It’s been a week since I wrote about my first impressions, so here’s an update. Nothing about those first impressions has changed, but I’ve learned and tried a few more things.

Planet App Launcher

There’s a Planet button to the left of the space bar that brings up a customisable app launcher, and it’s pretty neat. The main thing I use it for is forcing portrait mode, but sometimes it’s also handy for apps.

RDP

I already wrote about how good the Gemini is for SSH, but it’s also great for Windows remote desktops (over SSH tunnels), because there’s no need to pop up a virtual keyboard over half the screen (and RDP definitely is a landscape mode app).

It’s a talking point

I was using my Gemini a fair bit at the couple of days that I spent at QCon London this week, and whilst some people studiously ignored it, and others had it pushed in their face because I’m so keen to show it off, there was a fair bit of ‘what’s that?’.

It does a good job of replacing my laptop

My laptop came out of my bag once during QCon (for me to attack something that I knew would need a desktop browser and my password manager) – in a pinch I could have used RDP for that, but since I did have my laptop with me…

The lesson here is that I’ll likely carry my laptop less.

The battery lasts well enough

I still don’t feel like I’ve pushed the envelope here, but the Gemini has been with me for some long days, and made it through.

X25

Apparently all production Gemini’s were supposed to be made with the X27 System On Chip (SOC), but it seems the first 1000 slipped through with the X25. I’m in the not really bothered camp on this, whilst I get the impression that some owners are fuming and feeling betrayed. For me this will just be something that clearly identifies my Gemini as one of the first. At some stage in the future this might bite me as software assumes X27ness, but at that stage I might be in need of a newer/better one anyway.

I’d love a 7″ Gemini

The Gemini hasn’t displaced my much loved (and now very long in the tooth) Nexus 7 2013 (LTE) from my life, and one reason for that is screen size. A Gemini with more screen and a slightly less cramped keyboard (like my old Sharp PC 3100) would be a thing of beauty.

I’ve still not tried dual boot to Linux

and that probably won’t change until things mature a little (or I find a desperate need).