ASUS Eee Pad Transformer 300 Pro Reviews

Great performance, but given the weak screen we’d expect a lower price to match the appeal of its premium-priced rivals

With the iPad always beating at the door of its competitors (occasionally with torches and pitchforks), they have to offer something different or unique that can tempt customers away from Apple's monster, whilst keeping the standards high across the rest of the device. Many have tried by picking - or indeed, in some cases copying - a few key features but often failed because they were lacking in other departments such as a poor touchscreen or low powered processor. Asus have really done their homework with this device and tried to cover all the bases and more, with a tablet that includes 32GB of storage, a speedy Nvidia Tegra 3 1.2Ghz processor, 1GB of memory and a 8 mega pixel camera, all for the same price as the 16GB Wi-Fi iPad. They also offer something different in the form of the keyboard dock that comes with their Transformer range. It gives you the best of both worlds, being both a tablet and notebook computer whilst offering a great deal of functionality as well. With a USB port, SD card slot and mini HDMI port, all of which are noticeably lacking on the iPad, the TF300T gives you a device that offers plenty of functionality but also ultimately delivers in terms of performance.

We found almost no major flaws in the Asus Transformer Pad TF300T. The only major issue was how the browser handled complex websites, and the display could have been as good as the one in the predecessor, the Prime TF201. Besides that, the tablet is an appealing package. It has great workmanship, connectivity, with the docking keyboard, and high performance. The well-designed display has good viewing angles but it should have been a littler brighter. Finally, the price-to-performance ratio is great for our test model: 499 Euros for a modern 10.1 inch tablet with 32 GB storage and a docking keyboard is fair. The street prices are a little lower, and without the keyboard, the Transformer Pad can cost up to 100 Euros less. Sadly, the tablet lacks a 3G module, which affects the mobility of the device. Thhankfully, Asus has a model with this module already on-sale. The 3G device costs 100 Euros more than the WiFi-only model. Another 30 Euros are added on for the version with LTE technology. In our opinion, this additional investment, is not yet worth it.

The Transformer Pad 300 offers an attractive package for a reasonable price. £399 will get you 32GB of storage and the keyboard dock thrown in too. The excellent selection of ports, decent screen, competent performance and Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich round-off a solid effort from Asus.

Although the Transformer Pad TF300 isn't flawless, Asus met our expectations in delivering a worthy successor to last year's Eee Pad Transformer. Compared to the pricier Transformer Prime, the Transformer Pad looks and feels slightly cheaper, its screen isn't as bright and its Tegra 3 processor is clocked slightly lower, but it remains an attractive option if you're seeking a more affordable solution. Folks with a more flexible budget should find it easy to justify the Transformer Prime's price premium (~$100), yet cash-strapped shoppers won't sacrifice much by purchasing the Transformer Pad. After all, it still packs a powerful quad-core Tegra 3 processor, 16GB to 32GB of storage, an amazing IPS display, and the TF300T keyboard docking station. Software is driven by Android ICS and Asus is known to update its devices rather often compared to the competition.

Asus made a clever decision with the Transformer tablets: it made two tablets at two distinctly different price points, but the differences between the two are small enough that most people won't notice. The people who don't know or care about the difference between 35 and 60 nits of brightness or between a 1.2 and 1.4GHz Tegra 3 processor will likely buy the Transformer Pad, because it's cheaper. Those who want the best of the best will spend a little more and buy the Transformer Prime. At a slightly lower price point the Transformer Pad would be an incredible steal, but even at $379 it's a great deal for what is really a great tablet. It performs and looks better than the $399 Galaxy Tab 2 or the $449 Acer Iconia Tab A510, and the keyboard dock is a huge advantage as well. To be fair, it's still a hard sell over the iPad 2, which now sells for $399, just because Apple's tablet app ecosystem is so superior to Google's. Asus does have the keyboard docks on its side, though, and Apple's many similar options don't measure up to the ease of use and tight integration.

The new Asus Transformer Pad gives you 95 per cent of the Transformer Prime experience for 80 per cent of the price - with the added bonus of reliable GPS. What you lose is negligible; what you gain - £100 - is not to be sneezed at. Our new best Android tablet? Oh yes.

The original Transformer was a big deal because it offered unmatched features at a much lower price than typical tablets. In the year since its introduction, others have stolen some of the budget mystique. The Kindle Fire set a new low with a $200 asking price—and a user experience to match. Acer's Tegra 3-based Iconia 10-incher can be had for $450, and the iPad 2 is down to $400. Then there's that new iPad, with its ridiculously gorgeous high-DPI display for only $100 more. None of those tablets, not even Apple's new hotness, has matched the mix of features that make the Transformer uniquely desirable. The optional keyboard dock is a true sidekick, offering a keyboard, touchpad, and auxiliary battery backed by an SD slot and USB port. It adds PC sensibilities to the tablet equation and makes for a much more versatile computing device. The Transformer Pad 300's dock ticks all the right boxes but loses a few points in the implementation. The issue of smarter touchpad drivers remains, and the new keyboard lacks the solid, punchy feel of the original. Neither ruins the Transformer's trademark accessory, but both are disappointing.

At current prices the new Transformer Pad TF300T simply isn't cheap enough to challenge the very similar Transformer Prime - though that surely must change in time

With this new product, Asus is pushing the power of a high-end tablet lower into mainstream territory. In terms of functionality, it is very fair to think of the Transformer Pad TF300 as a $400 Transformer Prime. This doesn’t mean that the TF300 feels “cheap” at all. It doesn’t, and I would say that if you don’t care much more the “luxury” aspect of aluminum and ultra-thin design, the Asus Transformer Pad TF300 will perform just like a Transformer Prime, and that includes the great user storage possibilities. In fact, I would recommend Asus to throw in $25 to ship a 64GB Transformer Pad TF300 for $424. That’s an extremely compelling argument if you think that the 64GB iPad Gen costs $700. If you want to download 4 or 5 movies for a long flight, this is a big deal.

A mild refresh of its predecessor, but at a lower price, the Asus Transformer Pad TF300 remains a top 10-inch Android tablet that packs a fast CPU, Ice Cream Sandwich, and an optional keyboard dock that turns it into a true productivity machine.

The TF300 isn't as thin or sturdy as the Transformer Prime. You also lose the rear camera flashlight and its screen isn't as bright. You do get roughly the same overall speed as the Prime with slightly faster Wi-Fi performance, a better rear camera, and an actual GPS feature that Asus can openly tout on its specs sheet. The TF300 doesn't lose much compared with the Prime and actually gains in a couple areas. At $380 ($400 for 32GB) it's cheaper than even an iPad 2, but unfortunately, the Android OS still lags way behind in app support compared with iOS. Still, if Android is your thing, the TF300's price makes it the current best value for a full-Android tablet on the market.

Here we have the slightly less expensive version of the most well-rounded and powerful Android tablet on the planet. The qualities that allow this model to cost significantly less than its bigger brother are not bothersome to me, and I see no reason, save for one, why a person wouldn’t just go with this TF300 model over the Transformer Prime. That reason is, of course, the flash for the camera – I think it’s safe to say that most people don’t use their tablet as their primary photo and video machine, but if they do, that little LED can make or break a purchase. After that though, everything on this device is high quality and ready for action. Even the plastic casing which replaces the fabulous ring-spun aluminum on the Prime is of a quality high enough to run with the top tier of the Android tablet world. It even has a ring-spun texture so you know it means business. ASUS hasn’t just created a lower-cost model of the Prime here, they’ve re-done the Prime with the essentials it needed to be the top-quality Android tablet in the field and offered it here with the name ASUS Transformer Pad TF300 with a much more pleasing price tag. Pick one up right now!

At current prices the new Transformer Pad TF300T simply isn't cheap enough to challenge the very similar Transformer Prime - though that surely must change in time

Though the TF300's price is fairly low, there thankfully isn't that big of a catch. Even as more mid-range, 10-inch Android tablets start hitting the market, the second-gen Transformer still feels like the best deal, with smooth, Tegra 3-powered gaming, good endurance and an understated design that calls to mind ASUS' other Transformer, the $500 Prime. Aside from the fact that the battery life isn't quite as epic as the Prime's, our most serious complaint has little to do with ASUS, and more with Android: even with a state-of-the-art chip running the latest version of the OS, the tablet occasionally hiccups when launching apps and resizing web pages. There's no reason for a product with such strong tech credentials to stumble over the mundane stuff. Still, the tablet is eminently usable, and ultimately a pleasure to live with. Moreover, the performance is a clear improvement over what you'll get from similarly priced 10-inch tabs, many of which run on last year's dual-core Tegra 2 chip. So if you feel at home in Android and have about $400 to spend, this, friends, is the tablet we recommend.

The ASUS Transformer Pad 300 is hot tablet, offering excellent performance across the board; the only issue is that its predecessor, the Transformer Prime, actually performs just as well if not better. Further, the iPad 2 and Samsung Galaxy Tab 7 Plus also bested the Transformer Pad 300 in some tests. That said, the Transformer 300 offers just about anything you could want in a tablet and then some. The graphics capabilities are superb, and the Tegra 3 offers more than enough performance for any app available for the device. We were routinely impressed by how fast the tablet performed tasks such as Web browsing, app launching, and various mundane activities, and the display is as responsive and quick as we’ve seen. Gaming is great, with stunning visuals and smooth-as-silk gameplay. The Tegra 3 chip and Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich deliver an overall terrific user experience.

Obviously, we like that the Asus Transformer Pad 300 boasts a price point that’s $100 less than the cream of the crop Transformer Prime – without sacrificing on the hardware. Frankly, many people will find some value in that, especially when it packs the same Android experience and quad-core processor as its fully equipped sibling. However, if money isn’t a concern with your budget, we’d still recommend picking up the Transformer Prime either way, primarily for its impeccable design, and the fact that it’s still the benchmark Android tablet to beat.

Among the melee of Transformer devices unveiled at the Asus press conference was a new quad-core tablet, aimed at the entry level user. Touted as a tablet for professionals who want 'performance and value', the Asus Transformer Pad 300 is a 10-inch device, which feels like a stripped down Transformer Prime, but doesn't sacrifice too much power.