Fujitsu Lifebooks U904 and S904 look pretty awesome

Here's another review:
Fujitsu Lifebook U904, il primo ultrabook con display IGZO - Tom's Hardware
Again, they're not too negative about the keyboard. However, they don't seem to get anywhere near the proported battery life of 10hrs.

It has a similar battery to the Duo 13 (U904: 45.4 Wh; Duo13: 47.4 Wh), and yet they show the Duo having over double the run-time. I guess that's the result of the hi-res 14" screen.

 

Here is yet another review, this time from an Austrian website:
Fujitsu Ultrabook U904 mit ultrascharfem Display im Test

Mostly positive about all the features, including keyboard and touchpad. Reiterates good quality display.
Has anyone here ordered one yet?

 

I am waiting on my matte goodness.

For all those interested, the cheapest price is from newegg business which has 150 off 999 coupon: XB2BCYBM150 that ends on 12/03.

 

Both of these models seem to be made in Japan... Seem A-OK in my book. But I would contact Fujitsu just to double check...

 

I woner if it's possible to unmount the backplate and upgrade the RAM and SSD, anyone knows? Buying the i5-4200 4gb 128ssd model and upgrading it to 10gb 256ssd - seems to be a good option for me.

 

Based on the spec sheet, we thinks so. But we have no actual confirmation unfortunately.

 

Both have replaceable hdd and memory.
U904 whole bottom cover is removed, providing access to both.
S904 has small cover on bottom to access memory, whole bottom needs to be removed to access hdd.

Both have slim hdd's and apparently dock ports too.

 

Has anyone already bought and tested this notebook? I currently can't make a decision between this U904 and Sony Pro 13.. There are a lot of reviews of Pro 13 with complains about poor Wifi connectivity and speed, but at the same time no information and user-reviews of Lifebook U904.. Very hard to choose one.

 

I am first time poster, and I have been monitoring this forum for quite some time. I purchased the Fujitsu u904 about a month ago, and it is an awesome laptop except for the keyboard. I have always used thinkpad laptops and I am fan of their keyboards, so the short key travel on the u904 is disappointing. Its usuable and typing in short bursts it is fine, but trying to type for a long period is difficult. The screen is amazing but the 3200x1800 is not very usuable, so I have been using 1920x1080 and it still looks great. The machine is very light and the battery life is not bad at all. There are a lot of positive things about the laptop, but for me the quality of the keyboard is the most important, so I am trying to sell it, but continue to use it for work every day. If you have any questions about the laptop, I will try my best to answer them. thanks

 

bmatthews69 thanks for your reply. I have several questions.
1. Is the fan noise loud under load?
2. Does the metalic body get warm/hot under load?
3. Is the screen hinge sturdy enough, does it wobble when you poke it?
4. Have you tried to upgrade it (ram, ssd)?
5. What is the average battery life while browsing or doing some regular office stuff?
Thanks!

 

I have a few more:
6. Which config did you buy?
7. What are the speakers like: loudness/quality?

Thanks!

 

U904 and T904 seem almost like perfect laptops on paper (only thing missing: blue versions akin to the red one for U904 ), but I need proper comparative battery life tests before I decide to go for one of them. I'd like the non-touch version (if I am going for touch, I'd go for T904 for digitizer support as well).

Most places test their laptops at an arbitrary percentage value of maximum brightness value (eg. laptopmag tests at 40% brightness, and there's a world of difference between 40% of 250 nits [100 nits] and 40% of 400 nits [160 nits]; similarly, engadget just chooses an arbitrary "fixed" value it seems). The best seems to be AnandTech which test battery life with brightness as close as possible to 200 nits (used to do 100 nits in the past), so their tests are the only ones that are really useful as reference points. With LaptopMag, since they at least report maximum display brightness, you can extrapolate somewhat if you eg. assume that display backlight amounts to something like half of power use in new high-dpi laptops.

 

You cannot compare an ultrabook chiclet keyboard with a regular (excellent) thinkpad keyboard.
You should compare it with something like samsung ativ 9, yoga 2 pro etc - they all have this short travel.

 

Here are my answers to the questions:

1. Is the fan noise loud under load?
The fan noise is only noticeable when the room is quiet, but it is not loud at all

2. Does the metalic body get warm/hot under load?
It gets slightly warm, but never really hot

3. Is the screen hinge sturdy enough, does it wobble when you poke it?
The screen hinge is sturdy and yes it wobbles when you touch it, but I think any laptop screen
will wobble if you poke at it, but if you are just touching it then it is very stable

4. Have you tried to upgrade it (ram, ssd)?
since i am thinking of selling it i have not looked into upgrading it

5. What is the average battery life while browsing or doing some regular office stuff?
i have not really had a chance to test out the battery life. however i am travelling
this weekend and will be using my laptop, so i can probably give a better answer on Monday

6. Which config did you buy?
the config is Model SPFC-U904-001 i5-4300u 6gb ram 500gb hybrid hdd

7. What are the speakers like: loudness/quality?
the speakers are terrible. the sound is very tinny and weak. I am surprised
at how bad they are for such an expensive laptop.

Please let me know if you have any other questions.

 

Why are you selling it....

 

I am selling it because I like thinkpads better. My favorite thinkpad is the x1 carbon touch, but I was disappointed with the screen resolution of 1600x900. The u904 intrigued me with its thin design and the high resolution screen, and it is also thinner than the x1 carbon touch. It is an amazing laptop, but the keyboard is driving me nuts, and having to type on it everyday for work is becoming a chore. I am looking to sell it and maybe go back to the x1 carbon or wait for the next x1 carbon to be released

 

As to the question of upgrading it, you may want to look at this on it's predecessor:
https://lifebook.ts.fujitsu.com/blog/blog/category/general/looking-inside-lifebook-u772/s

If it follows the same approach then both the RAM and and 2.5" HDD will be upgradable (with a max of 10GB for memory). However, with covers over the screws, you're likely to invalidate your warranty if you upgrade.

 

Unfortunately those previous generation machines don't really shine with their keyboards either. I didn't like them at all and wordfilter prevents me from using words that I've seen others use

 

I don't know about other countries but in the USA, FTC's Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act of 1975 makes it illegal to void the warranty for upgrading ram/hd.

 

The i5 model is 150$ off on fujitsu's website. As long as ram and ssd can be easily upgraded, tempted to pull the trigger.

 

Received my fujitsu U904 from new egg today. For those wondering about upgradeability, see attached picture. It requires removal of glued covers for the screws.

HDD, WLAN & RAM (max 8GB) can be easily upgraded. Battery can also be replaced.

-- Keyboard travel is pretty shallow. Will need getting used to. Screen is fantastic and the laptop is amazingly light to carry around. Glad I cancelled the XPS15 order.

 

Regarding the screws, do you mean the rubber feet are glued and need to be removed? Also, are the speakers really that poor as previously stated? I'd like to upgrade to an ssd but won't if it means damaging the cover. Can you show the back where the covers are? Thank you.

 

Thanks for sharing the picture with us and your initial observations. When you have the time would you please let us know your thoughts on fan noise, wi-fi and if the bottom of the unit gets very hot.

I'd personally like to know how well the high resolution screen handles text on the desktop side of 8.1. I've read where some Dell XPS 15 users have lowered the resolution or increased text font sizes to handle the old legacy applications that don't handle scaling well.

Enjoy!

 

Anyone know if the red version is available in the US?

 

I don't see it listed on the Fujitsu website. Someone said it was only available in Japan. Suggest you give them a call. Maybe they will have more information as to whether or not the red is or will be a USA option.

 

Thank you for the photos! Any thoughts on battery life?

 

This extra connector looks like an M.2 connector, no? I'm wondering if it's really NVMe (it does seem to have just one notch, which means NVMe according to Wikipedia)... Any way to see this in the device manager?

 

Many thanks for the pic. I'm also considering either this or the XPS15. Useful to hear how you get on with the shallow keyboard, and how you feel it compares with other ultrabook keyboards. Also, like others, I'm interested to hear your views on the speakers, and battery life. They seem to be the main complaints with this model. Thanks!

 

This is what's fundamentally flawed. You have an ultrabook that has conquered the high resolution 14-inch screen obstacle yet doesn't come standard with a SSD or Wireless AC card. What's the point? On top of that, Fujitsu charges a $450 premium for a lesser-spec'd version for being customizable. Come on. They are turning away potential buyers who would otherwise purchase the machine if it were customizable at the base configuration and price. An ultrabook is pointless these days without an SSD. It's like putting grand touring tires on a Ferrari. There's no "ultra" in a 5400 rpm HDD. Fujitsu laptops are usually easily disassembled underneath without the screws being covered by rubber stops. This is a annoying and upsetting trend with modern ultrabooks ... Asus, HP, Fujitsu all make it an obstacle to remove the bottom cover for upgrades. The reason why I returned the Asus Zenbook was because the rubber feet were nearly superglued over the screw holes. Shouldn't it be a requisite for laptops to be easily modified and accessible? It just doesn't make sense. Fear breaking your laptop or pay an arm and a leg to have it customized in the factory screams corporate greed. Might as well stick a extra set of self-adhesive rubber feet to replace the damaged ones that need to be pried off of the bottom. That would be asking too much, no?

Guess I'll have to wait until the next model comes out and keep my fingers crossed!

In the meantime, if anyone can elaborate on bottom cover removal I'd appreciate it as Fujitsu support is clueless. Thank you.

 

Considering the laptop comes with optional WWAN, I believe it's a M.2 Socket 2 (key B) used for WWAN, PCIe x2 SSDs etc.
NVMe uses PCIe x4 Socket 3 (key M). However:

A while ago I started a M.2 discussion thread: http://forum.notebookreview.com/har...ket-upgrades/722154-lets-talk-ngff-m-2-a.html

 

OK - So I was able to get a good view of the bottom. It appears that all of the screws on the bottom have the small mylar covers over then that can be peeled of with a tiny Philips head screw driver. Does anyone know if the 4 rubber feet need to be removed as well?

 

Only the bottom 2, the ones near the display side don't have to be removed

 

There are a few window dialogs that are annoyingly tiny. Laptop gets a bit warm near the TAB key. It remains cool otherwise. Have hardly heard the fan.
Very pleased with this purchase.

 

so the 2 up front then? How did you take them off? We're you able to reuse them?

 

used a paper blade. They have a 2 sided plastic tape. Haven't reused them as I am waiting for a 8GB DIMM in the mail.

Update on battery life : 7 hrs avg 50% brightness, Bluetooth off, light browsing, ynab, quicken & word usage.

 

How are the speakers? Coming from a Vaio Z which are about as bad as they come - hoping the U904 is better.

 

How is the temperature underneath? And for the keyboard, can you compare it to some other ultrabooks?

 

not sure abt other ultrabooks. It doesn't get very hot, a little warmer than the rest of the machine.

Speakers are really bad though. Sound over headphones is awesome. My old Fujitsu T5010 had the same problem.

 

I sometime put my laptop on my chest when I'm lying in bed reading which was somewhat doable on my z830, less doable on my temporary yoga 2 pro so wanted to get an opinion on how hot it is underneath :/. It is not a major thing or a deal breaker but nice to do.

As for speakers, don't use them at all. If I need sound I use headsets 99% of the time.

 

Its perfect for what you are describing as long as u keep some gap for the fan inlet on the bottom panel.

 

Thank you for sharing your experiences with this laptop with us.
Actually I fear from the keyboard! Is it good at all? does it hard to type on it? are the keys shallow?
You answered this question before, but please let me know about your detailed experience on the keyboard after these several days working with it.

 

Keyboard felt really bad for the first 2-3 days (shallow key travel). Now I have no issues. Works great, no misses while typing.

My only complain about this laptop is the lack of an additional mSata port. Am not a fan of single drive systems

 

Chances are you could plug another SSD in the M.2 port

 

The u904 has my full attention at the moment, however, has anyone heard about the red and/or full black versions and their availability in the US? Fujitsu was not willing to discuss the matter when I phoned them... Seems odd they are keeping that a secret or hidden behind some curtain. The red is an eye catching color.

 

An in-depth review by an Amazon customer, addresses quite a lot of questions:
Amazon Customer Review

 

Spoke with Fujitsu CS about the Red U904's availability. They initially told me over the phone "sometime in 2014'. Posted the same question on their Facebook page and got this:

<--- click for bigger version


If true, a bit unfortunate. Not a deal breaker by any means. But I really wanted that red! hah.

 

So I got the Fujitsu u904 - Uk Edition in black. It is the only one I could find in UK in stock! It is an i7, 10GB Ram, 128GB SSD hard disk. It is very nice looking laptop - supposedly made in Japan ... I have not seen this in a long time! It feels very high quality. The screen I think is amazing - incredibly sharp with great colours. I am installing software so not sure how fast it will work out to be but so far it seems ok. It seems quite - although the fan has just kicked off during the installation of Microsoft Office 2010! But in comparison to my HP it is pretty quiet. I will see how I go and post more. I know I will need to replace the HDD as it is too small ... but I did not want to wait for weeks! As other people mentioned the speakers are bad and the keyboard will take me some time getting used to as it is pretty flat. The touchpad is huge and for me that is also a novelty as all my touchpad before have been with separate buttons, whereas this has the buttons sort of integrated and you can click anywhere which feels weird to me - nonetheless it is big. It is a lovely laptop nonetheless and it ticked quite a lot of boxes for me: 14 inch (I did not want 13 nor 15 ...) the touch screen, the high res, being slim and light ...

 

Since Fujitsu has a worldwide warranty, you can technically buy one from another country and import it. That said, these kind of statements are not uncommon, Fujitsu promised matte non-touch version in December and it is already January.

 

Excellent idea. However, I'm unsure how to even start that and make sure I'd be getting a good price with the currency conversions and such. With regard to the matte non touch, I'd almost wait on that, if it were a wee less on the wallet. Perhaps with CES this week they will put it on their site, or make a small PR announcement,

 

The non-touch version will most likely be cheaper(unless it has a higher base specs). Based on their japanese version and the s904 the non-touch costs around 100$ less. As for how to go about importing it, well a start would be finding the model number.

And Fujitsu is on a mission to keep the u904 as secret as possible. Low sales helps their bottom line /s