Xbox One exclusive Ryse runs at 900p


Recommended Posts

No? I have no doubt they'll run games at 1080p@60fps with time, my expectation for launch titles is never high as I've stated a few times already. The point though was the reason I console game as well as PC game. There's an advantage to knowing you'll get good gaming, as long as devs do their job, for at least 5 years while on the PC if you want to stay at a constant performance level you'll need to upgrade again in around 3 or so years on average or you'll lower the games settings. I already had to tweak the graphics settings in Metro Last Light because I got frame drops on my HD7870.

 

You should doubt it, because I can almost guarantee the perf gain from optimisation will be funneled right back into adding more feature and effects rather than achieving native resolution. Ultimately, if devs cared for achieving native + 60fps they would do so from day 1.

 

Which really, kinda kills your point.

Xbox One needs that much RAM so you can quick switch between games, TV, apps etc. They have sectioned off three parts so they can easily be doing their own thing without affecting anything else. Browse the marketplace or watch Netflix while the game is loading or finding a multplayer match. Something you couldn't do before.

 

PS4 will likely be doing the same thing. The new social stuff, game recording. Resources will be dedicated to those so they are available immediately if the user needs access. Makes for a much smoother experience.

 

You could argue it takes resources away from gaming but they both want to do new things and I wouldn't worry too much. Windows and playing BF4 would struggle to use 5GB of memory.

 

Can't forget that Sony and Microsoft want these consoles to last 5-10 years. They need some headroom with the OS reserve so they can add new features. Aim high then cut it back to be safe is the name of the game. In 5 years they could even give more RAM back for gaming by optimising and tailoring needs that won't change any more.

You should doubt it, because I can almost guarantee the perf gain from optimisation will be funneled right back into adding more feature and effects rather than achieving native resolution. Ultimately, if devs cared for achieving native + 60fps they would do so from day 1.

 

Which really, kinda kills your point.

 

*cough* Forza *cough*

You should doubt it, because I can almost guarantee the perf gain from optimisation will be funneled right back into adding more feature and effects rather than achieving native resolution. Ultimately, if devs cared for achieving native + 60fps they would do so from day 1.

 

Which really, kinda kills your point.

Not at all, because launch titles never receive the level of optimization that later titles get, we've seen this repeated a number of times already with new systems yet from the 2nd batch and up we see them become better. 360 games didn't hit 720p to start but we've seen that get reached later on so why wouldn't this happen again? With the need to meet a short development cycle and working on non-finished hardware to do so they're making tradeoffs of course, do you go for the higher res or the higher frame rate. In the end it's a constant high frame rate that is more noticeable compared to the difference between 1080p and 900p so that's what they picked.

Not at all, because launch titles never receive the level of optimization that later titles get, we've seen this repeated a number of times already with new systems yet from the 2nd batch and up we see them become better. 360 games didn't hit 720p to start but we've seen that get reached later on so why wouldn't this happen again? With the need to meet a short development cycle and working on non-finished hardware to do so they're making tradeoffs of course, do you go for the higher res or the higher frame rate. In the end it's a constant high frame rate that is more noticeable compared to the difference between 1080p and 900p so that's what they picked.

 

Optimisation and all of the other associated guff is irrelevant, this is purely a policy issue. Developers prefer features over resolution and framerate, they made the tradeoff today and they'll make it again tomorrow.

 

You were willing to accept these tradeoffs as a current gen console gamer and you are willing to accept it again with the next - yet you're unwilling to as a PC gamer. That's a double standard.

*cough* Ryse *cough*

 

what about it ? you effectively said that noone will do 1080 60 or they would be doings so from day one, I showed a day one game that not only runs at 1080p60, but is also the best looking next gen game so far. and probably the one with the most demanding AI and physics calculations required. 

 

why the Ryse devs chose to focus on somethign else or had to scale back for launch is at this point unknown. most likely they simply had to scale back to be able to reliably hit 60 for launch. 

PC gaming is just  higher end console gaming.

 

Game developers can aim higher on a pc, but they also must keep in mind that not everyone own a high end pc and thus they create a game that is able to scale as much as possible. 

 

On a console, there is no thinking about scaling, just to maximize hardware usage.  They have to find that right balance of resolution, frame rate, and visual effects/features that fit into that finite tank of performance. That balance is not right or wrong, it is different for each developer.  They also find ways to squeeze more out of the custom hardware of a console then you might expect from similar pc hardware thanks to its closed nature, but that takes time and doesn't happen at launch.

Doesn't matter. a PC with the same specs as a console won't even come close to the same game performance. 

Just as a same specs console won't ever be able to do the same things a PC can. They differ in role and implementation.

 

However, that was not my point. My point is that the next gen's performance is more underwhelming than the current gen's one was when released. PC will outperform them at the same price very early in their lifetime, which will lead to a even longer period of lowest common denominator ######. Hopefully the architecture will ameliorate some of it.

Optimisation and all of the other associated guff is irrelevant, this is purely a policy issue. Developers prefer features over resolution and framerate, they made the tradeoff today and they'll make it again tomorrow.

 

You were willing to accept these tradeoffs as a current gen console gamer and you are willing to accept it again with the next - yet you're unwilling to as a PC gamer. That's a double standard.

 

indeed. just look at the last generation for proof. no games increased framerates from 30 to 60 in their sequels like Froza did... err I mean...

what about it ? you effectively said that noone will do 1080 60 or they would be doings so from day one, I showed a day one game that not only runs at 1080p60, but is also the best looking next gen game so far. and probably the one with the most demanding AI and physics calculations required. 

 

why the Ryse devs chose to focus on somethign else or had to scale back for launch is at this point unknown. most likely they simply had to scale back to be able to reliably hit 60 for launch. 

 

No, that was just your strange personal attachment to absolutes. There is nothing stopping the One from doing 1080p60, but then again nor is there anything stopping the 360 from doing so either (Providing you're okay with zero shader effects). The point is developers prioritise features over achieving native resolution and/or 60fps on consoles - that's not going to suddenly change because of new hardware (or new optimisations), it just means they're going to add even more features.

 

indeed. just look at the last generation for proof. no games increased framerates from 30 to 60 in their sequels like Froza did... err I mean...

 

Oh look, the same game series again that's convieniently developed by Microsoft too.

Just as a same specs console won't ever be able to do the same things a PC can. They differ in role and implementation.

 

However, that was not my point. My point is that the next gen's performance is more underwhelming than the current gen's one was when released. PC will outperform them at the same price very early in their lifetime, which will lead to a even longer period of lowest common denominator bull****. Hopefully the architecture will ameliorate some of it.

 

PC gaming hardware is farther along now then it was at the start of the current gen simply because pc hardware is improving at such a fast rate.  How in the world do you craft a console that is to last 8 years, be reasonably priced, and still keep up with pc hardware improvements?

 

The answer:  You can't....

 

As pc tech pushed forward, you will see console hardware eclipsed faster then it was this gen. If there is another gen of consoles after next, you will see the same trend, maybe even worse.

 

As a console maker, you could choose to build a really powerful that costs like $600 or you could put out new consoles every 3 years to try and keep up, but that is a futile move.  These companies would get knocked out of the market if they tried that, there is not enough money made or demand to sustain that.

 

 

 

 

Oh look, the same game series again that's convieniently developed by Microsoft too.

 

 

First party games for consoles tend to offer the best visuals or make the best use of the hardware for obvious reasons.  Most 3rd party devs that are multiplatform don't bother trying to optimize completely. 

Personally, I would like both consoles to run every game at 1080p/60fps, even from launch, and fit as much prettiness into it as they can as long as they retain 1080p/60fps.

 

Over time, as they understand more about the hardware, the games will get better looking whilst maintaining that 1080p/60fps spec than I find important.

The ESRAM is just a small 32MB L3 cache/frame buffer, it does not hardly effect performance at all. I do believe that performance on the Xbox One would suck even worse without it, but it is not something that really does much of anything but help support the general operation of the system. The problem is, the ESRAM cache is so small, only 32MB. That's about as much VRAM as my old NVidia TNT2 had from 2000. In comparison, modern GPUs were designed to run with 1GB-4GB running at a full 264GB/sec all by itself.The tests done that showed the PS4 was 50% faster were with the Xbox One utilizing it's ESRAM.. It is not 218GB/sec, it is 109GB/sec, and possibly faster with compression - that is if the data is compressible. That is not going to make up for the fact that the PS4 has 8GB DDR5 memory clocked in at 174GB/sec across the full spectrum, direct to GPU and CPU. This literally blows the doors off the Xbox One, and it necessary to drive high resolutions without performance issues, just like in PC graphics.

Also I could not care less if the Xbox One and GCN architecture have more "internal" bandwidth. If the GPU can't get data to work on, if it's bottlenecked by the main system memory, it isn't going to matter.

Those numbers are irrelevant with hardware support for PRT in Xbox One AKA DirectX 11.2 tiled resources. PS4 can support it in software but Microsoft has added special hadrware for this (DME). Microsoft has a demo at Build 2013 showing a scene render with just 16GB of RAM that will typically take upwards of 1GB VRAM using texure streaming.

This is based on my anecdotal reading though so people more familiar with the tech can shed more light on it.

 

Optimisation and all of the other associated guff is irrelevant, this is purely a policy issue. Developers prefer features over resolution and framerate, they made the tradeoff today and they'll make it again tomorrow.

 

You were willing to accept these tradeoffs as a current gen console gamer and you are willing to accept it again with the next - yet you're unwilling to as a PC gamer. That's a double standard.

Launch games are almost always subpar for consoles. Just compare Call of Duty 2 with Ghosts. This series has stopped being on the cutting edge but even then the difference on Xbox 360 is noticeable. There is no "launch window" on PCs, so it kind of doesn't apply to PCs.

psionicinversion, on 17 Sept 2013 - 15:42, said:psionicinversion, on 17 Sept 2013 - 15:42, said:psionicinversion, on 17 Sept 2013 - 15:42, said:psionicinversion, on 17 Sept 2013 - 15:42, said:

if they cant do 1080 at 30 fps and need drop to 900 then its pretty crap but i think most games on x1 are looking for 60fps specially AAA games

I don't think BF4 does, that's a AAA title is it not? its 720p upscaled to 1080p@60fps, could be to do with the 64 player angle though.

 

Next half gen consoles ;) I will stick to PC gaming above native 1080p thanks. When the xbox one arrives under my main TV, it will be more a Media center role than a gaming console tbh.

Launch games are almost always subpar for consoles. Just compare Call of Duty 2 with Ghosts. This series has stopped being on the cutting edge but even then the difference on Xbox 360 is noticeable. There is no "launch window" on PCs, so it kind of doesn't apply to PCs.

 

Yes they are, but that has no bearing on the point. I'm not arguing that devs have a fixed performance budget, I'm arguing that they prefer to "spend" that budget in areas other than framerate and spatial resolution. Evidenced by the fact that Ryse didn't cut back on effects instead of targeting 900p.

 

It has nothing to do with hardware specs, software or optimisation. It's simply a policy thing. The only way it'll change is if Microsoft or Sony makes it a requirement for certification.

Yes they are, but that has no bearing on the point. I'm not arguing that devs have a fixed performance budget, I'm arguing that they prefer to "spend" that budget in areas other than framerate and spatial resolution. Evidenced by the fact that Ryse didn't cut back on effects instead of targeting 900p.

 

It has nothing to do with hardware specs, software or optimisation. It's simply a policy thing. The only way it'll change is if Microsoft or Sony makes it a requirement for certification.

 

 

I agree.  The only way you guarantee 1080p/60 is to require it, but Sony and MS would be crazy to do that considering developers would not be happy.

 

Some devs see the need for 1080p/60, so they target that.  The Killer Instinct team is not aiming for 1080p, but they are aiming for 60 fps.  A fighting game demands that to be successful.  The Forza team is aiming for 1080p/60 because both of those features are in demand for a racing sim.

 

Other devs will find that they wish to prioritizes effects over res or framerate, and in the end it may still look great.

I wonder if the scaling is just for gameplay. Part of the new DX is that it allows individual scaling, so you would think things that need to be sharp like HUD/interfaces would still be 1080p.

I do believe that they're using that feature, not everything has to be the same on screen, the hud for example which is always on screen can be 1080p while other things could be less. Toss in tessellation and other hardware tricks and you can have things close and directly in the FOV be highly detailed while things a bit farther away are low quality and allow you to reach a better performance target.

PC gaming hardware is farther along now then it was at the start of the current gen simply because pc hardware is improving at such a fast rate.  How in the world do you craft a console that is to last 8 years, be reasonably priced, and still keep up with pc hardware improvements?

 

The answer:  You can't....

 

As pc tech pushed forward, you will see console hardware eclipsed faster then it was this gen. If there is another gen of consoles after next, you will see the same trend, maybe even worse.

 

As a console maker, you could choose to build a really powerful that costs like $600 or you could put out new consoles every 3 years to try and keep up, but that is a futile move.  These companies would get knocked out of the market if they tried that, there is not enough money made or demand to sustain that.

PC hardware (main components) is not improving at a faster rate now than it used to. If anything the CPU has slowed down to a crawl, while the GPU is keeping a steady pace.

 

Nobody in his right mind expects a console to be better than a PC throughout its lifetime, but the hardware should be closer to a 800-1000$ PC at launch and run ANY well coded game with 1080p@60fps. Right now this performance point is the exception.

 

As for money, they have a pretty big mark-up on games and console game prices usually start higher than PC and lose value a lot slower.

PC hardware (main components) is not improving at a faster rate now than it used to. If anything the CPU has slowed down to a crawl, while the GPU is keeping a steady pace.

 

Nobody in his right mind expects a console to be better than a PC throughout its lifetime, but the hardware should be closer to a 800-1000$ PC at launch and run ANY well coded game with 1080p@60fps. Right now this performance point is the exception.

 

As for money, they have a pretty big mark-up on games and console game prices usually start higher than PC and lose value a lot slower.

 

I don't know if its improving at a faster rate then it was back when the current gen started, but it sure seems like it.  Yes, the last couple of years seems like it has slowed a bit on the cpu side, and yet the gpu side of things is pushing forward.

 

How in the world do you packaged an 800-$1000 pc into a $400/$500 console? You would likely be burning up tons of cash while you waited for game sales to cover that cost.

 

Sony is in no condition to burn up that kind of cash.  MS may have the money, but its tired of burning up the cash as well.  Both of them see Nintendo never having to hemorrhage money at launch like they do and they decide its time to scale back.

 

I mean lets seriously put this to the test.  What is an $800-$1000 pc going to have hardware wise?  Lets assume you pick components in order to have the best gaming experience at that price.  You would be using an Intel core i5 maybe, along with a high end Nvidia/AMD card and then maybe 16gb of ram and an ssd.  You can't build a console with those specs and sell it for $400. 

 

I mean both consoles are using AMD cpus even though in the pc world, everyone knows that Intel cpus are higher performing, but they also cost more.

I bet a large proportion of the console target market have not played any game with graphics anywhere near as nice or smooth as what the PS4/XB1 will put out. Those people will be current console owners, and virtually every person in the world who has not got a gaming PC that can run all current games at 1080p60 (or thereabouts) with settings on very high.  

 

MS/Sony aren't ever going to try to capture the PC master race with a $400-500 box that you pop under your table and keep for 7 years, they're going to build a console that can keep up (and most likely surpass) the vast majority of PC's, while providing "unique" experiences exclusive to console. 

 

So all the moaning about 4K, 1080/900p and 30/60fps is irrelevant really. 

Oh look, the same game series again that's convieniently developed by Microsoft too.

Actually there where other third party games who also increased their resolution and/or FPS this gen on subsequent releases.

I don't know if its improving at a faster rate then it was back when the current gen started, but it sure seems like it.  Yes, the last couple of years seems like it has slowed a bit on the cpu side, and yet the gpu side of things is pushing forward.

 

How in the world do you packaged an 800-$1000 pc into a $400/$500 console? You would likely be burning up tons of cash while you waited for game sales to cover that cost.

 

Sony is in no condition to burn up that kind of cash.  MS may have the money, but its tired of burning up the cash as well.  Both of them see Nintendo never having to hemorrhage money at launch like they do and they decide its time to scale back.

 

I mean lets seriously put this to the test.  What is an $800-$1000 pc going to have hardware wise?  Lets assume you pick components in order to have the best gaming experience at that price.  You would be using an Intel core i5 maybe, along with a high end Nvidia/AMD card and then maybe 16gb of ram and an ssd.  You can't build a console with those specs and sell it for $400. 

 

I mean both consoles are using AMD cpus even though in the pc world, everyone knows that Intel cpus are higher performing, but they also cost more.

MS and Sony don't pay retail price for the hardware so I think it's feasible to stick something with a retail value of 800-1000$ inside a, let's say 600$ console.

 

What I would have gone for is this. Keep the same basic hardware, but beef up the CPU part of the APU to desktop class and add another dedicated GPU (200-250$ retail value) for crossfire in games that need it.  Maybe the tech is a year away (desktop class steamroller APU), the box will be bigger and it would need more cooling, but I say it would have been worth it.

This topic is now closed to further replies.
  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
  • Posts

    • Oh no...the wallet is already screaming. So many games and so little time. Being old and responsible is awful!
    • LibreWolf 152.0.2-1 by Razvan Serea LibreWolf is an independent “fork” of Firefox, with the primary goals of privacy security and user freedom. It is the community run successor to LibreFox. LibreWolf is designed to increase protection against tracking and fingerprinting techniques, while also including a few security improvements. This is achieved through our privacy and security oriented settings and patches. LibreWolf also aims to remove all the telemetry, data collection and annoyances, as well as disabling anti-freedom features like DRM. LibreWolf features: Latest Firefox — LibreWolf is compiled directly from the latest build of Firefox Stable. You will have the the latest features, and security updates. Independent Build — LibreWolf uses a build independent of Firefox and has its own settings, profile folder and installation path. As a result, it can be installed alongside Firefox or any other browser. No phoning home — Embedded server links and other calling home functions are removed. In other words, minimal background connections by default. User settings updates Extensions firewall: limit internet access for extensions. Multi-platform (Windows/Linux/Mac/and soon Android) Community-Driven Dark theme (classic and advanced) LibreWolf privacy features: Delete cookies and website data on close. Include only privacy respecting search engines like DuckDuckGo and Searx. Include uBlockOrigin with custom default filter lists, and Tracking Protection in strict mode, to block trackers and ads. Strip tracking elements from URLs, both natively and through uBO. Enable dFPI, also known as Total Cookie Protection. Enable RFP which is part of the Tor Uplift project. RFP is considered the best in class anti-fingerprinting solution, and its goal is to make users look the same and cover as many metrics as possible, in an effort to block fingerprinting techniques. Always display user language as en-US to websites, in order to protect the language used in the browser and in the OS. Disable WebGL, as it is a strong fingerprinting vector. Prevent access to the location services of the OS, and use Mozilla's location API instead of Google's API. Limit ICE candidates generation to a single interface when sharing video or audio during a videoconference. Force DNS and WebRTC inside the proxy, when one is being used. Trim cross-origin referrers, so that they don't include the full URI. Disable link prefetching and speculative connections. Disable disk cache and clear temporary files on close. Disable form autofill. Disable search and form history...and more. Download: LibreWolf 64-bit | Portable 64-bit | ~100.0 MB (Open Source) Download: ARM64 | Portable ARM64 Links: LibreWolf Home Page | Addons | Screenshot | Reddit Get alerted to all of our Software updates on Twitter at @NeowinSoftware
    • Hands on with iFlyTek AINote 2 E-Ink tablet: insanely thin and smart by Taras Buria During Amazon Prime Day 2026, iFlyTek is offering its E-Ink tablets with big discounts. The AINOTE 2 is now available at 20% off, allowing you to save quite a lot on one of the thinnest E-Ink tablets out there. I was offered a chance to look at the device, so here are my impressions. The AINOTE 2 is a large 10.65-inch E-Ink tablet that strikes you the moment you take it out of the box. It is extremely thin. At just 4.2 mm, this tablet is at the edge of what is possible for a device with a USB Type-C port. It is also very light, which makes it comfortable and enjoyable during long reading sessions. The tablet has a gold metal chassis with the front and back made of plastic. The back also features four rubber feet that prevent it from sliding around your desk when writing. Besides a USB Type-C port and an LED indicator, there are two buttons mounted on the top edge: a power button with a built-in fingerprint scanner and a dedicated AI button. I would say the fingerprint scanner is quite mid. Given that iFlyTek positions the device as a digital notebook, it makes sense to have a biometric scanner to protect sensitive information. However, it is not the fastest fingerprint reader, and sometimes it fails to recognize my finger. I assume that is due to the tablet's insane thinness. A dedicated AI button is an interesting choice, especially in the middle of the top edge. I can see this button being useful for those who heavily rely on AI and use it frequently, but I cannot help but think its placement is impractical. Having it on one of the longer sides would make so much more sense. The AINOTE 2 is a very pretty device. Gold finish with thin chassis and nearly symmetrical front bezels create a fantastic combination, and iFlyTek cleverly hides the front chin with a section that looks like an extension of the screen, housing two touch-capacitive buttons: one for AI and one for quick notes. This section can also scroll pages when you swipe from the middle to the left or right. It is a cool idea, and very handy when you need to scroll tens of pages at once. AINOTE 2's elegant look extends from its exterior to its software. The user interface is very clean and not cluttered with an abundance of buttons. The tablet prioritizes the note-taking experience, and when you unlock it, it defaults to the list of all notes and folders. Additionally, there is a separate "Schedule" section with your calendar, tasks, memos, and other productivity features. You can connect your Outlook or Google account or use a local calendar. The tablet has quite a lot of AI features powered by OpenAI's GPT-5 and Google's Gemini 3. Besides a standard app with all your chats, you can invoke AI by pressing its dedicated button and dictating your request. It is not limited to just chats. It works with the built-in calendar, and you can tell it to create events, tasks, notes, and more. Additionally, AI features are integrated into the built-in notepad, allowing you to summarize notes, ask questions about your notes, and more. The tablet can OCR handwritten text in different languages (about 120 languages, which is very impressive), and it surprised me with very good accuracy. Voice note transcription is also available, including a "multiplayer" mode where the tablet detects each speaker. Unfortunately, the AINOTE 2 has no built-in speakers (even though it somehow makes a tapping noise when you flip pages using the Quick Bar), so the only way to listen to something is to connect a Bluetooth speaker or headphones. However, there are four front-facing mics for dictation, voice notes, AI chats, and more. Unfortunately, certain features require a Pro subscription that costs $5.99/mo or $59.99/year. Those include offline voice transcription, access to better AI models, the ability to edit notes on a PC or mobile app, and extended service coverage similar to Apple Care. It is a bummer to see yet another app, especially in a device that costs $649, but at least they give a free 90-day trial so that you can see if the benefits justify the price. As for the reader, it supports PDF, EPUB, TXT, MOBI, AZW3, DOC(X), XLS(X), PPT(X), JPEG, JPG, and PNG. The app is quite customizable, with features like text contrast/boldness/size adjustments, margins and spacing customization, and the ability to load custom fonts. Plus, you can annotate books with the stylus, add text notes, and use AI to work with them. Just keep in mind that most AI features require an active internet connection. Like with other E-Ink tablets with Android inside, you can load any other reader you want from the Google Play Store or a third-party source. Despite its hefty price tag of $629 or $519 by the time of publishing this article during Prime Day 2026, the AINOTE 2 has quite modest hardware inside. There is only 4 GB of RAM and about 42GB of storage. It is powered by the RockChip RK3576 processor with 8 cores at 2.2 GHz. Given that the tablet runs Android 14 and has Google Play, you can install Android apps, but do not expect much from this thing performance-wise. As for the battery, there is a 4,000 Li-Ion battery, which, on full charge, lasted me for about one week of active daily use of reading and note-taking. The screen has a resolution of 1920x2560 pixels, which equals 300 PPI, a perfect spot for a sharp, nice-to-read display. It supports EMR styluses that do not require charging, and I have to say that the note-taking experience on this tablet is fantastic. Stylus lag is nearly imperceivable, creating a very natural, paper-like feel. The stylus comes in the box (including two extra nibs), and it features an extra button for various actions and an eraser on top. It magnetically attaches to the tablet and stays safely secured. The stylus has a very nice coarse texture, and thanks to using Wacom tech, you can swap it for any other EMR pen if you wish. The AINOTE 2 has no front light, and because of that, the display sits very close to the screen surface, reducing the distance between the stylus tip/your finger and the display to a minimum. No front light is certainly an inconvenience in certain scenarios, but the screen makes up for that with a seriously impressive paper-like feel and writing experience. In dark conditions, you will have to find a lamp, but the good thing is that the screen has a solid anti-glare surface that diffuses light. The display has two modes: Crisp and Fast. Crisp ensures the image stays, well, crisp and sharp, while Fast speeds up refresh rate and response by toning down display resolution and making everything a bit more jagged. In my testing, I only used Fast mode when browsing the web for a much faster render time. The iFlyTek AINOTE is an impressive device, but it's not flawless. A few things disappointed me during a week of using it. Software localization has a bunch of not necessarily broken, but certainly awkward, machine-translated English. System navigation is not good, as there is no universal "Home" gesture. To go to the main page, you have to swipe up and then press the Home button from the multi-tasking window. There are many gestures for various actions, such as display cleanup, screenshot, undo/redo, but no back/forward or Home gestures. I really hate that the tablet won't let me update its software without creating an iFlyTek account first. Finally, privacy could be a concern for some, as most tablets' features require an active internet connection, an iFlyTek account, and sharing data when using AI. If you can overlook its quirks, some of which could be addressed with software updates (I received two with massive changelogs over a single week), and accept a $519 price tag (with a discount), you will be happy with the AINOTE 2. However, if you do not need that many AI features in an E-Ink reader or you want something a bit more affordable, you'd better look at cheaper competitors from BOOX or Amazon, such as the BOOX Go 10.3 Gen 2 or the Kindle Scribe, which is currently 24% off during Prime Day sales. Buy iFlyTek AINOTE 2 on Amazon - $519 | 20% off with Prime What I liked What I disliked Very impressive hardware Beautiful design Fantastic display with an EMR stylus Supports offline voice transcription Easy-to-use software Clever, useful, and well-made AI features A fingerprint scanner Very expensive Some features require a subscription Poor system navigation Mandates a user account No speakers Privacy could be a concern Note: iFlyTek provided the review unit without any editorial input or review guidance. As an Amazon Associate, we earn from qualifying purchases.
    • Look up "greed". If you are willing to buy that it's only inflation, I've got a bridge to sell you.
    • Very umm, blue?  
  • Recent Achievements

    • First Post
      kinowa earned a badge
      First Post
    • Rookie
      krychek57 went up a rank
      Rookie
    • Grand Master
      Jaybonaut went up a rank
      Grand Master
    • One Year In
      Philsl earned a badge
      One Year In
    • Dedicated
      Scoobystu earned a badge
      Dedicated
  • Popular Contributors

    1. 1
      +primortal
      416
    2. 2
      +Edouard
      168
    3. 3
      PsYcHoKiLLa
      132
    4. 4
      Xenon
      73
    5. 5
      Michael Scrip
      73
  • Tell a friend

    Love Neowin? Tell a friend!