Announcements about mobile devices with full Windows 10 lost their status of promises from Microsoft and gained a concrete embodiment during Qualcomm tech summit. The dream to put Windows 10 and Qualcomm SoC, finally, turned into reality, which was signified by the release of two hybrid devices – ASUS NovaGo and HP Envy x2.
HP Envy x2 is a transformer tablet similar to Microsoft Surface tablet. It has a 12,3-inch touch screen with 1920 x 1280 resolution, that supports a stylus and recognises 1024 levels of pressure. At the heart of the device, Snapdragon 835 with 4 or 8GB RAM (customisable). An eMMC flash-storage drive with 64- or 256GB volume is on the board to keep your data. The keyboard module is detachable.
ASUS NovaGo is very similar to its colleague. The differences are the 13,3-inch screen (Full HD) that rotates (the keyboard cannot be detached) and UFS 2.0 (which is faster than many eMMC versions)flash storage of the same sizes.
What makes these two devices so special is Qualcomm SoC (System on Chip) processors, that combine CPU, GPU, Wireless adapter, security module, GPS, gesture recognition and more on a single chip. This solution was designed for mobile devices such as smartphones and tablets and followed requirements for those devices. The main advantage here is low power consumption and low heat emission. HP Envy x2 can work up to 20 hours on a single charge, while ASUS NovaGo promises 22 hours.
Both devices come with Windows 10 S preinstalled. Windows 10 Home and Pro for ARM devices will be ready by fall 2018. You can upgrade Windows later on for a small fee.