Review of the Asus Eee Pad Transformer

It seems like tablet computers are the hottest tech items around right now owing to the intuitive operation that they offer to their owners. Tablet computers are simple a cooler way to browse the Internet or read than a netbook or laptop, and in the technology world, cool certainly means something.

The Asus Eee Transformer TF101 has received a lot of attention as an alternative to the Motorola Xoom. It's easy to draw comparisons between the two tablet computers; both are Honeycomb devices with similar 10.1" screens, and they're both being aggressively promoted.

Unlike some of the low quality tablets that have flooded the market since the iPad became a household name, the Transformer offers decent power. Its processor is a Nvidia Tegra 2, which in our testing didn't present any serious issues in terms of performance. It's hard to compare it directly to something like the Apple iPad, but suffice to say that the TF101 will handle all of the Andriod 3.0 programs that you throw at it while offering more software flexibility than the Apple iPad 2 (in a sense).

The price point of the TF101 is just right, at $100 less than the Apple iPad. It costs $399 for a 16GB version and $499 for a 32GB version. This is not the tablet computer for you if you need 3G service, however--it's WiFi only, as would be expected from an Asus tablet.

In our testing, the Asus Eee TF101 didn't get too hot, which is a complaint that some have levied against transforming tablet computers. It's also not a transformer in the truest sense of the word. A dock accessory needs to be used to add a keyboard to the device, which effectively turns it into a netbook.

The dock accessory works well, with a few minor glitches that aren't worth complaining about. By the time Asus handles demand for the Transformer by releasing a big batch in June, it'll undoubtedly fix keyboard response issues through a software update. Truth be told, it worked just fine with a minor key detection issue or two. The keyboard really turns the transformer into a functional and useful netbook.

There's a good reason to have both a netbook and a tablet: buying both allows computer users to get their work done with the keys and then sit back and watch a movie or browse the net with the tablet. The TF101 lives up to its claims, and while it doesn't provide quite the level of intuitiveness as the iPad or the Xoom, it's $100 less and keeps the big features. It's even got HDMI out, although we didn't get to test that particular feature.

Overall, the Asus Eee Transformer is a viable contender in the Tablet market. It won't replace the iPad, but it's got the power and the brilliant screen to appeal to tech minded consumers.