Earlier this week I had the opportunity to unbox the new Eve V 2-in-1 convertible computer live on Twitter before it goes on sale  Monday December 4th during a Flash Sale.

Note: Here is Part 1 and Part 2 of that unboxing and discussion from Twitter. I also have a product gallery available for you to peruse and see the hardware up close.

The Eve V is a unique device but, not so much related to its form factor, specs, and looks but to how it was conceived and designed.

Eve, a small eight person company based in Finland, have previously released tablets running Windows 10. In fact, they were one of the very early companies to ship a device for Windows 8.1 – it was called the Eve T1.

I had the opportunity to check that device out and it was very good for that day and age for its specs and capabilities.

Fast forward a couple of years and Eve decides to move forward with their next device but instead of coming up with their own design they decided to reach out the their very active Eve Community for advice. This becomes a process that involves around 1,000 members of the Eve Community who formulate, discuss, and select the various specifications for this upcoming Windows 10 device.

The unboxing I did today is the machine that came out of that process. In fact, I am actually writing this article on that machine because as you know I like telling you about my experience with hardware.

However, I do want to share the specs for this device which I will be using not only to write this but to also go about my daily work/use routine in the next few weeks.

  • Processor Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-7Y75 CPU @ 1.30GHz, 1608 Mhz, 2 Core(s), 4 Logical Processor(s)
  • Installed Physical Memory (RAM) 16.0 GB
  • 512GB PCIe SSD
  • 12.3″ IGZO LCD Display (2880 x 1920)
  • Windows 10 Home (Pro option available)
  • Ports: 2 USB-A (3.0); 1 USB-C (3.0); 1 Thunderbolt 3 USB-C; 3.5mm Headphone Jack
  • Micro SDXC Card Reader/Slot
  • 2MP Front and 5MP Back cameras
  • Two noise cancelling microphones and four speakers
  • 48Wh battery with estimated 10 hours of battery life
  • Detachable keyboard and Pen (N-trig with 1024 pressure levels) included.

You can read more about the various models of the Eve V and see the pricing based on your region. For a quick comparison of the new Surface Pro with similar specs to the one I am using now – the price difference is huge.

Eve V is $1599 with the keyboard and pen included in the price while the Surface Pro is $2459 which includes adding the keyboard and pen which are additional costs for that hardware. That is a $860 delta between the two devices.

I have only briefly used a Surface Pro so I can not compare the two devices head to head but if I was in the market for a new device of this form factor, the Eve V would get some serious consideration when you consider that savings. Add to that the possibility to use an external GPU through the provided Thunderbolt port, something the Surface Pro does not have, you can also bump up your graphics support for gaming on your Eve V.

I shared a lot of initial impressions on this device during the unboxing I did on Twitter but I want to run down some of those here as well. I will then follow that up in a couple of weeks after I have used the device more extensively.

Observation and Heads Up: You are going to read many similarities between the Eve V and the Surface line of hardware. I do not think this is an accident but then again, Microsoft produced the Surface line of hardware to set a new beacon of design for OEMs to build on. The folks at Eve, along with their crowd sourcing supporters, have done just that.

  • The packaging is very premium. It arrived well protected in a kind of plastic bubble envelope that easily gave an inch of cushioning around the device. The box was a very plain white paper wrapper that was sealed but it had a paper pull to unzip this thin outer shell. The interior box was black with the V logo on the outside, a list of more than 1,000 Eve Community members on the inside cover thanking them for their crowd sourced design assistance, and everything was very well protected inside of this very firm box.
  • In the box there was three power adapters for various regions, the power brick with U.S. plug, a USB-C cable to connect the power brick to the device for charging, the included pen and detachable keyboard. Of course, the Eve V itself was right on top for your eye to immediately catch as you opened the packaging.
  • My first sense when I pulled the Eve V tablet out was its solid feel. It was easy to hold with its sloping sides. Picture a Surface Pro device with its angled approach and then round off/smooth that sharp angle as it leads to the back of the device. That is how the Eve V’s form factor is done and it feels good in your hands.
  • The kickstand is firm in the mechanics for opening and closing plus it will lay back to an angle that facilitates a studio type mode like the Surface Pro or Surface Studio. That allows you to use the included pen for drawing, inking and other activities.
  • The MicroSD slot is located under the kickstand and can give you storage expansion which is not so critical on the higher storage options but on the smaller 128GB offering would be very useful.
  • The Eve V incorporates a fingerprint reader for Windows Hello use with the devices power button on the right hand side of the device. It is easy to reach in the natural use of the machine and makes a lot of sense by preventing the need to add something in the bezel or on the keyboard. Since the tablet is always with you that means you always have your fingerprint reader available as well.
  • The detachable keyboard has a few surprises with it and some familiar pieces as well. First it is covered in Alcantara fabric – the same one used by Surface hardware keyboards. This is the fuzzy material versus the keyboard deck on the Surface laptop that has a layer of protection to repeal dirt and oils from our hands. It also has an integrated battery that allows you to use the keyboard in Bluetooth mode and detached from the Eve V tablet. Of course, you can use it connected to the device and it has two options for how the keyboard is laid out – either fully flat or angled by attaching it to the screen – just like the Surface Pro keyboard. From what I can tell the additional battery in the keyboard just supports using it detached and does not provide additional battery life to the Eve V itself.
  • The keyboard has seven different backlighting options/colors and you will find a few interesting keyboard items such as the term oops! on the Backspace key, the V key sporting the Eve V logo, and Print Screen sharing the F9 button. The keys have a nice tactile feel to them – not a smooth surface but just a little surface tension sense with them. The typing experience is solid and easy enough despite the compactness of the keyboard. The touch pad is covered with Gorilla Glass, is very smooth, and fully supports Gestures. As with most compact keyboards, there is a Function key that allows you to access additional functionality across they keys on the devices top row.
  • Closing the keyboard puts the device into sleep mode and also acts as a protective cover for the tablet. Once closed, the device feels very solid, easy to hold, and well protected. While the combo is not the lightest device out there, I do like the heft it presents.
  • I am currently using this device on my lap and since I have long thighs it is comfortable and a very solid platform to work from but I am sure some will find in unlappable just like the Surface devices. On a solid desktop/table this platform feels terrific as well.

The Eve V arrived with Windows 10 Version 1703 installed and did require the November cumulative update to bring it fully up to date. After that was installed it also found the Fall Creators Update available in windows Update. That means Microsoft must consider this piece of hardware to be OK with the FCU and so far for me it is doing just fine. In fact, Eve worked with Microsoft on this device and they are uploading all of its hardware drivers to Windows Update so they can be easily installed and updated by users as necessary.

I am looking forward to daily regular use of the Eve V to see how the battery and performance is and will be sharing updates over my Twitter account and here on the site.

If you have any questions from the unboxing or what I have written about so far please ask down in the comments. Be sure to also visit our image gallery of the Eve V.