Ready Boost won’t speed up everything on your system but the user experience and switching between apps is much snappier. Disclaimer: I am not recommending this for everyone, just my preference and how I use this device. I know there has been a lot of scrutiny and discussion around Ready Boost and if it works or how it works, etc. My take on it, is that by design, the caching makes the Vista user experience a bit snappier. Meaning that apps open quicker, dialogues pop quicker and this is especially noticeable when running multiple apps and jumping between them. With all that said Vista and Ready Boost work best for my particular needs on the Q1’s.
Vista works better for my needs on this device and I prefer it over XP (I do have a couple of older, lower performance devices running XP, just not on the Q). I use pen input heavily and the TIP (tablet input panel) on Vista is very snappy and works really well.
I have had the Q1uV and now the Q1uP-Vista with pretty much the same configuration and have had very good performance on both for how I use this device. The only exception to the config is the HSDPA integration in the Q1uP. I tend to use video conf more now with the Core Solo proc. The standard config for this device (for my preferences): 2gb, 80gb drive and 4gb class 6 SD card only for Ready Boost.
Sorry for the long explanation and I realize this is a little off-topic, but I think it’s important to understand how I use the device to explain why it works for me (I should probably post the rest of these details in another thread)...
When travelling (airports, planes, shuttles…) I use this device and pen input almost exclusively since it works so well on Vista. I have done this with both my previous Q1uV and the Q1uP. I also do heavy text input and for that I have a Bluetooth keyboard and mouse. When I run to meetings, in my sling-bag, I only take this device, the stowaway kb, mouse and headset (for UC calls and video conf that I make while on the run). On my desk, I use a Mac Bluetooth kb with the Q since it is a nice solid little keyboard.
In addition to surfing and messaging, I use the device as a tool to get work done. I don't run dev-tools on it but I routinely run all or most of these: IE, Outlook, Live Messenger, Office Communicator, Groove, FreeMind, iTunes, Word, PowerPoint, Photoshop CS3, Corel X3, Excel, SharePoint Designer (it’s not unusual to have 8-10 apps running). I have both Groove directory synchronization and workspaces running on the Q1uP. I occasionally will play an MP4 movie on the Q’s as well (with SP1 and Ready Boost that ran well on the Q1uV also). The reason for Groove always running in the background, is that my theory/practice of data management might be a little different than most with regard to this... I don't want to take the time to put my data on a particular machine or have to offload it, use USB drives, etc. as I prefer this to be "transparent". (e.g. - Data should just be there when I need it on whatever device I use at that time). There are a lot of different ways to accomplish this, but “for me” the preference is to use Groove and have my directories or workspaces automatically sync'd, so when I want to pickup my Q and run off to a meeting or go work from a coffee shop, all of my stuff is there. When I get back to my office and want to work from my ThinkPad x61, or from a desktop (or even open from a Mac [it grabs the file from a shared directory that is sync'd]) the files are already there for that device as well. It's just transparent and no extra work for me...