The Samsung Ativ Q was a 13.3-inch

convertible laptop A 2-in-1 laptop, also known as 2-in-1 PC, 2-in-1 tablet, laplet, tabtop, laptop tablet, or simply 2-in-1, is a portable computer that has features of both tablets and laptops. 2-in-1 PCs consist of portable computer components within light a ...

to be manufactured by

Samsung Samsung Group (; stylised as SΛMSUNG) is a South Korean Multinational corporation, multinational manufacturing Conglomerate (company), conglomerate headquartered in the Samsung Town office complex in Seoul. The group consists of numerous a ...

. Unveiled at a ''Samsung Premiere'' event on June 20, 2013, the tablet was to run

Windows 8 Windows 8 is a major release of the Windows NT operating system developed by Microsoft. It was Software release life cycle#Release to manufacturing (RTM), released to manufacturing on August 1, 2012, made available for download via Microsoft ...

, but also shipped with software that also allowed it to run the Android operating system. The Ativ Q's hardware was also distinguished by multiple folding states and a high resolution display. Samsung announced that the Ativ Q would be released in the third quarter of 2013, with a representative indicating that it would be out in time for the back to school season. However, in August 2013, the

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the southern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders North Korea along the Korean Demilitarized Zone, with the Yellow Sea to the west and t ...

n edition of '' ZDNet'' reported that the release of the device would be indefinitely delayed due to

patent A patent is a type of intellectual property that gives its owner the legal right to exclude others from making, using, or selling an invention for a limited period of time in exchange for publishing an sufficiency of disclosure, enabling discl ...

issues relating to its Android emulation system: Samsung has not made any statements regarding the Ativ Q's release since.

Specifications

Hardware

The Ativ Q's design incorporates a unique, rugged hinge (which also houses the CPU) that can be used to tilt the screen into a number of different positions, such as flipping it over entirely to use it like a stand, having it "float" above the keyboard on an angle, or in a traditional laptop-styled position. Due to the lack of space, a

pointing stick A pointing stick (or trackpoint, also referred to generically as a nub, nipple or clitmouse) is a small analog stick used as a pointing device typically mounted centrally in a computer keyboard. Like other pointing devices such as mice, touchp ...

is offered instead of a trackpad. The Ativ Q uses a 4th generation (Haswell), 2.6 GHz

Intel Core i5 Intel Core is a line of multi-core (with the exception of Core Solo and Core 2 Solo) central processing units (CPUs) for midrange, embedded, workstation, high-end and enthusiast computer markets marketed by Intel Corporation. These processors ...

4200U processor with 4 GB of RAM. The device features at 13.3-inch capacitive touchscreen with a resolution of 3200×1800 at 275 ppi, and will also ship with an S Pen

stylus A stylus is a writing utensil or tool for scribing or marking into softer materials. Different styluses were used to write in cuneiform by pressing into wet clay, and to scribe or carve into a wax tablet. Very hard styluses are also used to En ...

Software

While Samsung's presentation showcased the Ativ Q running

Windows 8.1 Windows 8.1 is a release of the Windows NT operating system developed by Microsoft. It was released to manufacturing on August 27, 2013, and broadly released for retail sale on October 17, 2013, about a year after the retail release of its pr ...

, demo units of the Ativ Q at its launch event ran Windows 8. The Ativ Q was to ship with a stock version of Android 4.2.2 running inside a

virtual machine In computing, a virtual machine (VM) is the virtualization or emulator, emulation of a computer system. Virtual machines are based on computer architectures and provide the functionality of a physical computer. Their implementations may involve ...

, accessible from within the Windows environment. Shortcuts and a keyboard button are provided for switching to the Android environment, files can be shared between the two environments, and Android apps can also be pinned to the Windows Start screen. The Ativ Q is also bundled with Samsung's "SideSync" software for linking to and controlling other Samsung smartphones and tablets with Android.

Release

Although Samsung initially announced a late-2013 release in time for the back to school season, the

n edition of '' ZDNet'' reported in August 2013 that the Ativ Q's release would be delayed or cancelled due to

issues surrounding its dual-OS functionality. In March 2014, it was reported that both

Microsoft Microsoft Corporation is an American multinational corporation and technology company, technology conglomerate headquartered in Redmond, Washington. Founded in 1975, the company became influential in the History of personal computers#The ear ...

and

Google Google LLC (, ) is an American multinational corporation and technology company focusing on online advertising, search engine technology, cloud computing, computer software, quantum computing, e-commerce, consumer electronics, and artificial ...

were restricting devices from being shipped with both of their operating systems at once in order to protect their respective market shares and application ecosystems. Pressure from the companies had reportedly resulted in

Asus ASUSTeK Computer Inc. (, , , ; stylized as ASUSTeK or ASUS) is a Taiwanese Multinational corporation, multinational computer, phone hardware and electronics manufacturer headquartered in Beitou District, Taipei, Taiwan. Its products include deskto ...

discontinuing its line of similar Windows/Android dual-boot products, including the Transformer Book Duet, which was similarly left in a

vaporware In the computer industry, vaporware (or vapourware) is a product, typically computer Computer hardware, hardware or software, that is announced to the general public but is late, never actually manufactured, or officially canceled. Use of the w ...

state.

References

{{reflist Ativ Q Tablet computers 2-in-1 PCs Tablet computers introduced in 2013 Vaporware

Specifications

Hardware

Software

Release

See also

References