The Tiles and Charms Bar
Once you get used to snapping a tile down to get the options, rearranging and working with the Start tiles is actually fun. I tried to envision the KDE Netbook interface on a tablet in my mind and realized that although Linux fans like myself would love it, a casual Mac or Windows user would hate it. The Windows 8 tiles were colorful and seemed much more engaging than the iOS home screen. Moreover, there are more configuration options. It is, however, an unfair comparison since the iOS layout has been around for years while Windows 8 is only getting started.
When I was working on the preview build of Windows 8 released to developers, I never saw the point of the Charms Bar. However, I began to realize just how useful the Search option is on the Charms Bar when I began to work regularly with a touch screen tablet. It's a surprisingly clever but subtle innovation. I understand why so many "experts" use it as a bullet point for Windows 8's usability issues, but if they actually invested time in getting something done rather than complaining about their fingers they'd actually understand what it's for.
Other features
NFC (Near Field Communication), in theory, is neat but it takes two to tango so it's fairly irrelevant right now. In the future though, I can certainly see people bumping tablets while walking on the road once everyone owns an NFC-supported tablet. Setting up wireless and bluetooth was nothing new on the Vivo tab and admittedly a cake walk compared to my recent experience with LXDE and xFCE-based Linux distributions.
Although I would have liked more time with the Wacom digitizer, I can safely say that Wacom did a good job making their pens work with a touchscreen. I am worried about durability though. Corning Fit Glass panel or not, you can get really rough with a digitizer pen especially when drawing something very detailed in CorelDraw or Painter.
Secure Boot: Fail
I docked the Vivo tablet and plugged in a LiveUSB of Knoppix. I quickly entered the BIOS and disabled Secure Boot and set the system to boot to USB. The system booted into Windows 8 in a flash. I played around with the settings of the Security tab in the Aptio BIOS, allowing all removable media to execute boot. As expected, neither Knoppix or a LiveUSB openSUSE 12.2 I had with me booted. I wasn't surprised that I was unable to boot into Linux though I was pretty sure if I had more time with the system I would have been able to work around the BIOS locked Secure Boot the way I was able to with the Windows 8 desktop. That said, it was nice to actually see Secure Boot work and protect the hybrid system from another OS (even if it was my beloved Linux).
Conclusion
It's a Windows tablet and you can use it with a keyboard. I don't see why users should gripe so much about the Windows 8 interface. If you can learn an HTC phone's interface or a customized Samsung Galaxy S, why should you complain about the tiles, the Charm Bar, and the apps? For all the points leveraged against Windows being able to support legacy software, many people also complain when their old stuff stops being compatible. Even Linux users recognize that Windows' ability to support older applications and hardware is one of its strength and if that's a necessity in your work than a Windows 8 hybrid should be up your alley. Like most devices, you have to understand what you would want a Windows 8 hybrid. For me, it provides quick access to Windows applications and still provide the entertainment a tablet provides. The experience can only get better when Microsoft apps quadruple and offer not only quantity, but quality apps. Imagine when dual-booting a Windows 8 hybrid with a Linux OS or Android is perfected. The possibilities would be endless.
I dread the day that an Ubuntu tablet is released and it's not really a dig against Ubuntu or Linux in general. I'm just impressed with Android and Windows 8, both of which can only get better. Forcing KDE, LXDE or (perish forbid) Unity to work on a tablet would be a lot of work considering those desktop environments are already perfect for real serious tasks on a full system.
openSUSE KDE Plasma Netbook interface
After a scant couple of days with the hybrid tablet, I grew comfortable swiping around Windows 8 and was always reassured that dependable applications in Windows (VLC, Chrome, Media Player, Acrobat, SyncToy, Photoshop, CorelDraw, Office, and dare I say it, old-school favorites like Britannica and Encarta) were only a Windows+D away.
Would I buy a Windows 8 hybrid if I could ever afford one? Sure. As any true-blue Linux user knows, Linux plays just fine with Windows and some time in the future, it might be a good idea to add another Windows system in my Linux playground.
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