Bad Latitude: How Windows 8.1 screws Dell's 10" tablet up.

The long-awaited, eagerly anticipated, free update to Windows 8 has arrived! And, with it, havoc has been wreaked on those unfortunate/foolish souls who bought Windows RT tablets (including
Microsoft's very own 'Surface').

Whilst issues with the update on RT tablets have hit the headlines - and resulted in Microsoft pulling it over the weekend - issues with 8.1 on full-fat Windows tablets haven't. Hence this blog post.

Okay, so what's the problem then?

Glad I asked! Every time I take my Latitude 10 out of sleep it takes a few seconds to wake up. It was near-instantaneous before. Sometimes it takes even longer. And, if I try to wake it up in desktop mode, I get this almost every time...



On top of that I had an important Windows update that stubbonly refused to update. That's now fixed, but I'm not entirely sure if I fixed it (using the advice given in forums) or it somehow fixed itself.

Why not simply roll back to Windows 8?

That's waaaay too much hassle, something will probably go wrong,  and there's a bunch of things working better in 8.1. Such as...

 

• The onscreen keyboard now actually recognises the letter I touch 90% of the time. This, believe it or not, is an improvement.
• Most settings can now be changed without going to 'Desktop' - immensely more useful when using a touchscreen!
• 'Start' screen tiles (in what was once known as 'Metro' mode) are now easy to move around - making customisation fun, not frustrating.
• Windows Store now has almost all the features that Google Play has had for years, making it easier to find related apps and working out which ones are unofficial/fake.

So, until these issues are sorted out I would advise anyone with a Latitude 10 to wait, unless the goodies 8.1 brings is deemed worthy enough of the hassles it also brings.

Comments

[Ed]

Just purchased a refurbished Latitude 10 with Windows 8. Would you recommend upgrading to 8.1?

Thanks

[Ant]

That's a difficult one! Windows 8.1 is, perhaps, slightly better than Windows 8 on the Latitude 10, but there's not much in the difference. Maybe try out 8 for a week or so and then decide. Hopefully you won't face the same upgrade woes I did!

[Brian Rubin]

Do you still experience the same issues with 8.1 on your Latitude? I had a lot of the same issues, as well as lots of crashes. I did switch back to 8, but I was wondering if the issues with 8.1 on the Latitude have been ironed out since then.

[Ant]

Hi Brian. The display issues have gone since new Intel driver and other Dell and Windows updates were installed. My Latitude 10 doesn't seem to be as quick as it was when I first got it, but then that's computers, I guess!

On the whole I'm happier with Windows 8.1 and am now glad I updated.

[Brian Rubin]

What about waking from sleep? I remember the delay there drove me absolutely nuts. I want to update, but I am so, so afraid. Last time it went so badly...

[Ant]

Never timed how quick the tablet was at waking from sleep, and it's been a while since I was running 8.0, but it seems about as quick as it was when I bought it. The initial update drove me nuts too, taking an absolute age to wake up - but they fixed the problem in a further update.

If you do update, I hope it works out for you. These things can be a nightmare!

[Brian Rubin]

Okay. You've convinced me. ONCE MORE INTO THE BREACH. Thanks for sharing your experience--I truly appreciate it!

[Edu]

Hello I just got a dell with windows 8, is there a link where I can upgrade to 8.1? Thanks

[Ant]

Hi Edu, to update to Windows 8.1 you need to make sure you've all the Windows 8 updates first. Once you've done that you should tap or click on the Windows shopping bag thingy on your start screen. That takes you to the store and that's where you'll find the free Windows 8.1 download.

Be warned, it can take hours - even a whole day - to install all of that even on a supposedly super fast broadband connection. Also be warned, Windows gives either little, none or false information about how much has been downloaded or installed during the process.

Good luck!