smooth, and with a different grip from N900 (thinner) it's not hard to pinch.

Is it precise enough to write? Barely. It's sluggish, you tend to not see what you do, but with a capacitive stylus you CAN. It's a poor excuse, but it can be done, which is more than anyone can say about N900.

And then there are the other advantages that come with capacitive: No loss from digitizer, no scratching, no matte, etc.

I can't stress how incredibly precise the screen has been made in E7. Ported games that have 10x10 buttons can be hit with a little training.

Sorry folks, but the little issues are not enough to sway the bigger issue: better visibility, no scratches, tougher.

Winner: E7, because save for outside cases the TS is better, software-assisted.

* Keyboard

E7 has a larger keyboard, with better spacing. Also, it has buttons for "?" which is useful in messaging, "@", it has press-hold, swype, predictive input (what's hardware with no support?) and, because it's heavier and flat (yes, flat, no protruding camera), it's a breeze to type. Elevated screen is also more comfortable to watch while typing.

On the downside, the buttons are rubber, not plastic, and I washed the plastic away. I expect the keys to lose their shine soon. Also, rubber has less of a clicky feel.

Still, one can't really argues with bigger keyboard, better spacing, more stability.

Winner: E7

* Camera

Well, you know where this is going. E7 sports an 8MPx sensor with nice optics. Pictures are better, there is no doubt about it. Movies are 720p, which is nice even if screen can't display.

Also, because it's a no-focus camera, there's is no downtime in focusing, no camera issues, no sensitivity. It's a well built, sturdy, fast thing to have.

On the downside, E7 can't see very close, opting for fixed focus. Macro suffers. N900 is better. Also, camera is unprotected (save for it being embossed a little, so it doesn't scratch on tables). I don't expect it to look as good in 1-2 years.

E7 also sports a dual LED flash that is better than N900's, natively works in flashlight mode (hold lock key), and seems to be doing slightly better in the dark (with flash).

Does worse in dark (no flash).

Overall, better clarity is nice to have, movies are impressive when viewed on screen and on PC, no drops or hickups (again, hardware and software) and it can be hacked into doing 30p versus native 25p. Personally don't see the point.

Winner: E7. Really. have you seen what the camera can do? Google it.

* Speed

I had my N900 clocked to 900 MHz because at 600 it's a snail plagued by seizures. So I'm not going to even try the 600, I'll consider N900 clocked at 900.

Well, E7 is at 700 MHz (680), but it's sportier. No longer carrying a Linux kernel and the baggage associated with a ported OS, Symbian has been designed with VERY limited resources in mind. Themes are a bit more limited (the ones I tried, apparently there are some more powerful/animated), but the UI is fast. Real fast. And smooth.

Apps start OK, there is little swapping, if any, though Symbian doesn't sport N900's impressive multitasking.

As opposed to N900, it can do video while downloading in background, can navigate with ease while playing music, and is generally better at not taking it out on the user.

At lower speed, E7 is faster. On long, demanding tasks, like editing video, editing images, etc, the E7 kind of feels the hit. To be fair, N900 doesn't do either, so it's hard to compare.

But, at a lower resolution, optimized drivers (there is no tearing in E7!), E7 flies through the UI, rotates effortlessly, has no tearing, no stuttering, and handles games like a console.

Winner: E7

* UI

N900 has a nice UI, with well defined windows, large windows, and an intuitive design that allows stacked windows. E7's Symbian is all over the place.

E7 has virtually no concept of "back". Not choosing "exit" leaves apps running, entering an app while another is running and then exiting returns to desktop, it's a mess. It is mitigated by habit, at some point the user no longer expects order, still, it's bad.

Update: Apparently, Nokia agrees. The new guidelines are out, making Symbian a lot more N900-like.

Winner: N900, by about a mile.

* Connectivity

I'll be straight. I don't think anyone CAN beat Maemo's approach to connectivity. The status menu with switchers is lovely, fallback is beyond reproach, Telepathy is a chatter's dream. [s]There is no equivalent on E7/Symbian, each chat app is standalone and must be left in background.[/s]

A similar concept has been implemented by Nokia in "IM by Nokia" application. Far from the impressive list Telepathy boasts, Chat app by Nokia only allows live chat for Google, MSN, Ovi, Yahoo and MySpace IM, with Facebook Chat still a separate app. The app also has a desktop widget, that allows setting of status, opening the app (left in background) and live notifications.

Symbian 3 mitigates some of its limitations by adding a priority thing for connections, but it has side effects. Also, it has that click on battery thing that helps the lack of the status menu.

Also, there are some widgets that allow easy swapping of networks, and BT on/off, which makes it not hell. It's not bad, but it's miles behind M5.

Winner: N900, by a mile and a half.

* GPS

Both GPSs work about the same, both work indoors in the same locations, both don't at same locations. E7 seems a bit faster.

But, again, what is hardware without software? E7 sports better options, Nokia Maps 3 that has self-updating maps, offline maps and searching, is faster, and, say what you will, when handling maps pinch-to-zoom is a godsend.

Also, it has voice, routing like a champion, in-car, on-foot routing, an actual routing in 3D view (iGo-like), buildings, the works. Couple it with the ability to be seen in the sun and it actually has a shot at being useful.

Plus, check in with about 10 services, report map issues, places, POI, saves favorites, "go home" button, and is faster (again, Symbian is slimmer, better drivers, lower resolution)

Winner: E7 (by software, by a mile)

* Other sensors and hardware

Has accelerometer, and by its 3-degree offset I'm guessing the same deal. Zero difference. E7 has compass, the kind that doesn't get sidetracked by slow rotation. Coupled with GPS, accelerometer, it makes a neat package.

Both have FM radio, E7 lacks emitter. OTOH, E7 sports video out AND HDMI out, which is kind of cool.

Both have camera, volume buttons, but E7 has a menu button. By habit, I look for menu on screen, rather than physical button, but one can add a shortcut and be done with it.

So, FM transmitter versus HDMI, compass, an extra button.

BUT. E7 has phones on top, charger on top, HDMI on top, making it less awkward. Also, the lock button is natural when held portrait, and decent when landscape. N900 is semi-awkward both ways.

When something is attached to it, one is natural and the other is like a fish on a bicycle. Additionally, USB is larger ever so slightly, allowing for better shock resistance when handled while charging.

Both sport light sensor, proximity (E7's doesn't blink like N900 when in-call). Additionally, the software thing. E7 has built-in options to switch call to speaker on slide, open menu or other app on slide, etc.

Also, no IR. Also, BT 3.0.

Winner: E7 (but not by much)

* Browser

Browser on S^3 is quite different, similar to the browsers on older Symbians. Different from N900, with bigger, blockier fonts (no AA when zoomed out), but better readability.

As a plus over N900, the WebKit Symbian browser sports Flash lite 4 (Implementation of Flash 10), Java, and a few feel enhancements - such as faster scrolling, virtually no gray square patters (Symbian prefers to stay a little longer in rendering and render page completely), fast kinetic scrolling capable of going through pages in a few flicks, as opposed to N900 where one would spend 20 seconds scrolling like a lunatic.

Also as a plus over N900, browser has higher readability, is faster, sports pinch zoom and tap zoom at high framerate, and renders a credible desktop browser incarnation of common pages. Not all pages, but then again N900 didn't do all pages either.

Downsides of E7/S^3 browsers include worse "feel" of the page (N900 feels like a desktop page resized down, E7 feels like a page that has been zoomed up - text is larger than images), however, page is realistic enough.

E7 lacks keyboard control and gesture control of browser - backspace key does nothing, e.g. Also lacking is right-clicking, holding a button does nothing in E7. It does, however, has a "show all images" menu bar that allows review, clicking, saving and viewing of images, which mitigates the lack of right-click.

Back is implemented as one of the buttons that appears when exiting full screen, as is Stop. While a downside, full screen doesn't work like N900. It has an anchor, but pressing it calls all buttons and returning to page re-enters full screen seamlessly. Also, enter-exit full screen puts buttons OVER page, not besides, resizing and thus enter-exit doesn't call a re-render like in N900.

Mouse-only operation (swipe from left in N900) is handled by an arrow controlled by keys. To mitigate this, arrow jumps to hot spots (links, bars, etc) instead of just blindly ticking around. Pretty fast, too.

Also implemented is navigation field-to-field, by keyboard. E7 also has a history system, like desktop browsers. Pressing Enter in Google pops a history of typed queries, allowing reuse.

The browser seems to lack addon ability, and is in general less customizable, but in return offers more raw power, in faster rendering, better animation and the ability to play flash video with no effort or stutters.

While the N900 browser is slower and (because of flash) slightly outdated, it offers way more options, gestures, keyboard shortcuts, and a generally more professional, polished feel. E7 offers better speed and a bare minimum interface, but it is a lot easier to add a keyboard shortcuts to E7 than it is to make N900 twice as fast. Until that happens, however, N900 trumps E7 because not enough content relies on Flash 10 to make N900 old.

Winner: N900 (by a small margin)

--------------

Rev 1.1 - Added browser, as suggested, and native apps. Added some bolding to increase readability. Fixed a few typos.

Rev 1.2 - Added better battery review, added screens in a post down the thread.

Rev 1.3 - Corrected info about S^3 - Telepathy. Added link to AR (Sensors section). Added link in UI section.

The post has become too large, and has been split. Follow link to read the second part.

Thanks for the review. The two things that are most important to me are multitasking and internet browsing. While you touched on the former, I have not found any reference to the latter point. Any browser comparison?

buy E7 or hail N900 n enjoy !!

I have the E6 with Symbian Anna, and therefore the new browser that is supposed to be much better than he one on the E7. What can I say, there is only one thing to do is and that is to download Opera. In miles, I will say Opera is 5 miles ahead. Actually it is the best browser of any, I'm sure, except maybe the N9. Opera on Symbian vs the default on N900 is also a mile or two ahead. Opera on Symbian vs Opera on the N900 is one mile ahead.

Seems to me a very honest review, a rarity.

Thanks a lot.

I intend to stay open source (n9, if Elop doesn't kill it before I can grab one), but for my GF a symbian would be one of the best options (she loves to take photos, primarily of people, so no macro is no big deal, and I intend to give her an n8 or something better).

Can the wonderful E7 turn on or off my TV, switch on or off my Xbox, PS3, multi-media box?

The main thing is you are happy with your Nokia E7. That is all that matters.

Concerning closing apps. You can either press the X in certain apps, the exit in others, the door icon in others, options, then exit in others or long press the menu to open the multitasking menue and click the X to close the app or long press and close all apps.

It is very inconsistent from app to app but you can close almost all apps from within the application. This has been one of my gripes for ages.

I have a Nokia N8, since Dec. 2010. I just installed the leaked Symbian Anna v22 build from July 5th on it today. It is a great improvement over Symbian^3 v 14.

I also still have my N900 and a G2 to make comparisions to as well. I agree with your points.

(continued)

* Battery

The main drain in N900 (save for high-drain situations, like gaming and film) was the screen. LCD is less efficient, eats about the same no matter what is displayed, and high brightness means constant power drain.

OLED only eats when emitting light which means that dark themes with bright, vibrant primary colors is what it does best, so showoff themes are actually saving battery. Single colors eat about a third of white, so a black-red theme which is 90% black and 10% red only eats 3-4% of what N900 would eat doing same, assuming LEDs were the same (they aren't, green OLED is more efficient than white LED in backligths).

The worst scenario (all white screen) is about the same as N900's best (all-white). For that reason, internet, that is mostly white, is surprisingly inefficient, with about 4 hours autonomy, roughly similar to N900. This is counter-intuitive, seeing how other tasks are so different.

Phone has a 9 day standby that actually works. It also can do, realistically, 35+ hours of music, 6+ hours of navigation, about 4 hours of video (HD).

When optimized, it can actually go on for days, which is way more than N900 does. Also, there are on-device tips on how to maintain battery, a Nokia app that builds statistics and advices on battery life (see post below) and is overall more careful.

The power saving mode (which is automatic with app installed) lowers screen to 25%, which is visible if not awe-inspiring and is readable in all but the brightest conditions. It also switches to 2G, doing much for standby consumption and talk time, pushing device from ~4 to ~9 hours talk time.

With Bluetooth off and other power eaters disabled (widgets to offline, mail refresh lowered) it can go for quite longer than N900.

Numbers aside, my personal experience is that I expect the E7 to last 2 days with the same usage pattern I had in N900, where the old device barely made it home. Also, I don't know about you, but even on 2G and with BT off there is no way N900 made 9 days. I used to lose about 1% an hour (a little more, actually, about 10% over 8 hours) which means that a minimal usage it just about reached 2 days.

Also, even if it's addon software, it's still Nokia, and it's free, so Power Monitor is a plus for the device. It sports auto-power saving mode, advice on battery life, statistics per-period and per-application which makes power management miles over what N900 has. It also doesn't have the same roller-coaster thing N900 used to with percentage jumping around. Most likely because at half the consumption there is less droop and more precision.

Most important, however, is not the fact that it does on average twice as good as N900. What's impressive is that in a pinch, it CAN be amazingly efficient and survive whereas N900 would leave you unable to call or look something up. With N900 down to 20%, I'd have to lock it to make it home. With E7 down to 20%, I'd still have a day ahead of me.

Winner: E7 (definitely)

* Native apps

Let's see how apps that you will be stuck with stack up:

Phone
Oh dear, where to begin? Search as you type numbers. Typing numbers also searches in contacts, where "2" tries "ABC", "3" tried "DEF" and so on, filtering contacts as you type. E.g., 634 finds "Ndi" and "neg" as part of "negrea". No more finding contacts like cavemen.

It also has a search box where one can use an on-screen vertical ABCDEF keyboard, where after each letter only valid letters are shown, to limit screen realestate use.

Call button is bound to "last dialed" when nothing is typed, but becomes "call" when typing. Contacts button becomes "add to contacts" when something is typed.

In landscape mode, OSK allows swype, plus QWERTY keyboard.

Voice dialing actually finds contacts, including in French and Romanian. Don't even know how it does it, if I pronounce a name in Romanian it finds it. I think it tries every language - how else can it figure out each language designation for acronyms? (to those who are unfamiliar with the issue, each lanuage has different names for letters. In English, "d" is "dee", In Romanian is "deh").

It also boasts complex voice commands, like selecting numbers: "Call Jen on Mobile". This stuff is cool. Tried in car, in a bar, on the street, near a TV. It really, actually works. Also, it can call applications.

UI has large in-call buttons, silence on flip and not-cramped photo.

There is no stuttering. The proximity sensor works like a charm. Capacitive screen makes it hard to push touchscreen by mistake by putting it on the table. Never answered or denied by mistake, helped by the proximity sensor and by the fact that it seems to wait for a touch, rather than just a "lift finger", meaning you can grab the touch.

Only one speaker, though.

Oh, and MMS. And video call. And service messages. And cell info. And Phone is fast to pop and always at hand.

Winner: E7 by about 15 light-years. It's not even funny.

Contacts
E7 sports better options, links to Facebook/Twitter profiles, better maps integration, groups, a detailed view, decent search and a better use of screen. Better: E7.

Messaging
E7 is very similar to N900, with conversations, which sport more emoticons, better language diacritics, also implements inbox/sent/drafts in parallel to Conversations, making it more malleable. Has ability to save messages in My Folders. Doesn't sport IM, though. Faster. Extra buttons.

The fact that E7 doesn't have Telepathy is not the fault of the Conversations, though, so winner: E7 by a narrow margin. Very narrow.

Photos
Same tag thing is implemented in E7, so that's that.

However, E7 scrolls images like it's buttered up, while N900 at 600 gets me 3 FPS. Overclocked it's better, at 5 or 6, but smooth is smooth and what happens in image scrolling on N900 ain't it.

Options are similar to N900, except E7 supports pinch to zoom, and, to maintain feel, zooms then loads. I feel this is a plus, even if details aren't immediately available, because it's easier to wait than to struggle with a stuttering UI.

Sliding images is fun and fast, with haptic feedback, pre-loading of images (fast preloads, it loads completely when zoomed), and handles video at the same speed as images.

UI is also better arranged. In image details, the lines can be clicked, allowing setting tags, adding to albums, etc while also having resolution, date and the such at a glance.

Winner: E7

Maps
Already reviewed. Winner: E7 by a wide margin.

Calendar
On the plus side, E7 calendar is bigger, roomier than N900 (4" screen). Same slide month, 3-views, but it seems faster. On the minus side, it doesn't auto-build the calendar from contacts' birthdays, which is bad.

Both boast multiple calendars with colors, toggle calendars.

I would say N900 wins for auto-calendars, but E7's is supported by OVI suite. Backing up and synchronizing with zero headaches beats a few manual adds every time. Plus, not everyone in my contacts should be in my calendar.

This is a really close call, they are almost identical, one has auto-birthday, the other sync.

I'll go with a tie. Personally, I like safety more than convenience.

Store/App manager

Store has a HTML-like interface, but dedicated. It allows login (auto), search, bigger images and better descriptions, comments, ratings, and is a little slower. Can handle multiple downloads and installs, even if fewer items are in view.

I think that repos are kind of needed for Linux, but not having to download 12 MB to get a list really gets things going. And with less of a hassle with dependencies, it actually is easier and more convenient to use Store.

Update are delivered separately. Allows purchases. Has "recently installed". Is faster.

Winner: E7 (sorry, folks, repositories are cool but not for 10.000 games on a mobile with limited link and CPU). Also, I'm talking fapman here, not that monster of HAM.

Office
Yeah, right. Winner: E7.

Mail
Mail app is pretty much the same, with multiple accounts, embedded common providers, roughly the same settings as 900. On the plus side, less buggy. On the minus, no selecting on what link to use (Wlan only mail), but is mitigated by a "headers only" setting. Both sport a widget. E7 has keyboard shortcuts (S for search, e.g.) and can be scheduled (Mo-Fri, for example, and suspend mails over weekend),

Winner: Tie. (E7 is better but not enough to be declared this and that)

Call log
Detailed log, separated, call duration, fast scrolling. Well embedded into Phone.

Winner: E7.

Search
E7 sports a search much like Scout on N900, except this one is faster and searches more locations (I think). Also does images of people when looking for people.

Winner: E7.

Misc
E7 also sports "here and now" that seems better, a photo editor that shames N900, a video editor, Sociality app that gives a touch-friendly UI to a crowded and ugly Facebook (but still works fine in Browser), SWIPE, Skype (installable) better themes, and a summer gift package of very good games for free, including Assassin's Creed with a innovative multi-touch interface (console-like), HAWX fighter emulator, Settlers, Monopoly (same you get via WebOS games emulator), and a few more.

So there you have it. Most if not all apps have been advanced in rank, polished and upgraded for S^3.

Winner: E7

* Software and apps

Well, here's the choke point. On the plus side, S^3 on E-series sports full office, games galore, high-end games, tons of stuff and, even though it's not free, there IS an option to buy. The incentive is visible, there is an alternate SHELL written for E7, complete with 3D desktop switching, custom screens, polished look.

On the minus side, most of your favorites are gone. There is no VNC and RDP app (the OS is young). I found no decent TVDbAPI app, and I miss SeriesFinale. I also miss MaeWeight or what's it called (MaeFat?). The replacement is polished but useless.

S3 also supports WebDAV (online drives), VPN (sort of), online backup (that one is cool).

Also, and this is very important, E7 is FULLY SUPPORTED BY OVI SUITE (ex PC Suite). This may not mean a lot for a Linux user, but it has the ability to export contacts, calendar and other data in a way that can be used on another phone or OS. This is kind of important, as I lost a lot of data when N900 died. I wouldn't have if it was abandoned, but when being dead I'm left with Berkley Db.

There is no clear winner now. Overall, both have thousands of apps. M5 has all the favorites by geeks, E7 has all the favorites by gamers.

Contrary to what you may think, this not a tie. While S^3 is young, M5 is not only old, it's virtually dead. The additions of software to M5 repos is slowing, while the S3 is exploding.

Sorry, folks.

Winner: E7 (don't switch if you depend on VNC, RDP or any Linux-based favorites)

Well, folks, that's it for now. Ask if you want to know more, but for now my feeling is that while I miss VNC and (a few apps I got used to), I finally have a phone I can talk on, with full features, a great screen and camera, better battery and I'm glad I switched.

No, it does not have an IR, as noted. Nor is it wonderful, it's just better in many ways, but not all. Being 18 months newer helps. IR has been slashed, along with FM transmitter, to make room for the better camera, compass, HDMI and the like.

I played with IR myself, unfortunately I found that there are a lot of incompatibilities and limitations (Can't fire up My Panasonic Plasma with N900, e.g.). If you have many IR devices, you'll feel the hit there. If you get lost more, compass is better.

Overall, however, I think more is gained than lost, hardware-wise.

As for your issue, may I suggest a 20$ fully programmable remote? I have one that has 200 devices built-in, plus, a learn mode where you hold a button, point a remote face to face with this one and it learns and repeats the signal.

Mighty useful, available at all times and all around better than firing up apps on a phone. No bragging rights, though :)

Added browser comparison.

As for multitasking, I'm still exploring it. It does the obvious, doesn't seem to swap in/load back apps like Android, but most apps intentionally pause when left back, and almost all wait for user input.

When I have a better understanding of multitasking on E7, I'll add a more informed point. Until then, know that it doesn't close apps, one can switch at will, there is copy/pasting from apps to other apps, and at least known tasks work.

For example, you can leave Store app in background to download and install while you edit contacts. You can leave browser and it still loads (otherwise it loses connection to server). What I can't tell is whether the Store requests to be left running (a la iOS/WP7) or it's left running by default (a la N900).

Not that it matters, the end result is the same. You can fire up 10 windows, switch between them, and mail will keep updating, conversations will get updated, music will play and so on. Games typically pause, but not all. Those who do handle it well, say mid-loading or while editing high score name.

ETA:
A picture is worth 1000 words:

Google (full)
https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/phot...eat=directlink

TMO
https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/phot...eat=directlink

Facebook (full)
https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/phot...eat=directlink

Looks like, for everything that matters to you, it performs better! Cool!

Now, may I ask, of the things that matter to me:

How is multitask compared between the two? How many windows can I open of different programs? Can they keep working in background?

How does the usb host connection works? How fast the transfer is, and how big the files you tried? What are the things it can recognize(cameras, mouses, etc) while at it?

Can you download and play flv videos from youtube?

Can you edit the keyboard layout?

How many hours does it work while on max light and playing some n64 game(or something like that for that matter)?

Does it have any program that emulates a terminal? Can I easily make scripts (of any kind) that can be run by it?

Does it have any form of game gripper?

Can I connect my ps3 control to the e7? Can I use it to play games?

Can I multiboot it to something else? Or load anything else on it for that matter?

How do you deal with the grease of the fingers?

That's what I can remember for now. Thank you!