ASUS Eee Pad Transformer - It's Morphing Time
ASUS takes a different approach with the Eee Pad Transformer tablet by including a keyboard docking station which also doubles as a second battery pack. Its ability to morph into a genuine laptop gave us a lot more to work with in our detailed review of this Android Honeycomb tablet.
It's Morphing Time
First unveiled at Consumer Electronics Show 2011 in January, ASUS brought a new concept to mobility and choice for tablets with its highly anticipated Eee Pad Transformer. On its own, the ASUS Eee Pad Transformer serves similar function as the other tablets out there. However, when paired with the optional keyboard docking station, the tablet transforms to a full-fledged laptop. Consumers' reception to the Transformer was remarkable , with 100 preorders on April 18 snapped up within three hours. Our preview of the tablet was generally positive and within the short period of time we had with the Transformer, we felt that it had the potential to give Apple iPad a run for its money. Now that we have a review unit topped with the latest edition of the Android OS for tablets, let us examine the ASUS Eee Pad Transformer to see if it can outshine its Android siblings and rival Apple iPad 2.
The ASUS Eee Pad Transformer can morph into a laptop in a few seconds with its optional keyboard docking station.
Design Aspects
The ASUS Eee Pad Transformer looks different from the rest of the tablets with its unique color combination. It is mostly clad in a bronze finish, leaving only the bezel around the 10.1-inch screen black. We felt that this color combination gives the Transformer a refreshing look from the norm, which is either white or black.
We like the bronze-black combination, which gives the ASUS Eee Pad Transformer a different look.
The metal frame of the Transformer gives the tablet a premium look and solid feel in the arms albeit heavy. The round corners give the Transformer good handling while the textured back provides a better grip even if you have sweaty palms. Weighing at 680g, you will not want to hold the tablet for too long (even with two hands). However, given the solid build quality, we are willing to compromise a little on the weight factor.
The ASUS Eee Pad Transformer is easy to handle although we are a little uncomfortable with the weight of the device.
For a 10.1-inch tablet, the ASUS Eee Pad Transformer manages a decent 12.98mm thin profile.
The black bezel surrounding the screen is rather thick, which gives the impression that the Transformer is equipped with a smaller screen. Located within the bezel are the 1.2-megapixel front- facing camera,ambient light sensor and ASUS brand name. Although 10.1-inch screen size is pretty much the standard now for tablets, we felt that ASUS could have made better use of the extra space, such as increasing the screen size. Similar with most tablets, the screen on the Transformer is a fingerprint magnet, attracting fingerprints and smudges easily. We often found ourselves cleaning the screen after a few minutes of using it.
The black bezel occupies quite a significant amount of space on the front of the ASUS Eee Pad Transformer, which could be put to better use.
On the left side of the tablet, you will find the Power / Screen Lock button and the volume controls. Thankfully, the Power / Screen Lock button is not recessed, unlike the BlackBerry PlayBook which we had much difficulties turning it on. Although the buttons are easy to press, ASUS should have placed the buttons further apart. There were instances when we tried to increase the volume but ended up turning off the screen.
It is easy to access the Power button and volume controls.
The right side of the Transformer has the 3.5mm audio jack, microphone, mini HDMI port and microSD card slot. Compared to the HTC Flyer where you have to remove the top cover to access the memory card slot, the ASUS Eee Pad Transformer places it in a more convenient location for easier transferring of files via memory cards. However, leaving it unprotected without a cover will mean that the card slot is exposed to dust and water.
Shown here is the right profile of the Transformer tablet. We felt that ASUS should have used a sliding cover for the microSD memory card slot to minimize the chances of water spilling into it or dust collecting there.
Right at the bottom, you will find the proprietary connector and two docking connectors. The proprietary connector acts as the charging point and data transfer port. We are surprised to see the standard microUSB port missing on the Transformer and we miss the convenience of just charging the device with any microUSB cable.
The ASUS Eee Pad Transformer breaks from the norm with its proprietary connector as most devices these days come with microUSB ports.
You will find the 5.0-megapixel camera at the top rear of the Transformer. Due to the curved nature of the back, the camera will not be in contact with any surface, henc minimizing the chances of it being scratched. We have mixed feelings regarding the textured pattern on the back. The unique textured pattern on the back of the Transformer looks pleasing to the eyes and certainly differentiates itself from the metallic backing of most other tablets.
The ASUS Eee Pad Transformer comes with a unique textured back, which helps to have a better grip of the tablet when holding it.
Powered-Up Transformer
And if you think the Transformer is scoring points just as a tablet, think again. It has the one thing that differentiates it from the common tablet - a unique keyboard dock that also acts as a secondary battery. In doing so, the Transformer gets a battery life boost of up to nearly twice its original specifications.
A 30-pin connector is located on the right of the keyboard attachment charges both the dock and the tablet concurrently.
The Transformer's keyboard dock is considerably secure, thanks to two latches that hooks onto two grooves found on the bottom of the tablet. The slider switch, which locks the tablet to the dock, doesn't come with the most intuitive design. Nonetheless, once it's secured, the two components look to be of a single entity, much like a netbook.
Two latches secures the tablet and the dock together, and we were impressed with how it remained locked down even when we tried to pry it apart.
Due to the thin profile of the tablet component, it's nearly impossible to include a full-sized USB port on the Transformer. Fortunately, the keyboard dock takes care of that shortfall with not one, but two such ports located on both sides and protected by a plastic cover. The inclusion of these USB ports makes it possible to add expandable storage in the form of a thumb drive, or even attaching a USB mouse to enhance its overall usability. And if you need more storage space beyond the microSD slot on the tablet or the USB ports, there's also a SD slot to increase the overall capacity.
Two USB ports, one on each side, brings more options to expand and enhance the Transformer's usability.
Besides the microSD slot on the tablet, you can also further expand the storage capacity with the SD card slot on the keyboard dock.
Honestly, we preferred to use a mouse over the track pad. While it does suffice for the usual web surfing, the track pad can be a challenge for more precise operations such as document editing. That aside, the keyboard does have the right tactile feedback, and we experienced minimal errors in our typing test. Its overall design emulates what we see on a notebook keyboard, with a few modifications to its function keys. Similarities are obvious with a dedicated function key to deactivate the track pad, while new additions such as a camera and auto brightness shortcut are added to fit the Android experience.
The track pad takes some getting used to, and during our time with the dock, we preferred to use a USB mouse over it.
Dedicated function keys to deactivate the track pad or activate its Wi-Fi functionality can be found on the top row of keys.
True to its moniker, the Transformer tablet transforms into a netbook. In short, you get the best of both worlds (tablet and netbook).
With both the tablet and dock secured, what impressed us further was how befitting the Transformer name is to this ASUS tablet. From a tablet, the Transformer literally morphs into a netbook that's powered by the Google Android 3.2 OS, an update that we'll be exploring further in the next page.
Honeycomb Gets Sweeter with Android 3.2
ASUS is upping the ante with its Eee Pad Transformer's upgrades. When it was first released, it was powered with Android 3.0 Honeycomb OS. Sometime in late May and early June, the Transformer got an update to Android 3.1. Now, it leaps ahead of the other Android tablets by bringing the updated Android 3.2 OS to all its Eee Pad tablet devices. Honestly, the upgrade to Android 3.2 is not game-changing. It brings about minimal changes, bug fixes, improvements in performance and app zooming. For this review, we will look at app zooming, which is a key highlight of Android 3.2.
The ASUS Eee Pad Transformer is the first tablet in the market to be running the Android 3.2 OS.
While some Android apps that are created specifically for mobile phones do work and look fine on tablets, there are some apps that will look odd and in the worst case scenario, become totally unusable after being stretched to fill the screen. Android 3.2 attempts to address this flaw with its compatibility zoom.
App zooming works by letting you choose between stretch and zoom modes to make the apps more usable on the bigger screens of tablets.
Seen here is the Stretch to fill screen option in the PressReader app. Text and icons look smaller but neater.
On the other hand, if you choose the" Zoom to fill screen" option, text and icons look bigger but too pixelated.
While making apps more usable on the bigger screens of tablets, the app zoom feature does not address the crux of problem, which is the lack of tablet-optimized apps. Google Android needs to spend more effort and time wooing developers to help it catch up with market leader, Apple in this critical aspect. Nevertheless, the app zoom is a welcome feature that will make the user experience on Android tablets better.
The interface of the Transformer remains largely unchanged, with the addition of ASUS' customized widgets and apps. The Honeycomb user interface by default is already a huge improvement over the Android 2.2 tablets we saw last year, and ASUS' tweaks just made it easier to use.
ASUS retains the look and feel of the stock Honeycomb user interface while adding a couple of its own widgets to make it more user friendly.
Seen here are three of ASUS's widgets: the weather widget on the left, the ASUS E-mail Widget on the top right and the ASUS Time directly below it.
Shown here is the MyZine widget, which gives you one touch access to many functions such as weather information, emails and music player.
As part of ASUS' Waveshare user interface, the Transformer comes pre-installed with several apps such as MyLibrary, MyNet and MyCloud to enhance its usability.
MyCloud consists of three portals - MyContent, MyDesktop and @Vibe. MyContent let you store data in ASUS' Webstorage so that you can access them anytime and anywhere on the go. You can remotely control and access your PC or MAC with MyDesktop and an Internet connection. @Vibe is an entertainment platform that allows you to access music, videos, games, radio stations and live stream TV.
Using MyNet, you can wirelessly stream multimedia content such as movies and music with home network devices such as HDTV for a more wholesome entertainment experience.
If you are using the Transformer as an e-reader, you will be glad to know that ASUS has packed the handy MyLibrary app into the device as it compiles all downloaded magazines, books and newspapers in one location for easy access and reading.
Seen only in the Transformer is ASUS' redesigned virtual QWERTY keyboard, which we felt made typing on the tablet a lot faster. If you want the stock Honeycomb keyboard, you have the option to switch back via Settings > Language & Input > Keyboard settings > Current input method > English (UK) Keyboard (Android keyboard).
ASUS adds in another row of numbers at the top, changes the layout of some buttons and throws in dedicated keys for smiley icons.
Another useful feature that ASUS equips the Transformer is the ability to do screenshots. A sore point with current Android devices is the inability to take screenshots, unlike their iOS counterparts. The screenshot function can be disabled or enabled via Settings > Screen > Screenshot.
Thanks to the screenshot function, we had a much easier time taking screenshots for this review compared to using the APK method which is inconvenient.
Power Up
You would have noticed that Honeycomb tablets these days usually have similar hardware specifications. The ASUS Eee Pad Transformer is no different from its Honeycomb peers, the Motorola Xoom and the Acer Iconia Tab A500. It comes with the NVIDIA Tegra 2 dual-core 1.0 GHz processor and 1GB of RAM. In this section, we pit the Transformer against the Motorola Xoom and Acer Iconia Tab A500 to see how it fares in the following benchmarks:
- Quadrant evaluates the CPU, memory, I/O and 3D graphics performance. This is an Android OS based test.
- Smartbench 2011 is a multi-core friendly benchmark application that includes both the Productivity and Games Indices for a more complete gauge of the overall performance of Android devices.
- SunSpider JavaScript benchmark measures the browsing performance of the tablet.
Do note that these benchmarks (and the upcoming battery tests) were conducted on an earlier Transformer unit that came with Android 3.0. This gives you a clearer and fairer understanding of how the ASUS tablet stands against similar Android 3.0 tablets that were tested earlier in the year.
Device | ASUS Eee Pad Transformer | Motorola Xoom | Acer Iconia Tab A500 | Apple iPad 2 |
CPU | NVIDIA Tegra 2 dual-core 1GHz | NVIDIA Tegra 2 dual-core 1GHz | NVIDIA Tegra 2 dual-core 1GHz | Apple A5 dual-core 1GHz |
GPU | ULP GeForce | ULPGeForce | ULP GeForce | PowerVR SGX 543MP2 |
RAM | 1GB | 1GB | 1GB | 512MB |
OS | Google Android 3.0 | Google Android 3.0 | Google Android 3.0 | Apple iOS 4.3 |
Judging from the scores of the Quadrant and Smartbench benchmarks, the ASUS Eee Pad Transformer is consistent with the other Honeycomb tablets. It follows closely with the leader of the pack, Acer Iconia Tab A500 in most of the benchmarks. This is not surprising as all three tablets are equipped with the same hardware configurations.
From the SunSpider Javascript benchmark which measures the web browser performance, all three Android tablets scored almost similar results while the Apple iPad 2 falls behind a tad bit. Nevertheless, these are just numbers generated from benchmark tests conducted on the tablets with stock firmware. Therefore, they do not form a conclusive account of the performance during your day-to-day usage conditions.
During our time reviewing the ASUS Eee Pad Transformer, we felt that there was no significant differences between using it and other Honeycomb tablets. The user interface is generally smooth and fluid. Internet browsing was good, thanks to the Adobe Flash 10.3 support. We played several games such as Angry Birds and found the experience to be positive.
Roll Out
ASUS positions the Eee Pad Transformer as a powerful mini-cinema entertainment on-the-go and it certainly has the specifications to back it up. The Transformer is equipped with a large 10.1-inch display made of scratch-resistant Corning Gorilla Glass. In addition, it uses In-Plane Switching (IPS) technology, which promises crisper and more accurate color range, and side to side viewing angle up to 178 degrees. This is similar to what Apple is using for its iPhone 4 and iPad 2 models.
When using the Transformer for viewing videos, images and web browsing, it was indeed a great multimedia experience. The 1280 x 800 pixels resolution of the display puts it on par with the Motorola Xoom and Acer Iconia Tab A500, hence the user experience is similar across the board. However, it does has a flaw that the other two tablets suffer from, which is the reflective screen. Not only is the display too reflective for our liking, it also attracts fingerprints very easily. Having said that, we feel that it is handy to keep a cleaning cloth with you when using the Transformer.
The Transformer comes equipped with a 1.2-megapixel front facing camera and a 5.0-megapixel rear camera. As usual, we put the Transformer through the color and resolution tests (with the rear-facing camera).
The camera performance of the ASUS Eee Pad Transformer is unsatisfactory. High noise levels are apparent across the charts.
Image quality is passable. There is slight fringing along the edges and a general lack of sharpness.
Finally, we will run the ASUS Eee Pad Transformer through the battery test to see how long it can last on a single charge (without the keyboard attachment since it acts as an extended power source). The battery test will include running a 720p video with the screen brightness and volume at 100%. Wi-Fi and Bluetooth connections are turned on as well with regular data streaming through email and Twitter. In this particular section, we will throw in the Motorola Xoom, Acer Iconia Tab A500 and Apple iPad 2 as comparison.
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Taking a look from the results of the battery test, the ASUS Eee Pad Transformer's performance was decent although we expected more from ASUS. Managing a battery mileage of 299 minutes, the Transformer is slightly ahead of the Acer Iconia Tab but trails behind the Motorola Xoom by more than an hour. The Transformer also scored fairly in the Portability Index. Being the lightest of the 10-inch Honeycomb tablets in this comparison helped the Transformer push past the Acer Iconia Tab A500 but not within reach of the Xoom.
Nonetheless, Honeycomb tablets do not have a good track record when it comes to battery performance. Google Android should work together with the different vendors to optimize power management on its tablets to improve battery performance. This is why ASUS packs in the optional keyboard docking station and claims a battery life of up to 16 hours.
As our battery test is a highly intensive one, we think that the ASUS Eee Pad Transformer will perform better under normal day-to-day usage conditions. We paced the ASUS Eee Pad Transformer through a normal routine of Internet browsing, checking emails, playing several rounds of games and downloading games to gauge its performance in reality. We found out that the Transformer could last a day on a single charge. Needless to say, with the aid of a secondary battery from the keyboard dock, this mileage will be increased two fold. The short of it all, it is important to note that different usage patterns will result in different battery mileage.
Transforming the Tablet Scene
To be honest, the flood of tablets this year made each new device's arrival to the market nothing more than ripples on the water surface. This is especially true for Android tablets where many brands release their tablet models one after the other. There are not much differentiation among Android tablets as most run the stock user interface. Fortunately, there is the HTC Flyer with its unique Scribe technology and Sense user interface. However, the Flyer runs on Android 2.3 Gingerbread, an OS that is not optimized for tablet use. The arrival of the Honeycomb-powered ASUS Eee Pad Transformer is timely in making a big splash in the tablet scene.
The ASUS Eee Pad Transformer lives up to its "Transformer" namesake. If you need a tablet that can double up as a simple notebook, this ASUS delivers just that. It is perhaps a reflection of what the future will be of the notebook industry catering to the general mass of casual users.
ASUS brings an innovative idea to the tablet scene with its optional keyboard docking station for the Eee Pad Transformer. In fewer than five steps, ASUS transforms the tablet into a full fledged mini laptop. This is very useful for people who are always on the go and do not like the hassle of carrying a tablet and a laptop on the go. The keyboard docking station not only provides the functionality of typing on physical keys, it also boosts the Transformer's battery life up to 16 hours. This is more than sufficient for anyone who is out working.
Besides adopting the tablet-optimized Honeycomb OS, ASUS adds minor but useful tweaks to the user interface. The additional ASUS widgets such as the Weather and Mail widgets make it easier for you to view information on the home screen instead of accessing the apps. The pre-installed apps such as Polaris Office, MyNet and MyCloud enhance the functionality of the Transformer. Most importantly of all, ASUS is one of the fastest brands in pushing out updates for its devices. It is the first tablet in the market to get the update to Android 3.2, which fixes some bugs and boosts performance.
However, the Transformer is not without its flaws. The highly reflective screen spoils an otherwise good viewing experience on the Transformer. In addition, it is a fingerprint magnet, making the screen look dirty after a while of usage. As with most other tablets, the camera performance of the Transformer is sub par. Although tablets are hardly used for taking photographs, a better camera will help in the multimedia aspects of the Transformer. Last but not least, the Transformer (without its keyboard docking station) could not last more than five hours in our intensive battery tests. Docking it with the keyboard will make the Transformer heavier, which will defeat the purpose of having a mobile device to work on the go. On the other hand, most notebooks don't fare any better on this aspect either without being plugged to a power outlet. The good part is that the tablet on its own could last for about a whole day for casual usage and you can imagine that it would last even longer with the keyboard attachment.
So while the ASUS Eee Pad Transformer might seem like a perfect device to take on the go, it has limits to what it can do based on its OS, processing power and battery life. It all boils down to your personal expectations and usage patterns.
At the retail price of S$898 (Eee Pad Transformer and the Docking Station), we felt that it is reasonable considering that we are getting the docking station (with a keyboard and battery pack in it). Compared with the Apple iPad 2 16GB Wi-Fi model which cost S$668, Motorola Xoom 32GB Wi-Fi (S$888) and Acer Iconia Tab A500 (S$799), the Transformer would seem overpriced. It really depends on what you want from a tablet. To us, it sounds acceptable to spend an extra $100 or more to get a keyboard and extra battery pack as you may need to spend more if you get other tablets and their accessories.
Overall it was an enjoyable experience reviewing the ASUS Eee Pad Transformer, especially with the keyboard docking station. We sometimes felt that we are not using a tablet but a laptop instead. We like the dual functionality of the Transformer, where we can easily switch between a tablet and a laptop as and when the situation calls for it. We applaud ASUS for bringing something so refreshing into the tablet scene, and look forward to more innovative and creative offerings from them. With that, we end our review and wholeheartedly bestow it our Most Innovative award.
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