Asus EEE Pad Transformer


Recommended Posts

I am thinking of getting for quite a while. The biggest drawback of ASUS Transformer is the lack of 3G connectivity. I am with my MacBook and iPhone all the time, so I can connect to my work servers and do fast modifications no matter where I am.

Brilliant review, kudos.

Thoughts for next time? Pictures? :D Unless they're not displaying because we're using IE8 at school (it's painful).

it may just be your browser. their are some pictures there (not high res or anything though)

Very good and fair review.

I briefly owned a Asus Transformer, but ended up returning it due to the software issues you mentioned in your post.

The Android Market doesn't seem well situated for Tablets and the app ecosystem is painfully weak.

On top of that, apps will constantly crash. I never got the Facebook app working right.

On top of that, apps will constantly crash. I never got the Facebook app working right.

yeah the facebook app is definitely crap on this thing, but to be fair. it doesn't officially support tablets either :pinch: for me, i have to strategically wait and time my self and go a certain path to find friend or else the app crashes. Friend Me is a great alternative for facebook on tablets, just doesn't do chat though...

okay.......

I have a iPad 1 and a iPhone, never used Android long term besides playing with anyone elses.

I'm very tempted to get one to play around with, not decided yet, I'm tempted by the Asus but think might be best waiting to see the Samsung 8", the Touchpad looks nice but can't see it going anywhere with a app infrastructe

Thoughts, is it worth splashing on a Asus just to learn and play with?

I wouldn't mind app programming but iphone requires a Mac investment which not prepared to pay for, so could look at android

in terms of the issue with the dock and charging/draining. a fix is coming.

ASUS confirms Eee Pad Transformer power fix incoming

ASUS has admitted to an issue with the Eee Pad Transformer?s power management settings, which could see users of the keyboard dock experience problems with power drain and how well the attachment recharges. According to ASUS, the fault is down to how the company chose to configure the power management around sleep mode; however, there?s also a fix promised.

asus_eee_pad_transformer_review_sg_12-540x353.jpg

The exact nature of that fix has not been explained, though ASUS says it will be announcing details ?shortly? on how it intends to resolve the situation. Most likely, however, is a firmware update that will change the power management configuration based on the feedback ASUS has received from owners.

?Apologies to anyone who has encountered issues with their Transformer keyboard dock (power drain and charging). The issue is related to the way we configured the device?s power management in/out of sleep mode. We will shortly be announcing details on how this will be resolved for our customers? ASUS

Despite the issues, the Eee Pad Transformer has reportedly been a significant sales success. ASUS claimedit was the best-selling Android tablet recently, with the production line unable to keep up with demand for the low-cost Honeycomb slate. More information in our full review.

http://androidcommun...oming-20110713/

******************************

also for you americans, anandtech has a contest to win a free eee pad

http://www.anandtech...pad-transformer

Well not used it so far, it says charge for 8 hours first so thats what I'm doing.

I'm slightly concerned that when I plugged it in to charge the unit came on by itself with a warning box that something had not loaded and needed to be force quitted. I switched it off as I was bothered about charging.

This was fully packaged and everything, so if when switch it on again and get errors I'm not going to be happy.

Not the best welcome from a iOS person to Android.

Well not used it so far, it says charge for 8 hours first so thats what I'm doing.

I'm slightly concerned that when I plugged it in to charge the unit came on by itself with a warning box that something had not loaded and needed to be force quitted. I switched it off as I was bothered about charging.

This was fully packaged and everything, so if when switch it on again and get errors I'm not going to be happy.

Not the best welcome from a iOS person to Android.

yeah 3.1 has a tendency to do quirky things, but that's okay, as a lot of those type of errors should be fixed soon with 3.2 coming to the transformer pretty quick!

http://androidcommunity.com/asus-transformer-update-to-3-2-honeycomb-coming-soon-20110713/

  • 2 weeks later...

asus-transformer-3.2-update-440x600.jpg

28th July 2011

(Pushed to TW and US devices.)

  • Updated to Honeycomb 3.2
  • Build number: 8.6.5.6-20110726
  • Kernel changed.
  • Wifi updated: v5.2.52
  • Bluetooth updated: v6.19
  • GPS updated: v1.5.0
  • Improved hardware acceleration.
  • Bug fixes.
  • Update to Movie Studio
  • Update to Google Movies
  • Update to widget system
  • Update to Google Music.
  • Exchange support.
  • 'Zoom to fill' feature.
  • Pinch to zoom and two finger scrolling with trackpad added.
  • Trackpad operation inverted.
  • Proper SD card support (which will allow media to sync, etc).
  • HDMI output resolution quality scales better for greater compatibility with 720p tv's.
  • Mouse cursor changed (now a circle instead of pointer).
  • Pressreader updated.
  • Splashtop updated (not HD version).
  • No longer white squares in default browser when redrawing page.
  • Smoother home page rotation.
  • Smoother 720p flash.
  • UI speed improvement/tweaks.
  • Weather widget displays last update time.

Great review rajputwarrior! I was really looking into getting one of these and selling my iPad, but I have some thinking to do now.. :p

3.2 definitely help a lot with the lagging. it feels a lot snappier now, flash is running better (albeit not as good as one would expect yet) and the music app hasn't crashed yet :)

though there is also STILL keyboard lag in the default browser, but not in Opera...

That's good, I thought it was odd that flash wasn't working properly on it.

I think I might get the next Asus tablet with Nvidia Tegra 3, supposedly released in October/November. That way I can keep my iPad and get an Asus tablet as well :)

  • 2 weeks later...

well guess the light bleed issue is becoming a norm to most people, myself included. but i noticed so far no reviews that i've read mentioned about it, so i was wondering whether the unit that the reviewers had were bleed free or just that they fail to mention it? I'll be reviewing the transformer some time soon at my android blog, will let u guys know when I review it :)

Really wish I had searched for "Backlight Bleed" in Google rather than "Light Bleed" :x

  • 2 weeks later...

TF101G 3G Transformer release firmware. 23rd August 2011

(Pushed to WW devices.)

Build number: v8.6.6.10-20110816

Wifi: v5.2.58

GPS updated: v5.5.9

Bluetooth: v6.20

23rd August 2011

(Pushed to US and WW devices)

19th August 2011

(Pushed to TW and CN devices)

Update appears to lock users to this firmware with no possibility to downgrade (only upgrade) once applied.

Build number: 8.6.5.9-20110816

Wifi updated: v5.2.58

GPS updated: v5.5.8

MobileDock version updated: 0213

Bluetooth v6.20

  • Android compatibility mode for apps added.
  • Keyboard on/off switch when docked added.
  • Selectable cursor type option added (arrow or circle).
  • Mouse cursor trackpad movement reversed.
  • Device faster to turn on.
  • More MyZine options added.
  • Dock typing lag greatly improved.

----------------------------------------------

no more stupid circular cursor!!!!

This topic is now closed to further replies.
  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
  • Posts

    • Tor Browser 15.0.15 by Razvan Serea Protect your privacy. Defend yourself against network surveillance and traffic analysis. Tor is a network of virtual tunnels that allows people and groups to improve their privacy and security on the Internet. The Tor software protects you by bouncing your communications around a distributed network of relays run by volunteers all around the world: it prevents somebody from watching your Internet connection and learning what sites you visit, it prevents the sites you visit from learning your physical location, and it lets you access sites which are blocked. The Tor Browser Bundle lets you use Tor on Windows, Mac OS X, or Linux without needing to install any software. It can run off a USB flash drive, comes with a pre-configured web browser to protect your anonymity, and is self-contained. Tor Browser 15.0.15 changelog: All Platforms Updated NoScript to 13.6.20.1984 Updated Tor to 0.4.9.9 Bug tor-browser#42436: Allow for multiple configured (front, reflector) domain fronting pairs in Moat module Windows + macOS + Linux Bug tor-browser#44997: Captcha doesn't work in TB desktop Linux Bug tor-browser#44886: Backport tor-browser#44361: Notify Linux i686 users that they won't receive updates anymore Download: Tor Browser (64-bit) | Tor Browser (32-bit) | 109.0 MB (Open Source) View: Tor Browser Website | Other Operating Systems Get alerted to all of our Software updates on Twitter at @NeowinSoftware
    • Less disk space means less bandwidth demands which means lower operating costs for service providers... that's where money talks. ... cuz it's not about improving video quality!... that's just marketing spin.
    • And thereby lies the rub. AV1 support is not as wide as paid analysts would have the industry believe. With AV2 around the corner, it's going cause more time backlog in adoption (how many recent purchasers will upgrade yet-again within the next 6-12 months? most would rather stay pat for another 1+ years before even thinking about upgrading their setups).
    • Microsoft OneDrive is getting a simple yet much needed feature by Sayan Sen Microsoft has been steadily expanding OneDrive’s file management capabilities over the years, including for shared content and shortcuts, although it has had its flaws, too. The cloud storage platform introduced support for folder shortcuts several years ago, allowing users to pin frequently accessed shared folders from OneDrive, SharePoint, and Teams. Now, Microsoft is refining that experience further with a new way to organize those shortcuts as revealed in a recent Microsoft 365 roadmap addition. Previously, shortcuts added through the “Add shortcut to My files” option would appear alongside all other files and folders in the root of a user's OneDrive. And although it's meant to be useful, this approach could also create clutter along the way, especially for heavy users who may have to work with large numbers of shared folders across multiple projects and teams on their systems. This is where Microsoft’s latest feature comes in, as it is looking to address this inconvenience by giving users the option to place new shortcuts inside a dedicated “Shortcuts” folder instead. The feature is designed to keep shortcut links organized into a single location instead of scattering throughout the main OneDrive directory. Hence, the idea is to make navigation and usability easier and simpler. The first time a user chooses this option, OneDrive will automatically create the folder, and to help make it stand out from the other folders, the Shortcuts folder will have a distinct visual identity featuring a unique color and a building-style icon. That being said, the new Shortcuts will behave just like any other folder in OneDrive, and as such, users will be able to move it to a different location, rename it, share it with others, or remove it entirely if they prefer a different structure. You can view the entry on the Microsoft 365 roadmap website here. Currently, the feature is in the "in development" phase, but the tech giant expects the rollout to start next month (July 2026). Do keep in mind, though, that new feature rollouts often get delayed.
    • VS Code 1.123 introduces massive upgrades for persistent AI developer workflows by Paul Hill Microsoft has just released Visual Studio Code 1.123 alongside its annual developer conference, Build 2026. This release, as always, has a heavy focus on advanced AI agent integration and making the built-in browser more robust. Notably, this update brings big sync changes that keep your AI agents persistent across sessions. With this update, VS Code now supports cross-machine syncing for chat histories, touched files, repository contexts, and related PRs via GitHub accounts, tying users even more into Microsoft’s developer ecosystem. This update also introduces the new /chronicle command that allows you to query past sessions using natural language, generate instant standup reports, and get personal productivity insights. Microsoft has also made some improvements to network-dependent operations, it explains: “When a terminal command that is run by a local agent requires access to domains that are not configured as allowed domains, the command is automatically retried inside the sandbox with unrestricted network access. After that, if it still fails, it falls back to unsandboxed execution. This allows network-dependent operations such as git fetch to finish, while keeping filesystem protections in place.” Microsoft has not stopped there; in this update, it also allows developers to drag, drop, and pin multiple agent sessions side-by-side for easy code comparisons in real-time. It also introduces the Research Agent, accessible via /research. This is a read-only, depth-optimized tool that gets data from the web, local codebase, and GitHub to give you a Markdown report on complex APIs or unfamiliar code. Now, let’s talk about the integrated browser and some security enhancements. VS Code 1.123 features enhanced screenshot capture tools that allow for targeted Area Screenshots and Full Page Screenshots to send layout context instantly to AI chat. The address bar has also been revamped, supporting favorite pages and tab management. Finally, on the security front, this update introduces a safety-first two-hour delay on third-party extension auto-updates to safeguard against compromised or buggy releases. This release is now available for Windows, Mac, and Linux. If you have VS Code, keep an eye out for the update availability notification. If you still don’t have VS Code, you can get it here.
  • Recent Achievements

    • One Month Later
      B2Proxy earned a badge
      One Month Later
    • One Year In
      MadMung0 earned a badge
      One Year In
    • Week One Done
      jefred earned a badge
      Week One Done
    • Apprentice
      JoeyNeo went up a rank
      Apprentice
    • Week One Done
      oliviaexpo earned a badge
      Week One Done
  • Popular Contributors

    1. 1
      +primortal
      482
    2. 2
      PsYcHoKiLLa
      227
    3. 3
      Skyfrog
      71
    4. 4
      FloatingFatMan
      60
    5. 5
      Nick H.
      54
  • Tell a friend

    Love Neowin? Tell a friend!