Tuesday, May 1, 2012

The most helpful critical review of ASUS Transformer TF300

ASUS Transformer TF300
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The most helpful critical review of ASUS Transformer TF300 ---The main reason I purchased this tablet was because I loved my Android smartphone (Samsung Epic Touch 4G) and wanted the same experience (without the phone) on a bigger screen. I have about a dozen apps, and most often use Gmail, Browser, WSJ, Facebook, and some kids games. My smartphone runs these great, so I was really looking forward to the bigger screen and more powerful processor.

So, whether it is fair or not, I will compare this to my smartphone, in the hopes that it might help someone else. I have been waiting to pull the trigger on a new Android tablet for some time. Based on the reviews, this seems like a great product at a good price point.

Unlike many other reviewers, I am very satisfied with both the build quality and the display. While it does feel a little "plasticky", all of the buttons and physical plugs have a solid feel. The display is great for everything that I need, although I almost always leave it on full brightness. Personally, I do not feel that the higher-end displays are worth the additional price yet. I also am very happy with the new ICS interface. Many of the new features (you can read about elsewhere) are well worth the upgrade.
Performance-wise, this thing is a dog compared to my smartphone. The included browser is frustratingly slow. Pages take 3-6 seconds to load. After they load, they do not respond to scrolling or touch input for a few more seconds. I tried the Chrome Browser and it wasn't much better. In many apps, I frequently get a totally non-responsive screen, followed by the notice "[whatever app] is not responding. Would you like to close it [Wait or OK]? I click Wait, and eventually they come back. Crashing: Both Gmail and the Browser have crashed about 6-10 times in the first week, requiring me to restart the tablet to get them working again.

APPS: (These are not the fault of the device, but still affect my experience). After setting up the device, I downloaded the same dozen or so apps that I had purchased for my smartphone. Be aware that the apps that get downloaded to this tablet are not the same as those that get loaded onto a smartphone. In theory, this is a good thing, because the apps have been specifically designed for the tablet. For example, the WSJ app is much fancier (similar to the iPad app version). However, performance and lag make it unbearable to use, compared to the version on my smartphone.

In short, the performance and lag of this tablet is so bad, I almost always pull out my smartphone to check something on the web or read the news, or perform a search. I am really not sure what to do with this tablet now. I might wait to see if there is some kind of software upgrade, or just let my kids use it for games.

For someone who loves his android smartphone, and was looking forward to better things on a big screen, ASUS Transformer TF300 is a huge disappointment. Also read last article about Best Review of ASUS Transformer TF300.

Best Review of ASUS Transformer TF300

ASUS Transformer TF300
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Best Review of ASUS Transformer TF300 ---I just got my tablet today and I must say I'm really pleased. We also have the Prime in our household so I was able to compare both side by side.

I ran several speed tests from different locations inside and outside(30-45ft) our house. The ASUS Transformer TF300 was superior in all aspects when it came to wifi strength, especially at further distances. Needless to say the GPS was better as well.
You can definitely notice a difference in the screen resolution, the ASUS Transformer TF300 is not as sharp on the colors. Even though it doesn't have the super ips mode its still really bright(I would say as bright as the prime) if you turn the brightness all the way up.

I haven't done any updates yet but it hasn't had any hiccups and no signs of color bleed like some other users are complaining about.

Picture quality seems about the same(even the I miss the flash)

I was originally skeptical about the plastic finish but I was surprised by its clean finish and look.

Even though I don't use the speakers much I noticed its stronger than the prime's.

Monday, April 30, 2012

ASUS Transformer TF300 | A Big Screen Smartphone

ASUS Transformer TF300
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ASUS Transformer TF300 | A Big Screen Smartphone ---This is only an initial report, as I've only had the ASUS Transformer TF300 for about 4 days. At first I was concerned, as when I took it out and started it up for the first time, it hung at the language choice screen. Bummer. But being someone who uses computers often and is aware of their quirks and issues, I simply turned it off, and then back on again. The second time's the charm! Booted perfectly, did a firmware update, and I was off. Entered my email address and it downloaded all the apps I have on my phone automatically. A little weird and creepy, and I certainly didn't want ALL those apps on my tab, but okay.

Then I started using it, and can now safely say that I'm falling in love with the little guy. It's very smooth and quite fast in general. Never having used the Prime, I don't really know what I'm missing; and though I'm sure it's faster and has a brighter display, etc... this one's cheaper!

It doesn't have a metal housing, but truth be told I think the plastic looks quite nice. It feels good, is easy to hold, and the screen is very nice, if not as bright as the Prime. I can't imagine any issue with the brightness unless I was outside in direct sunlight. Not a concern, at least for me.

I dinged the ASUS Transformer TF300 a star because of the start up issues, and occasionally an app stops responding properly. Whether this is a fault of the machine or the apps themselves, I cannot say. It hasn't bothered me much, as I simply restart apps when they hang and they work just fine. Only a few apps I've found exhibit the behavior, like the Netflix app for instance.

Other than these minor glitches, the tab is great. The wifi works very well, a little better than my laptop (my laptop is a few years old) in fact. Web browsing is quite fast (I use Dolphin browser), and once I updated Adobe Flash, flash within web pages works great. I've only watched a couple of HD videos, but everything's pretty smooth. Sound isn't the best (only one speaker), but it does get surprisingly loud for a little thing.

Overall, so far I like the ASUS Transformer TF300 a LOT. It does exactly what I want it to do, and quickly, with only a couple of very minor issues so far. I have ordered the ASUS Transformer TF300 dock, and will add to the review once I've used them together.