The task of kick-starting the UMPC generation has inadvertently fallen to the Samsung Q1 Ultra. After a flurry of Vista-powered UMPCs from leading manufacturers including Sony, Asus and Nokia, the world has been waiting for that one device that sweeps away laptops and offers tremendous lightweight portable power at the right price. The Q1 goes close but fails to address some serious faults of this fledgling form factor.

Samsung could have easily ditched its answer to the chronic shortage of worthwhile UMPCs after the lukewarm reception of its Q1 last year, but, in sticking to its guns, Samsung has produced a much improved device just 12 months later, solving some inherent problems and creating others.

It's hard to see how UMPCs will become as easy to use as their larger laptop siblings, but the Q1 is the first major release to step away from the slide-open convention that has so far defined the UMPC, and it's a welcome change.

At first the Q1 Ultra's split keypad, dividing a Qwerty keyboard between the left and right-hand sides of the 7in screen, seems too much like a games console and totally unsuited to the business laptop-esque life of a UMPC.

However, it does allow the Q1 to be held comfortably for a reasonable length of time and is very convenient for using the tidy joystick and dial keys located beneath each section of the Qwerty keys. At nearly an inch thick, it's shown up by many of today's low-end laptops, but if it were thinner, it would certainly feel flimsy rather than sturdy and get much hotter than it actually does.

Portable power

Quite rightly, the screen dominates the Q1's surface, and, at 1024 x 600, the display makes Vista shine in all its superficial glory. Its clarity, coupled with the ability to switch to portrait mode, makes web browsing pleasurable while video playback is also impressive. Surface reflection is not bad at all - given the screen's generally glossy nature.

The mouse key isn't as flexible as we would like but the lockable dial key (useful for scrolling) is a neat addition. What is less impressive is the stylus, which at times proved unresponsive, slightly off-centre and quite irritating to get commands entered into Windows programs. Compared to Sony's UX1, the Q1 has a second-class touchscreen and for nearly £800 we would expect much better.