When on a business trip, do you carry a laptop due to work requirements? I do too. However, sometimes due to the distance and duration of the trip, I not only need to carry my laptop but also personal items, change of clothes, etc. So occasionally I feel that the laptop takes up too much space in my backpack and is a bit heavy. With the protective case, it weighs nearly three pounds. Whenever I feel this way, I think about switching to a compact, portable laptop with decent performance to lighten my travel burden.
Perhaps understanding users like me, the domestic brand that focuses on business and portable mini laptops, One-NetBook, was born to meet this demand. Their official slogan is quite fitting: “Take One-NetBook on business trips.”
One-NetBook has been around for a few years now. I roughly counted that since the launch of the first generation in 2018, they have released over ten models, each named simply with numbers like 1, 2, 3, etc. Currently, the latest model is the fifth generation, the One-NetBook 5, which has undergone significant changes compared to previous generations.
The main content of this review article is about the One-NetBook 5. Let’s take a look at the highlights of the new generation One-NetBook.
Top Grain Cowhide Body Design, Full Business Feel
Like the previous generation, the One-NetBook 5 still features a 10.1-inch touchscreen design, but the appearance has changed. The One-NetBook 5 uses high-quality top grain cowhide to fully wrap the body, enhancing the business feel. In contrast, previous generations, while positioned for business use, had a metal shell that didn’t quite convey that feeling from an aesthetic standpoint.
The use of cowhide in the One-NetBook 5’s design seems aimed at fully embodying the “business office” concept, ensuring that both positioning and appearance align.
The surface of the cowhide body of the One-NetBook 5 features a litchi pattern, which not only enhances the overall quality and design but also provides a comfortable feel.
If we only talk about specifications, it might be hard to understand how compact the One-NetBook 5 is. So I placed a 6.74-inch smartphone next to it for comparison, and now you can see how compact it is. It’s undeniably small, and compared to most laptops, I would define it as a “mini laptop.” The weight of the One-NetBook 5 is about 970 grams, which significantly lightens my load when traveling.
Multiple Forms: A Laptop and a Tablet
Multiple forms have been a design feature of One-NetBook since the first generation. By flipping the screen, it can achieve different forms. Although the appearance design of the One-NetBook 5 is different this time, it still maintains multiple forms. The above image shows the One-NetBook 5 in its regular form, functioning as a Windows laptop.
However, the lower half of the One-NetBook 5’s screen uses a magnetic design with the body’s A-side back panel, allowing the screen to flip 180 degrees, enabling the One-NetBook 5 to switch between multiple forms.
The above image shows a diagram of the screen flipping.
This form is called a stand-type tablet, which is suitable for watching movies, allowing for relaxation or passing time during breaks or trips.
Additionally, I haven’t mentioned the specific screen design. The One-NetBook 5 features a 10.1-inch LTPS screen with a resolution of 2560*1600, supporting ten-point touch and 4096 levels of pressure-sensitive handwriting.
I tested the One-NetBook 5’s screen using a color calibrator and DisplayCAL software, and the color gamut volume was found to be 110.9% sRGB, which is quite close to the official claim of 108.8% sRGB. Overall, the screen quality is quite good.
Moreover, to maintain stability after changing forms, the One-NetBook 5 has several magnetic designs throughout the body. For instance, below the keyboard, when switched to the stand-type tablet form, the bottom of the screen is magnetically fixed.
The above form is called a foldable tablet, which can be used for reading comics, news, etc., or for creative drawing and note-taking with a stylus.
More images of the foldable tablet form.
Additionally, the official also offers a stylus suitable for the One-NetBook 5, which supports 4096 levels of pressure sensitivity, and the handwriting experience is quite good.
The stylus is rechargeable.
In addition to the three forms mentioned above, I personally came up with two more forms. The first is similar to the stand-type tablet form shown in the image.
Another is known as the “tent mode,” which is quite similar to the stand-type tablet form.
Harman Certified Speaker Design, Sound Quality is a Highlight
The keyboard design of the One-NetBook 5 is also impressive, with a reasonable layout, moderate key spacing, and a relatively large touchpad, providing a comfortable typing experience.
Additionally, the keys are backlit.
Now, let’s take a look at the port design of the One-NetBook 5. On the right side of the body, there is one USB-C 3.2 port, as well as a heat dissipation hole, a speaker, and a power button with fingerprint functionality.
On the left side, there is one TF card slot (up to 2TB), one 3.5mm audio port, and one USB-C 4.0 port. The left side also features one speaker, meaning it has a dual-speaker design. Notably, the One-NetBook 5 uses speakers tuned and certified by HARMAN, ensuring good sound quality whether for gaming or media playback.
Good Performance with Intel 12th Gen Core i7 1250U Processor
Lastly, let’s discuss performance. The One-NetBook 5 I have is equipped with an Intel 12th Gen i7 1250U processor, Iris Xe graphics (96EU), 32GB of RAM (LPDDR5), and a 1TB SSD (PCIe4.0). From these hardware specifications, it’s clear that the One-NetBook 5 can run various office and design software without much pressure. In the performance test conducted with Lu Master, the score was 862743, although the graphics score was a bit low.
The read/write speeds of the One-NetBook 5’s SSD are quite fast, and they are close to the official data, allowing for quick software launches without excessive waiting.
I tested the One-NetBook 5 by exporting a 2-minute and 43-second 4K 60FPS video using the video editing software, which took about 2 minutes and 39 seconds, which felt quite fast.
Although the One-NetBook 5 is positioned for business use rather than gaming, I guess some users might want to know if it can play games. After all, it’s important to relax and unwind after work. In conclusion, the One-NetBook 5 struggles with AAA games, but if you’re willing to play at 800P resolution and low quality, some AAA games can still be played, such as Horizon; however, it can handle some online games without pressure, like DNF.
At 2560*1600 resolution with medium graphics settings, playing LOL is also feasible. If you want higher FPS, you can lower the resolution, and because of the One-NetBook 5’s smaller screen, the experience won’t be too bad even at lower resolutions due to pixel density.
On a daily basis, I use the One-NetBook 5 not only for some online games but also through Steam for games that don’t require high performance. For these games, I can max out the graphics settings and still have a good experience. After all, it’s just for relaxation after work, and there’s no need to be overly focused on AAA gaming. If you really want to play AAA games on a portable device, you might want to try the OneXPlayer, which is also produced by One-NetBook.
The One-NetBook 5 has a battery capacity of 11000mAh, with the official claiming a business use battery life of about 6 to 8 hours. My personal tests are quite close to this time, and the One-NetBook 5 supports 65W PD fast charging, so the charging speed is also quite fast.
Additionally, the One-NetBook 5 has decent heat dissipation, featuring an active cooling design with an internal fan. During a “single bake FPU” test in AIDA 64 stability testing lasting about 34 minutes, the processor core temperature peaked at 73℃, and the hard drive temperature only reached 43℃, showing that its compact design does not compromise heat dissipation performance.
Final Summary
This concludes everything about the One-NetBook 5. It’s clear that the One-NetBook 5 has many highlights, including its portability, compact size, full cowhide body design, multiple forms, a 10.1-inch high-resolution touchscreen, support for 4096 levels of pressure-sensitive handwriting, and Harman certified dual speakers. Whether in terms of appearance design or the experiences it offers, the One-NetBook 5 performs well, and some of its designs are indeed suitable for business users, making it far from a “gimmick.” If you often travel and need to carry a laptop, and want to lighten your load, as mentioned at the beginning of the article, I believe you should consider trying the One-NetBook 5.
Of course, the One-NetBook 5 is not without its flaws. One downside is that as a portable mini laptop positioned for business use, it does not come with a camera, which leaves users with video conferencing in a bind. If the design could not accommodate a camera due to the narrow bezels, I recommend that the next generation consider integrating a pop-up camera design into the keyboard, allowing it to be activated by pressing a button.