Database Users

Honest Opinions on the Transformer

I’ll be starting grad school in the fall and am in the market for a laptop/tablet and currently the Transformer is at the top of my list right now. I was hoping I could get some honest opinions on how the well the transformer works as both a media and productivity device (primarily concerned with the latter). I plan on using it for grad school, but since I’ll also be working a full-time job during the day, hope to use it as a work device as well. I also moonlight as a photographer, and am looking for ways I can incorporate the transformer into that as well.
My main concern is the stability of Android. I’ve owned both an EVO and an HTC HD2 running Android/Windows Phone 7 (thanks xda!), and although I loved the openness and overall capability of Android, the instability and battery life made things too cumbersome at times. My phone doubles as a work and personal device, so I fire off a lot of e-mails all day, view docs, send calls, etc etc. Nothing was more frustrating than having the phone lock up in the middle of something important, or die in the middle of the day if I used it a lot (on days when I need to use it a lot). Currently using an iPhone 4, which I know doesn’t get a whole lot of love around here, but simply works when needed. Not an Apple fanboy by any means…actually an old Windows Mobile guy, but sometimes stability and accessibility are important…particularly for heavy users like me.
Secondly, I’d like to know how productive one can really be on the transformer. What’s piqued my interest about Android on a tablet is the ‘desktop-esque’ experience it provides. As good as iOS to me is on a phone, its utterly neutered and has very little utility on a tablet IMO. For instance, true multi-tasking isn’t too important to me on a phone, but it would be on a tablet. Interested in knowing how well the tablet handles word docs, excel sheets, and PDF files…particularly from those who have experience with the keyboard dock.
Looking for honest answers here, and hope people can look beyond ownership bias. Hoping to hear the good and the bad. I’ve used enough mobile and desktop OS’s and devices to know that nothing is ever perfect.

I can't really comment on the productivity end as I mainly use my Transformer to read, watch videos, play games, and web browse. For what I need it to do it is great. HD videos on YouTube play great. It does have issues playing HD videos that are in mkv format but one they are re-encoded they play great.
The screen is where this thing really shines though. I have yet to see a better screen on a tablet anywhere. None of the HC tablets even come close, imho. I do have some light bleed but it isn't enough to bother me and I don't even see it unless I am in a dark room with the brightness cranked up.
One thing you won't have to worry about is battery life. The battery in this thing is way better than I expected. I can get 2 days with my average use, easy. It also hardly loses any battery when in standby also.
Honeycomb does still need some tweaking but it is not a big problem. There aren't a lot of apps optimized for HC yet but the list will increase with time.

Personally I think you would be better off with a laptop for your needs.
I think you will suffer the same frustration you did with your andriod phones if you are using the tablet for lots of documents, spreadsheets and other office type apllications.
I think these things are really designed for web browsing, casual email, game playing, music & video playing, etc.
You can edit docs etc and the optional keyboard helps a lot, but I think of these as a secondary machine. I have a desk top and a laptop too. At home it has pretty much replaced the laptop but not for work related tasks.

Im new to tablets and android all together. As a computer tech by trade, I figured it would be good to learn somethign new, did some research and went with the transformer. And I must say, coming from a windows & iOS background, Android has been a HUGE let down.
the hardware on the tablet is great. Build quality, the screen, the dock works wonderfully. USB ports that charge my phone. etc. All top notch.
Android is the downfall of the eee pad. To get the tablet to perform anywhere near the capabilty of my iPhone or PC, its about 5x the amount of work.
Video playback is a joke. when I try to copy any file over 3 or 4 gigs onto it, it crashes. And of all the videos ive copied over, only 2 worked properly. Even supported file formats are iffy at times.
App support is also very weak. The list of apps on this site that are supported by the eee pad is pretty much all you get. Which is sad compared to the App support that the iPad / win7 tablets have.
From a work standpoint, the failure of the proxy support is huge. I have to use a proxy server at work for my devices to function properly. Laptop: works fine. iPhone: works fine. Android: doesnt work at all. Native proxy support in 3.1 just doesnt work. Using apps to get proxy support KIND of works, but is flakey at best. If your work/school relies on proxy servers , then dont expect to use the eeePad there.
Hotspots.. again, a big problem. Bluetooth tethering KIND of worked for me, but since the proxy support is so shoddy, that started interfering with tethering when proxy wasnt needed and... you guessed it, didnt work. Not only that but for proper adhoc tethering , youll have to root the device and install a custom kernal or something.
So, all those issues are Honeycomb related. Gonna hit the same problems on the Xoom or anythign else that uses 3.x The only reason im keeping my eee pad is because software issues get worked out in time. They better... because right now this thing is just a giant paper weight for me. still on the edge of returning it and buying it again later once all the problems are fixed. So ya, it may be able to handle word, excel and such documents (so can the iPad by the way), but with such severe connectivity and networking issues, it really doesnt matter. *shrugs. honesty! EP121 anyone?

The TF would be good to SUPPLEMENT a full desktop or more powerful laptop but it could never be my primary machine. I need the application/device support of windows.
Being said if I had a computer at home I could have made it through college with the transformer as my mobile device.
As for the guy above me i havent experienced any of his issues. It only supports a few video files but that goes for all android stock media players. Recoding them to mp4/m4v in handbrake results in flawless video playback, never had a failure.
Apps are weak, its a new ecosystem. Like the ipad when it came out the vast majority of the "compatible" apps are just the phone apps scaled up. That will change.
Not sure about the proxy, havent encountered that. Ive never had a hotspot issue. In a restaurant, at work, using my Evo to wireless tether or on the plane. Its connected to every "infrastructure AP" network Ive ever tried and that is all I encounter. I have never had a need to connect AdHoc.

Before I got my tablet, I had imagined all these things I would use it for.
I was going to be able to do all of the following on one device!
For productivity:
- Check emails
- Read textbooks in pdf format, be able to highlight, save bookmarks and annotations...all in digital format.
- Use office programs like Word & Excel for typing up papers and creating charts.
- Watch video lectures & tutorials
- Use Anki flashcards
For entertainment:
- Watch videos from streaming sites
- Have a library of HD movies/miniseries on the device
- Be able to HDMI out my video library wherever I was
- Have emulators with a whole bunch of games I could play whenever I had down time
- play Android market games
This is what happened after I got the Transformer:
I realized I could do all the above, but ended up going to other devices because it just felt cumbersome on a tablet.
About all I used the tablet for was to watch videos and...watch videos..oh yeah and casual web browsing.
- Checking emails...I ended up just pulling out my phone.
- Reading textbooks...not many available in PDF...and it's not that great on a digital screen. Writing notes...don't even try it...even with one of those capacitative pens.
- Word and Excel are ok...but you can't do multi worksheet formulas...etc. I ended up just using my laptop or desktop.
- Video lectures...a lot of them required plugins and the browser/OS did not support that...back to laptop.
- Videos from streaming sites...choppy...unwatchable.
- HD movies...commonly downloaded ones dont work...had to re-encode or transcode at least 80% of them.
- HDMI haven't tested....I had to return my transformer...since the touch screen locked up.
Emulators...never did it.
- Android games...as a gamer...I find the current crop of games to be too simplistic and boring (minus Spectral Souls)
I have another one on order that's arriving today, so I'm still giving it a chance. Maybe I'm not using it properly...in any case it is still a pretty cool device to have around. I would consider it a borderline second device...but more like a third (i.e. Desktop for true power productivity/gaming, Laptop for moderate mobile productivity, then a Tablet when you go on quick vacations and you don't want to carry the others).

I would look for something like a laptop that cam run windows and android at the same time. Like the viewsonic pro.. acer w 500..better yet the evolve three convertible.
Sent from my PC36100 using Tapatalk

I have my Transformer for about 2 weeks now. Actually today is the day I would have to decide either to keep it or to return it back to BB. Just finally got the keyboard dock just 2 days ago. My perseption before and after having it is completely different.
Before having it, I was really excited, kind of hoping finally the perfect device has arrived. A perfect device that can do everything I need.
I kind of know from reading everywhere, mostly from this forum what to expect and what is not there yet. Yet I finally decided to buy it with big hopes that with time, everything will be there. Buying the transformer also means I decided to invest in the Honeycomb platform rather than others (like iPad). I have no luxury of keep buying new devices, so I had to be careful to choose and decide.
My previous experience with Android was very good indeed (have a HTC Evo, my first Android phone). Before that, I always used Windows Mobile phone, which did everything I needed.
Well, my HTC Evo did everything and more, and that's why I had a big hope with the transformer/honeycomb. I chose the transformer among other honeycomb tablets for some obvious reasons: the keyboard dock that has the USB ports and the SD Card reader, and extra battery.
I also like photography and I needed to make sure I can use it to transfer pictures from my camera SD Card to an external HDD. I checked and found out the transformer does that perfectly, with the NTFS support right out of the box. That's incredible in my opinion.
I also imagined I would be able to connect to my work network and do anything I needed to via Citrix. And for personal communication, there is a Yahoo Messenger, Google Talk, and Skype.
After getting it, my expectation dropped and everyday is a learning day for me, as well as improvement day.
My first day with the transformer, I got all my emails setup (dual Exchange support! My Evo does not do that (I heard some custom ROM can do that), then I could not find Yahoo Messenger (dissapointed, well, there is a Yahoo messenger for my android phone, and its perfect!), Skype is a phone version and looks weird and many features missing (video call is the most important missing feature).
Day after day, until now, I still do the improvement jobs, and got many items not available previously. Got Yahoo Messenger from a good guy here in the forum, got a battery indicator wigdet from this forum also, and many bug fixes here and there.
For work purposes, I also drop my expectation. The connection from Citrix client in honeycomb takes very long (3-5 minutes) while from my Evo it takes much quicker. Not sure why, I contacted Citrix support about this. They said they both should perform the same as the core are the same, but they behaves differently.
Checking email only is not enough for me, if somebody sent an email, it comes with an issue to fix.
Yes, its hard to decide to let it go, or continue to keep it. I decide to continue to keep it, again, with hope, over time, things get better and better.
What do I gain from the transformer compared to my netbook?
Well, battery life, like many said here, is very exceptional. I got 2 full days. 1 day plus without the keyboard dock before. Really full day till night, with everything I do, from emails, browsing, youtube, reading, etc.
Instant on and ready. Wifi always on.
No spinning harddrive. No heat.
I was surprised! The device was not hot at all. Very different even compared to my Windows phone, connect to the wifi to a while and you can feel the heat. I'm not even talking about my netbook.
And I agree that many said here that its not a primary/replacement device. I still need my Windows machine to do most of the work.

It pains me to agree, but the above coments are true, as follower of android from day one. to anyone who has used an rooted/jailbroken ipad, honeycomb is way behind, to be honest google should be ashamed. as i type this on my transformer the lag is horendous. with the ipad you can nearly replace a netbook, full printing, ipgages and numbers are real tablet work tools. The TF is just about ok for web browsing, but just. As a media device it sucks. I tried to watch a streaming movie on movie stream, ok it plays but stutters and is awful. switched on my now ancient ipad with 256mb ram clicked on istream net and bang same movie looking almost 720p smooth as a nut. All the points brought against the ipad now seem to be a joke to me, even the no flash issue. Ok you have limited access by usb and SD card but there is some plus work arounds. I mentioned on a Archos site that i could stream any movie via air video from a crappy netbook hooked up to a 1TB HDD and if not in playable format they could be converted on the fly, this is over a local wireless network or over 3g anywhereon the ipadand they all took the piss, but its true. As an owner of a TF and Ipad, I have togive credit to ASUS, i love the concept. But as stated in an earlier post, I will be reaching for my HTC desire or IPAD more than the transformer. Lets hope Google step up, and support ASUS and the other manuacturers.
If honeycomb worked like the ipadit would blow apple out of the water. Anyway going to watch Tron on my year old Ipad.

i have to echo most of the above sentiment.
this is such a good idea, but it's just not ready...at least for me. i bought it for the reasons the op cited, and i'm let down. the lag kills the experience, even typing this on the keyboard is painful. honeycomb is great for usability imo, and the open ability to customize, but it is flat out slow. the browser is capable, but slowdolphin is buggy, adbloc is hard to come by (that works properly)
editing docs in polari is slow, screen rotation is slow, it's just everything i so slow. my dell mini 9 runs faster for the few times i need to doc edit, and the ipad run circles around it in terms of tablet function (but has several huge letdowns in its own right)
the one difference from some of the above posters is that i won't hang onto it and hope software gets smoothed out, by the time that happens we will have at leat one generation newer devices, maybe 2...so suffer with inferior experience to be outdated..not for me.
As I sai in another thread, i see this concept as the future...without doubt. my days of wanting to pay to beta test are over though.
Edit from my iPad. - see all those missing letters at the ends of words, that was typed with the dock..that's how bad lag is. I see no choice but to return it, I can't see google/ ASus releasing a realistic fix in the next couple weeks...but I hope I'm wrong.

Stability: maybe I'm lucky but I find Transformer to be VERY stable. Only FCs I have were when closing some game and maybe once in the browser.
Honest opinion: it's still only a toy. Don't expect it to be able to do anything better (or even on par with) than laptop or PC - but it is quite a good toy for many thins.
Right now I do most of my browsing on Transformer, for browsing it's in some things better than computers/laptops but in others it lacks greately (adblock, lack of extenstions in browser). It's also great for comics and PDF. And it's quite good for small games (Aporkalypse is great!).
I bought it mostly to write applications for it. In my personal opinion the OS is just great. The apps are mostly a mess with some pearls in it - like Newsr which just great or Dolphine Browser HD (or many others that you can find mentioned here and there on this forum). The problem is there is quite a huge lack of pearls in some departments. But it will change, I don't see what could stop it.

SCARED
I wish I had not read this thread. I´m very exited to collect my TF tomorrow. Looking forward to it for weeks. Planning on using it on the couch for browsing, playing with some apps, reading and responding to email, hanging around in a variety of forums etc.
Same as I do now with my HTC Desire and Asus T101MT netbook...so no really heavy stuff...
But as I read all these unsatisfied experiences I feel a bit uncertain about it. I mean I´m not an Applefanboy (ok, I do own an iPod) and I always feel a bit pity for all those people who buy an iPad just because it's an iPad...but now I'm in doubt...
Is this toy really that bad???

jpvdw said:
I wish I had not read this thread. I´m very exited to collect my TF tomorrow. Looking forward to it for weeks. Planning on using it on the couch for browsing, playing with some apps, reading and responding to email, hanging around in a variety of forums etc.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
For things like that it's great. Only problem is that on some forums (this one is an example) most browsers are slow (but usable and with keyboard dock it should be much more easy to write on forums thank using screen keyboard).
Is this toy really that bad???
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's not.
If you are not sure - go to some shop and play with it for a while. By "it" I mean - any tablet with HoneyComb.

Well after using the TF for about 3 weeks, I have to admit it is only a good toy. If you want productivity at school and home, stay away from the tablet form factor as a whole. HC is good, but the app support is bad, and its still a platform which is evolving. Other than watching YouTube videos, I don't use it much. The stock browser even on 3.1 is bad and slow. The browsing experience is way better on the laptop than this one.
Will try the Tab 10.1 too and see if it has a better experience. Otherwise, I don't feel the need for a tablet now, especially keeping in mind the current state of HC. Won't go for an iPad because I feel 4:3 aspect ratio is ridiculous.

Great toy for work and home. Wife loves it and my 7 year old enjoys it. Is hc beta? yes. Will it get better? yes

What's wrong with document editing in Polaris? Certainly it's a good deal better, in UI and features, than say QuickOffice or Doc2Go. I don't know if the rest of you are trying to manage complex multi-sheet spreadsheets or something, but for basic word processing it seems more or less adequate. Some people have weird and unrealistic expectations.

Be realistic as to what to expect
im new to the tablet and android world. When i bought the tablet, i wasnt expecting it to replace my laptop for heavy duty usage. Simply not there yet..
Allow me to give you and example of every day usage for me:
My tablet is always on.(sleep mode) i wake up, check my emails, the news, weather, all while im still in bed. I even check XDA forum to see the latest "oh no..im returning the transformer (sad Face)" thread...
when i get home, i do the same, but this time i sit in front of my tv, watch some nba finals, lookup some articles or "do it yourself" tutorials.. i get bored, open some tabs, tune my guitar (with the TF), and just jam out.. (reading tabs on portrait mode is beautiful)
Then my little girl gets to play on my "little computer" (barn stack, angry birds, read a long stories, etc.... which came in super handy on our recent road trip)
Before bed, i lookup some reviews on Netflix, add them to my instant queue, fire up the TV, check my Chase account (also app), more emails,
its convenient..
just last night i wanted to be nos and see how much the house on our street is selling for.. (zillow App) quick, with a gorgeous map. My xboxlive app notifies me of whose online.. just a lot of cool features
And im sure im not using the tablet to its full potential.. Ive tried the cloud jsut once (and monitored my laptop as it downloaded some "Stuff"//haha)

grainysand said:
What's wrong with document editing in Polaris? Certainly it's a good deal better, in UI and features, than say QuickOffice or Doc2Go. I don't know if the rest of you are trying to manage complex multi-sheet spreadsheets or something, but for basic word processing it seems more or less adequate. Some people have weird and unrealistic expectations.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Lag. Also, the touchpad in the dock is a mess....unless I missed a way to disable tap clicking natively. It really has to be turned off. Polaris as a program is fine, and I liked the easy integration with dropbox...but even editing a light 2 page resume was laggy. It's probably not polaris' fault..the platform is laggy.
@jpvdw I actually think the iPad would be better suited for what you want to do. I see a ton of shortcomings with the iOS devices, but most of them involve getting work done for me. Like uploading files through a web browser and wanting to use a real keyboard (though there are bt options).
I want to move to android...there's just nothing for me to move to that can equal what I get. If maybe the device was 15% faster I'd bear with it.

two things..
first, there has to be a memory leak in one of the stock apps, or os, or something. i can reboot and be working fine for about 10 mins... then it gets all wonky again.
i reset the browser to factory defauults, and it actually seems like it's a bit faster now. even with plugins enabled

People - please DON'T EXPECT tablet performing well as your laptop or desktop replacement....how could a Tegra 2 with integrated GPU comparing to your laptop/desktop power horse!!
Now please go and enjoy your own Transformer device while sitting on the couch, lying on the bed or even in your bathroom (make sure you have accidental damage insurance in case you drop into the water ...)
For me, this tablet makes me more connecting to digital world...well sort of because sometimes I just use my blackberry without tablet or desktop at all...
good luck/enjoy!
rcjpth

[Q] my question is, what can it NOT do?

I hear so much about the Transformers incredible capabilities, but I have yet to hear what it cant do? What exactly separates it from being just as good as a computer?
btw, picking up mine locally on saturday. 32 gig, no dock, 10 hours of use, $400.

It cannot fill the void of a lonely life, nor replicate the caress from a beautiful woman, or the sense of wonder when you hear your child speak for the first time.

Left my TF to make me a cup of coffee this morning whilst I took I shower, but when I came back it hadn't even made an attempt to do it.
Very poor Asus!
Regards,
Dave

straxusii said:
It cannot fill the void of a lonely life, nor replicate the caress from a beautiful woman, or the sense of wonder when you hear your child speak for the first time.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
+1 heheh

Quality. . @ fox
Sent from my GT-I9000 using XDA Premium App

In all seriousnes.. For me it cant edit pictures efficiently in a manner I do on my laptop.. And I wouldnt even dream of dropping a Full HD h.246 video right out of my DSLR on it.. Its not powerful enough to play them let alone even try and manipulate those movie files.. Some day I hope to have a TF like device that will.. Anouther thing is that Video playback from the Browser could be better.. It does well but still isnt anything compaired to my i7 laptop.
Another thing is that in the Browser the keyboard has some serious lag issues that will need to be fixed later on in firmware updates.
Hmm .. I am trying to think of what else.. OH big one..
NO NETFLIX!! I know its comming but this is kinda a real bummer at the moment.
Aside from that I absolutly love mine and I think its the greatest money I have ever spent.. I dont expect it to do the things that my i7 laptop does but then again that is not what I bought it for.. I dont need a monster truck of a computer to go get the groceries ever day ( aka Fackbook, email, daily Forum surfing, blogs, etc)
All in all I love it.. I can throw my DSLR SD card in the Dock and view all my pics while charging my Droid X and/or OG Droid and using my wireless mouse plugged into the other USB port..
Sent from my Transformer TF101 using Tapatalk

It can't do the most simplest things such as open a CBR file in file manager.

stcardinal said:
It can't do the most simplest things such as open a CBR file in file manager.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
thats nothing to do with the Asus that'd be a android/filemanager thing. If your CBR reading app correctly associates itself with .cbr files then a filemanager would open it.

change .cbr to .rar and most file managers will open the file, or get ACV to read your .cbr files.
back to OP:
The transformer cannot play minecraft (yet).
It cannot edit photos with photoshop.
It cannot play back live tv from a usb tv tuner.
Otherwise I have found a way to do virtually anything that I need it to do.

It can't do anything itself without you.

makec3rt said:
It can't do anything itself without you.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
yeah , not quiet as funny since those amusing comments were at the beginning of this thread.

It can't make folders on the desktop.

Can't make usb->serial to work No damn serial port apps yet.

For the life of me I cannot get it to do my laundry, go to work for me, train my cat, CLEAN ITS LITTER, or take out the garbage for me.
and sadly having a Transformer has done NOTHING for my sex life.

ewingt22 said:
I hear so much about the Transformers incredible capabilities, but I have yet to hear what it cant do? What exactly separates it from being just as good as a computer?
btw, picking up mine locally on saturday. 32 gig, no dock, 10 hours of use, $400.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
3rd party. No full MS Office suite, cant run my copy of Photoshop CS, etc. With a dual core 1ghz processor it will be capable of running lighter versions of some very powerful desktop apps.
Also, it doesnt make my breakfast for me, this is about the last straw and I might have to return it because people say the ipad makes breakfast.
Digiguest said:
and sadly having a Transformer has done NOTHING for my sex life.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yours cant connect to youporn?

Can't give me superpowers...yet...

I have spent most of the day working on mine doing my reports, what it can't properly do is replicate the productivity apps on your PC, like Word & Excel. The Android equivalents do a fair job of allowing you to see & edit most docs, but using tables & more advanced formatting in a WP doc & trying to edit / create charts is beyond the apps at the moment. I doubt MS will bring out an Android Office, so we have to make do with what's there.
Printing is an issue, I can print, but not always the documents I want to & they don't always come out right.
I watch movies & content from Flash sites & spend a lot of time on email & websites like this, all are good (agree that the current browser typing lag must be addressed urgently).
It doesn't have a decent BBC iPlayer app or Sky Mobile app - UK users need to be vocal about BBC & Sky stepping up support for Android tablets.
If you can settle for the fact that the TF is not a PC & wasn't designed to be you will be happy.

ewingt22 said:
I hear so much about the Transformers incredible capabilities, but I have yet to hear what it cant do? What exactly separates it from being just as good as a computer?
btw, picking up mine locally on saturday. 32 gig, no dock, 10 hours of use, $400.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
NO Netflix!!! With such a beautiful ips screen, Netflix needs to hurry up and optimize their app for HC without all of the security issues!!! Other than that, it does the things I need it to do (browsing, gaming, twittering, facebooking, etc.)
KB does lag and sometimes it takes to switch app between apps!!!

I use PlayOn for Netflix and Hulu. It's not perfect, but good enough in a pinch. It's also not free, but it also allows Hulu which, even if there were an official client, would require Hulu+ at $7.99/month. So, technically speaking Netflix doesn't need to be on the list.
For me, the biggest thing the TF doesn't do, as mentioned, is allow for editing complex documents. I can use it for my fiction writing and blogging (although the Wordpress interface doesn't work sell, so I still need to finish larger blog posts on a PC some of the time), but not for most of my day job work, which requires the ability to create Word docs with headers and footers, tables, embedded Excel spreadsheets, etc. Oh, and PowerPoint support is pretty sketchy across the board, although of the options I've tried so far the included Polaris Office actually does best with Photoshop. And, of course, there's no robust Photoshop and InDesign support, and so I can't do that kind of work on it.
I think the TF makes a great adjunct device to a good desktop and/or notebook. If I were to go on a trip away from my desktop for a week or so, I'd still take my HP Envy notebook with me. On the typical day or overnight trip, however, I just take the TF.
Sent from my Transformer TF101 using Tapatalk

Doesn't do Hulu (as previously mentioned) and it really doesn't like open office files. And if a file transfer that had huge numbers of small individual files fails, you'll have a fun time having to individually delete sub folders (or I did anyways). But I just got mine, so I haven't really found out what it can do, let alone what it can't (aside from all the humorous stuff already covered).
--Jak

New Impression

I was beginning to get the Transformer itch earlier this week. I kept thinking about how tired I am of reading my news sites (slashdot) on an iTouch and my ever building animosity towards Apple doesn’t help either. Then I started to consider how the dock could really make this thing exactly what I need for at the motocross track. I’ll be able to log and calculate all sorts of information on my bike’s performance like I would on a netbook and also when I am kicking back in the pits I can watch movies or do various other things. Sixteen hours of battery sweetness pretty much sealed the deal. Yesterday I overnighted the Transformer and now I have about 3 hours on the thing. Since I have no tablet, android, or any smartphone experience: here are my unbiased and uneducated thoughts.
I guess it’d be best to go over the common defects that are everywhere. There is a small amount of light bleed on the bottom of the screen. It is not significant, but it is noticeable on dark screens if you look for it. The speaker imbalance is not present on this tablet. No charging issues to note, yet. Bezel width is very comfortable. It isn't small by many standards but its perfect for my grip, non interrupting of viewable screen space. I have zero issue with the plastic body. It isn't aluminum, granted, but the quality feels plenty sturdy and it bothers me none.
Keeping in mind I only have 3 hours on the Transformer so far, here are some things I really like about the Transformer. The screen image is very crisp. The IPS panel does not disappoint. The Android interface is very sleek, and very smooth, I like it a lot. The built-in GPS and ever advancing Google Maps combo is great and I know it’s going to be extremely useful for me this summer. The background shift while you scroll different screens is pretty slick, I thought. The live backgrounds are cool, I checked out a few galaxy imitating live wallpapers off the market. Touch screen responsiveness is fantastic. Web pages are rendered very crisply and are easy on the eyes even during extended paragraph read-through’s.
And for some things I’m not quite digging: Speaker quality is a definite low. In low lighting the camera pictures are not very good, and the color reproduction is a bit low-end (haven’t tried in good lighting yet). No Netflix client. Application processes seem to build up with no obvious way to end them. All the talk about trojans hitting the Android Market has me fairly reluctant on freely trying apps and games. There is plenty of room for improvement in Polaris Office and I strongly hope that comes.
With everything said so far, it is truly exceeding my expectations. It’s a breeze to work with and I believe it’s going to be fantastic for what I need it for and more. I’m absolutely sure I’m going to start using it for work as well.
I hope this quick new comer’s write up is useful to other’s that are eyeing this gem, just as I was a few days ago. I plan to get my mandatory 10 xda posts in over the next week or so, then you’ll mostly see me in the developer’s section as I begin my own rooted work. See you on the other side
Brandon

brandon... said:
I was beginning to get the Transformer itch earlier this week. I kept thinking about how tired I am of reading my news sites (slashdot) on an iTouch and my ever building animosity towards Apple doesn’t help either. Then I started to consider how the dock could really make this thing exactly what I need for at the motocross track. I’ll be able to log and calculate all sorts of information on my bike’s performance like I would on a netbook and also when I am kicking back in the pits I can watch movies or do various other things. Sixteen hours of battery sweetness pretty much sealed the deal. Yesterday I overnighted the Transformer and now I have about 3 hours on the thing. Since I have no tablet, android, or any smartphone experience: here are my unbiased and uneducated thoughts.
I guess it’d be best to go over the common defects that are everywhere. There is a small amount of light bleed on the bottom of the screen. It is not significant, but it is noticeable on dark screens if you look for it. The speaker imbalance is not present on this tablet. No charging issues to note, yet.
Keeping in mind I only have 3 hours on the Transformer so far, here are some things I really like about the Transformer. The screen image is very crisp. The IPS panel does not disappoint. The Android interface is very sleek, and very smooth, I like it a lot. The built-in GPS and ever advancing Google Maps combo is great and I know it’s going to be extremely useful for me this summer. The background shift while you scroll different screens is pretty slick, I thought. The live backgrounds are cool, I checked out a few galaxy imitating live wallpapers off the market. Touch screen responsiveness is fantastic. Web pages are rendered very crisply and are easy on the eyes even during extended paragraph read-through’s.
And for some things I’m not quite digging: Speaker quality is a definite low. In low lighting the camera pictures are not very good, and the color reproduction is a bit low-end (haven’t tried in good lighting yet). No Netflix client. Application processes seem to build up with no obvious way to end them. All the talk about trojans hitting the Android Market has me fairly reluctant on freely trying apps and games. There is plenty of room for improvement in Polaris Office and I strongly hope that comes.
With everything said so far, it is truly exceeding my expectations. It’s a breeze to work with and I believe it’s going to be fantastic for what I need it for and more. I’m absolutely sure I’m going to start using it for work as well.
I hope this quick new comer’s write up is useful to other’s that are eyeing this gem, just as I was a few days ago. I plan to get my mandatory 10 xda posts in over the next week or so, then you’ll mostly see me in the developer’s section as I begin my own rooted work. See you on the other side
Brandon
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
About your issues with the processes, get a task killer for it as there isn't an in built task manager into HC
Look at the reviews or get an antivirus for free apps if you're scared
(I use lookout mobile as it has an inbuilt scanner and locator if you loose the tab)
Sent from my MB860 using XDA App

brandon... said:
I was beginning to get the Transformer itch earlier this week. I kept thinking about how tired I am of reading my news sites (slashdot) on an iTouch and my ever building animosity towards Apple doesn’t help either. Then I started to consider how the dock could really make this thing exactly what I need for at the motocross track. I’ll be able to log and calculate all sorts of information on my bike’s performance like I would on a netbook and also when I am kicking back in the pits I can watch movies or do various other things. Sixteen hours of battery sweetness pretty much sealed the deal. Yesterday I overnighted the Transformer and now I have about 3 hours on the thing. Since I have no tablet, android, or any smartphone experience: here are my unbiased and uneducated thoughts.
I guess it’d be best to go over the common defects that are everywhere. There is a small amount of light bleed on the bottom of the screen. It is not significant, but it is noticeable on dark screens if you look for it. The speaker imbalance is not present on this tablet. No charging issues to note, yet.
Keeping in mind I only have 3 hours on the Transformer so far, here are some things I really like about the Transformer. The screen image is very crisp. The IPS panel does not disappoint. The Android interface is very sleek, and very smooth, I like it a lot. The built-in GPS and ever advancing Google Maps combo is great and I know it’s going to be extremely useful for me this summer. The background shift while you scroll different screens is pretty slick, I thought. The live backgrounds are cool, I checked out a few galaxy imitating live wallpapers off the market. Touch screen responsiveness is fantastic. Web pages are rendered very crisply and are easy on the eyes even during extended paragraph read-through’s.
And for some things I’m not quite digging: Speaker quality is a definite low. In low lighting the camera pictures are not very good, and the color reproduction is a bit low-end (haven’t tried in good lighting yet). No Netflix client. Application processes seem to build up with no obvious way to end them. All the talk about trojans hitting the Android Market has me fairly reluctant on freely trying apps and games. There is plenty of room for improvement in Polaris Office and I strongly hope that comes.
With everything said so far, it is truly exceeding my expectations. It’s a breeze to work with and I believe it’s going to be fantastic for what I need it for and more. I’m absolutely sure I’m going to start using it for work as well.
I hope this quick new comer’s write up is useful to other’s that are eyeing this gem, just as I was a few days ago. I plan to get my mandatory 10 xda posts in over the next week or so, then you’ll mostly see me in the developer’s section as I begin my own rooted work. See you on the other side
Brandon
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's definitely a sweet device. My Nook Color is in it's box awaiting it's new owner
Check out splashtop..awesome. I also like the DLNA feature. I can sit outside and connect to my Seagate network drive and watch a movie(s) I've ripped over the past year. After a long day at work, I like to wind down with some Fruit Ninja baby!

MurfsHTC said:
It's definitely a sweet device. My Nook Color is in it's box awaiting it's new owner
Check out splashtop..awesome. I also like the DLNA feature. I can sit outside and connect to my Seagate network drive and watch a movie(s) I've ripped over the past year. After a long day at work, I like to wind down with some Fruit Ninja baby!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Splashtop is sweet, thanks for the recommendation! I am interested in streaming blurays from my home server to the tablet probably downscaling a bit, there any popular methods of doing this yet? Maybe play on has something,I'll look into that

MurfsHTC said:
I can sit outside and connect to my Seagate network drive and watch a movie(s) I've ripped over the past year. After a long day at work, I like to wind down with some Fruit Ninja baby!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi,
So, are you playing the network drive movies via a desktop, and using the remote desktop to see the video? Or are you streaming the video files directly to your tablet? Are the video files pre-processed for a scaled down resolution?
I'm wondering because the stock video app and one I downloaded (mobo) doesn't seem to support streaming. I have ES Navigator to navigate to a windows SMB share. I can view files on the windows share, but when I try to open a video file, the tablet saids it can't stream - must download the entire file before it'll play.
Sorry to hijack the thread - but MurfsHTC commented on exactly what I wanted to be able to do.
Thanks.

coachclass said:
Hi,
So, are you playing the network drive movies via a desktop, and using the remote desktop to see the video? Or are you streaming the video files directly to your tablet? Are the video files pre-processed for a scaled down resolution?
I'm wondering because the stock video app and one I downloaded (mobo) doesn't seem to support streaming. I have ES Navigator to navigate to a windows SMB share. I can view files on the windows share, but when I try to open a video file, the tablet saids it can't stream - must download the entire file before it'll play.
Sorry to hijack the thread - but MurfsHTC commented on exactly what I wanted to be able to do.
nks.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
basically I rip my dvds using ripit4me, dvd shrink & dvd decrypter. From there i combine the .vob files into one .vob and then convert them. Initially, I was using Divx and streaming thru the xbox 360. I also experimented with Sothink Converter and Handbrake. Sothink has many conversion options but I prefer handbrake. For some reason the Transformer will not load a .divx , .mp4 Itunes movie(.m4v) or .wmv file thru MyNet. it'll do .mp4 (via Handbrake). In a nutshell, I open MyNet, click on the seagate folder and it streams right to the Transformer. I did try mobo and haven't had much luck either. I use the Seagate GoFlex Net 1TB. Plug into your router, load the software and setup your user account. you can also access the drive thru a web browser. Google Chrome doesn't seem to work. Hope I didn't confuse or rattle on.

Well progress is being made on VLC for Android. That will certainly help.

droid_does said:
About your issues with the processes, get a task killer for it as there isn't an in built task manager into HC
Look at the reviews or get an antivirus for free apps if you're scared
(I use lookout mobile as it has an inbuilt scanner and locator if you loose the tab)
Sent from my MB860 using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There is absolutely no need to get a task killer app. Let the OS manage that for you. You could even be slowing down your TF by closing apps. There are posts here (In the ultimate TF guide stickied) that detail why.
One of the best uses so far has been a rather reasonable music playback device, if you have quality headphones for it.
Enjoy the the TF Android adventure, it only gets better. Mine is three weeks old, and I have already taken the plunge and rooted, custom Rom, and overclocked mine.
Sent from my Transformer TF101 using Tapatalk

Garf123 said:
There is absolutely no need to get a task killer app. Let the OS manage that for you. You could even be slowing down your TF by closing apps. There are posts here (In the ultimate TF guide stickied) that detail why.
One of the best uses so far has been a rather reasonable music playback device, if you have quality headphones for it.
Enjoy the the TF Android adventure, it only gets better. Mine is three weeks old, and I have already taken the plunge and rooted, custom Rom, and overclocked mine.
Sent from my Transformer TF101 using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
only for the transformer I've heard
I dont' use task killers at all, but for HC I've read that you could.....just putting it out there

Brandon,
Glad to hear you're enjoying your Transformer. I know I am.
On the volume issue, there's an app: volume+ $1.44 at Amazon that made all the difference in the world after I did the 3.1 update, when it became lower.
About a week or so ago there was a thread on it, if you want to search for volume+. Seems a lot of people were pleased with it. I know I was, now I can't turn my volume all the way up.
Have fun!

sunsetbay said:
Brandon,
Glad to hear you're enjoying your Transformer. I know I am.
On the volume issue, there's an app: volume+ $1.44 at Amazon that made all the difference in the world after I did the 3.1 update, when it became lower.
About a week or so ago there was a thread on it, if you want to search for volume+. Seems a lot of people were pleased with it. I know I was, now I can't turn my volume all the way up.
Have fun!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for the looking out but I am in fact having no volume issues
Also i edited the op with two more items I wanted to cover but forgot at the time: bezel width and plastic body. Word to big bird

MurfsHTC said:
It's definitely a sweet device. My Nook Color is in it's box awaiting it's new owner
Check out splashtop..awesome. I also like the DLNA feature. I can sit outside and connect to my Seagate network drive and watch a movie(s) I've ripped over the past year. After a long day at work, I like to wind down with some Fruit Ninja baby!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I was going to sell my Nook Color but decided to keep it as I enjoy watching Netflix on it, there's no working Netflix app yet for the TF.

Well a few too many beers tonight at baseball practice, came home and neglected a few steps during my first venture into rooting, ha! Didn't take but 10 mins to fix, but I am now rooted and on the prime rom. Will be checking it out for the next few hours
@Geekbabe: I think I read PlayOn supports Netflix to Android now. Granted you need to run the PlayOn server on a PC on your network, but it's something.
EDIT: Now running Prime on top of the netformer kernel. So fun.

[Q] What do you think of the Transformer?

So I was just wondering what is the overall feeling about this tablet? I'm thinking about getting it and i was just wondering if everyone likes it or if its 50/50 or what?

I've owned the Galaxy Tab 10.1, Acer Iconia, Motorola Xoom, and the Transformer. I can say that the Transformer is the best tablet for the money on the market. It's not as sexy as the Galaxy, but it's more functional, far more flexible, and a hell of a lot cheaper.

Always hard to get objective views on a product specific forum.
I'm in a love/hate relationship with it at the moment. I love the form factor and the functionality. I hate the lack of tablet optimized apps/games and the awful build quality.
To me, it feels like a beta product. This isn't a bad thing per-se as I like to tinker.

I like mine a lot, and its definatley the best bang for your buck Honeycomb tablet out there right now. Although I do wish it had the form factor / looks of the Galaxy 10.1, the HDMI out and Micro SD card slot are oh so nice to have, especially for $100 less
The build quality and lightbleed issues are the only downsides to the tablet in my opinion. I got one with a few creaks in the back and some light bleed, but I just look past it. Its not enough for me to sell or go through ASUS to replace it. Still works great for me. Also, not all of the tablets have this, and Im hoping the newer builds have been fixed.
If your thinking about getting one, I would definatley consider it. Great tablet and a great price right now.
Other big plus is that Asus is really quick at getting the Honeycomb updates out. We've got Honeycomb 3.2 already which is great.

rilot said:
Always hard to get objective views on a product specific forum.
I'm in a love/hate relationship with it at the moment. I love the form factor and the functionality. I hate the lack of tablet optimized apps/games and the awful build quality.
To me, it feels like a beta product. This isn't a bad thing per-se as I like to tinker.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I definitely feel like im a beta tester, but I dont really consider it a bad thing. I enjoy using new equipment and working out kinks. Just wish i didnt have to pay so much for it . That being said, a lot of the kinks are worked out now from my experience.
Keyboard lag is gone. Havnt had a sleep of death since the first update. Everythings running a lot smoother with the last firmware update.
Its replaced my laptop in class more or less completely. I use evernote and ezpdf to take notes and its wonderful.

do you use any of the attachments?

I got a Transformer and didn't regret, that I bought it. I got it without dock, because I only wanted a nice tablet ... for everything else I have an i7 notebook with 6 GB RAM.
If I can recommend it? Maybe ... depends on what you want to do with it.
Regarding quality control ... it's the fortune of the early adopter nowadays to be a beta tester. Example: I also got me a Galaxy S2 and though I'm very happy with it, the S2 forum here at XDA is full of complaints about QC.

jnad32 said:
do you use any of the attachments?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The keyboard is the big attachment and its really the selling point of the tablet. If you anticipate ever using it then the TF is the way to go, if you dont anticipate ever using it then you could be happy with the Samsung, albeit with no SD card and costing a lot more.
The TF has a great screen, its flexible and its cheap. Its not built as well as an ipad (or the other android tablets) but I havent had any functional issues with its built, its not like its breaking on me. Its just you can feel the difference in the "tightness" between the two.
Being said I ended up buying a second for the girlfriend, tired of her constantly using mine.

I got mine in the first batch to come out- from TD. I have had no real issues accept a tiny light bleed- build quality is great for mine. no creaking etc.
It has done everything i ask of it and thrown at it. I use mine for about 70% work related with notes at meeting, signatures on contracts, email, polaris app etc. Even skype calling..
Constantly listening to music watching movies etc. Never had any issues with Battery usage.
I think it has gotten better with each update. Yes little bugs here and there after an update ut usually fixed or have work around within 24 hours. That stuff doesnt bother me.
I never got the keyboard because i felt it was an option that i would never really use so i invested in a nice case- ( PDAIR ) I love the concept of the keyboard but just wasn;t going to use itand did no need the extra bulk.
For me never needed to root it yet (maybe down the road ) but for now it is great as stock.
Last thing i will say is there have been alot of new choices out since i have bought it... yes they might have had a thing or 2 that the TF did not have but i never have second guessed my choice.
Good luck.

Well you get 16hrs of battery life with the dock. No other tablet has this kind of a feature at this price point.
The screen quality and responsiveness is in the top quartile of tablets released so far.
I am pretty happy with my purchase. 10x better build quality than the Archos 101 I purchased earlier!

I absolutely love my TF, probably best 399$ I have ever spent on gadget, mine also comes with some light bleed, other than that, build quality is great. Have 2 Ipad2 in the house and they both have worst light bleed.
Would I suggest this tablet to a friend over other Android tablet? Yes, best tablet in the market IMO.
Over an Ipad2? Probably not unless someone familiar with Android and a geek just like me...

tonyz3 said:
I got mine in the first batch to come out- from TD. I have had no real issues accept a tiny light bleed- build quality is great for mine. no creaking etc.
It has done everything i ask of it and thrown at it. I use mine for about 70% work related with notes at meeting, signatures on contracts, email, polaris app etc. Even skype calling..
Constantly listening to music watching movies etc. Never had any issues with Battery usage.
I think it has gotten better with each update. Yes little bugs here and there after an update ut usually fixed or have work around within 24 hours. That stuff doesnt bother me.
I never got the keyboard because i felt it was an option that i would never really use so i invested in a nice case- ( PDAIR ) I love the concept of the keyboard but just wasn;t going to use itand did no need the extra bulk.
For me never needed to root it yet (maybe down the road ) but for now it is great as stock.
Last thing i will say is there have been alot of new choices out since i have bought it... yes they might have had a thing or 2 that the TF did not have but i never have second guessed my choice.
Good luck.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So my question to you is my boss has an ipad that we use for our invoices and paper work to get people to sign off on pdf files and what not. Does android have an app that lets you do that? And overall how good is it for work?

I got my U.S. Transformer a few weeks ago, and I enjoy using it very much:
With my PC, most of the time is spent going on the Web, so on the Transformer I just set up bookmarks for my most frequently visited sites in both the stock browser and the Dolphin for Pad (downloaded from the Market) browser and that takes care of my usual browsing needs. Email is now handled through the stock Gmail app, so again most of that can be done on the Transformer side.
For music, I've started using Google Music to upload my stuff, so I can just stream down to my Transformer through WiFi. For videos, I had already encoded a lot of stuff to MP4 format using Handbrake to play on my phone. But with ES File Explorer installed on my Transformer, I can now keep those MP4 files on my networked server and then stream them to the stock video player. This all works great and takes up no local storage.
Games that I had on my smartphone are all installed onto the Transformer and work fine. I've also found that classic game console emulators work quite well on the Transformer.
If I'm desperate to watch Hulu or Netflix (without any hacked or rooted methods), the MyCloud > My Desktop > SplashTop method works acceptably well.
Painting with SketchBook Pro is quite fun with this fantastic paid app, and I'm looking into various do-it-yourself stylus methods to enhance the experience.
I haven't had the need yet to use Polaris Office yet, but after reading user reviews, it looks to be a very capable Office app when compared with other non-free competitors, and I actually appreciate Asus for giving this for us.
The build quality, in my opinion, is quite nice. I don't have any LCD light bleed issues. The LCD itself is great with fantastic viewing angles. The built-in speakers are surprisingly loud. The touch screen is very responsive. And the textured plastic back panel keeps the whole unit lighter and gives it a nice feel.
The only negatives I have are:
Camera - absolutely terrible, especially when using indoor lighting. But I already know that the video and photo taking experience on almost all tablets is not good anyway, so I never expected much. I almost never use the stock camera app. I have Vignette installed on my Transformer for the heck of it, but this rarely gets used either. I leave picture taking to my digital camera and my smartphone.
Browser - for some sites, I get slowdowns with both the stock browser and Dolphin for Pad. With Android 3.1, I experienced quite a bit of force closings with the stock browser. It's improved with 3.2, but it still happens. I find it hard to believe that Google makes such a good browser as Chrome but has such a mediocre one for Honeycomb.
Linux support - the only thing I ask for is the simplicity of plugging my Transformer into my Linux PC and have access to its SD and MicroSD cards. But I have to jump through the hoop of running a few lines in Terminal just to get those drives mounted and unmounted. It's a pain, and I wish it was as easy as the Windows experience.
Since using my Transformer more and more, my smartphone has pretty much been relegated back to being just a phone which is fine. This morning I began charging my Sony Ericsson XPERIA X10 once it dropped to 1% battery power...and it had been running on that one full charge for 174-hours-33-minutes! I'll still use the phone for navigation and portable music after I get over the honeymoon period with the Transformer, but right now using my smart phone just isn't the same any more.
So since I've gotten the Transformer, I've made a conscious effort to reduce using my PC and my smartphone, and it's worked out great as a personal computing device. For a business environment, there might not be enough apps to support various needs just yet, but it'll get there, I'm sure. The Transformer is a very good bang-for-the-buck kind of device, and I have no regrets about having it.

Enjoy my tablet a great deal. I actually use it more than i thought i would. Im constantly looking for new apps that will make this into my swiss army knife.
I use splashtop a lot, and now added a Wake on Lan app which now has got me the bright idea to go out and purchase a home server...lol
build quality is definitely not the greatest. Personally, i dont think it compares to the newer tablets coming out. (build)
Dont own the keyboard. Im waiting for a good deal down the road when it drop to around $100. by then, i figure, ill give the TF to my wife (with a keyboard), and ill jump on to the newest tablet. (maybe TF2)
Im a first time android/tablet buyer and user, so i came with no expectations..
Ill know what to look for in my next purchase though.
(so, i guess im a beta tester)

jnad32 said:
So my question to you is my boss has an ipad that we use for our invoices and paper work to get people to sign off on pdf files and what not. Does android have an app that lets you do that? And overall how good is it for work?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There are applications that let you fill out and/or sign PDF files. Adobe also has an app that converts things to PDF. Ive used my TF to fill out forms and sign them multiple times.

jnad32 said:
So my question to you is my boss has an ipad that we use for our invoices and paper work to get people to sign off on pdf files and what not. Does android have an app that lets you do that? And overall how good is it for work?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There are alot of choices for this. I use Repligo PDF and love it.After i sign or client signs,on the TF I email it and looks just as clear as original.
https://market.android.com/details?id=com.cerience.reader.app&feature=search_result
worth the $4.99 investment,

Love mine, I'm confident I made the right choice. £400 for a tablet-only device is not a wise spend. £400 for a tablet AND a netbook IS thou...
Aside from the keyboard drain (which is being fixed under RMA as we speak), I have no issues whatsoever with my device, and overjoyed with it.

jnad32 said:
So my question to you is my boss has an ipad that we use for our invoices and paper work to get people to sign off on pdf files and what not. Does android have an app that lets you do that? And overall how good is it for work?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'd be very surprised if there is any app that iPad can do, that Android can't, as because of Android's open and less restrictive nature, you won't find missing apps, because "Apple don't like it, or Apple can't make money from it, or it cuts into Apple's buisness".

My TF is all good I have no problems with my tablet, maybe one of the lucky ones or just the fact that those few who have bad units choose to come to forums like this to seek advice and let everyone know how bad their unit is. With the dock it is an amazing bit of kit, I have tried the xoom, Acer and the Gtab, and unless you want form over function the TF is the best of the current bunch. As all the present android tablets running honeycomb are running the same os and internal spec. My own preference would be ports and functionality, screen, speed of updates and build quality. For me the TF ticks all the boxes.
Xoom, highintial price, lack of support and working ports, poor screen
Gtab, lack of ports, slow updates from Samsung.
I like the design of the TF especially when combined with the dock, equal to any high end net book, Asus have done a great job with amazing fore sight, it is original only the Gtab is thinner and that is purely because it is an I pad clone.
I would think the units with defects are no different to apple I pad or even the Gtab on a percentage basis, plenty of apple units go back to their stores.
With regards to being beta testers, we are with regards android for tablets, like we were back in the 90,s with win 3.11. My recommendation to anyone wanting a android tablet with the best all-round functionality at the best price, get the TF.

Had my TF about two weeks now, and am yet to have any issues with it. I love peoples reactions when I undock the screen though, it's brilliant.

Motorola Xoom and tablets in general

Hey guys, I had a nook color but after I got bored of all the experimenting with different roms, I found no actual use to it and sold it.
Prices of the Xoom have been dropping dramtically here and the gadget addict in me just cannot resist it much. I know that answers here are going to be biased but would you recommend the Xoom? Also, what do you use your Xoom/tablets for so I know what to do with it instead of getting bored of it like I did with the nook color.
Thanks

I use it for a browser, really. The dual core makes the browser actually somewhat effective. Mainly that and games. Nothing a PC can't do better.

If I were you, I'll wait for the quad-cores and Ice Cream Sandwich to come out first and see how the tablet scene is affected.
Anyway, I use my Xoom for surfing the net, watching youtube vids, reading my ebooks and my comics. Oh and the occasional gaming of course.

surfing the net, watching movies/youtube, music and playing around with apps

SuicideMyk said:
surfing the net, watching movies/youtube, music and playing around with apps
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
All of the above and productivity too. I use it whenever I'm away from the office instead of a laptop and it works brilliantly. The BT keyboard and occasionally my BT mouse, Office Suite Pro and I'm set.
I even use it at work, where I get a really good 4G wimax signal on my Clear mifi, because our servers are sometimes so sluggish, I can browse the web a heck of a lot faster on the Xoom.

The Xoom has great hardware and computing speed which, when exploited properly using the right apps in combination with a home network, can actually afford its user nearly the productivity abilty of a laptop.
Before I get flamed, let me explain...
First you need to set your home desktop up as if it were a data base. Not a server so much, but there are great apps that can bring your home desktop right to your tablet. I will use examples, but do the research for these apps and see if alternatives might be better for you. (Most good productivity apps are paid apps, and not cheap, so when someone has shelled out for them, they naturally tend to stick with them even if competition has surpassed the ones they use. Just bear that in mind.)
Here's an example; I use "Phone My PC" to access my computer from anywhere. It's great. I mean really KEWL! BUT!- It won't download a file to your Xoom. So I use "Dropbox" for that. Now I not only have access to the files on my home PC, but I have a means to upload them to my tablet.
Simple enough.
I bought "Documents To Go" about 18 months ago, thinking they would continue to improve. They didn't. But there are a few other Microsoft editor Suite apps (Polaris Office is great, IMO, and ironically, it's free.).
Now I can actually edit the documents I pull from my home computer.
It's tedious compared to a laptop, make no mistake about it! Go here, do that, load this, etc, etc, whereas with your laptop everything is already right there, including the fast editor.
If you are actually looking for the versatility of a tablet regarding productivity, you simply can't do it without a keyboard.
I'm on my Moto BT keyboard now. The Xoom is "mouse ready", so the keyboard along with a nice compact Bluetooth mouse will make your tasks a lot easier.
Let's seriously take into consideration application...
I've been very proud to have accomplished tasks for work regarding productivity. I wrote that just as I meant it; "accomplished". It was an accomplishment, but I know that the next Excel spreadsheet I make from scratch on my Xoom will go faster. I also know that I will need to load that to a Windows machine to finish it the way I need it because all 4 of the Office apps I have are very much incomplete.
If a student asks if a Xoom can replace his/her laptop, I say "NO!" Networked like I say, you can accomplish anything that you could do on a laptop, but it will take at least twice as long, and that's after you get used to learning how to deal with it's limitations.
The apps are fantastic, though. I bought "printer Share" last year, and can print right to my home printer (and others) from anywhere in the world. I didn't have that on my laptop; wifi on the same network, sure. But now there are even free apps that will allow this in a limited capacity.
Anyway, that's my schpiel. Right now I put the Xoom at 30% productivity and 70% media, but the productivity capability is growing all the time.

thanks for your replies guys. still not convinced I need a tablet but they are selling really cheap here, like 450 bucks for the 32gb wifi model so i'll see how it goes

Well I think a tablet is a luxury item. I bought it because I do not own any laptop or netbook, just my trusty desktop PC so it made my decision to get a tablet that much easier. If you have a laptop, you might think twice on dropping money on a tablet.
Something to think about.

I use mine for amusing the kids, a bit of web, youtube and kindle.

dpakrr said:
thanks for your replies guys. still not convinced I need a tablet but they are selling really cheap here, like 450 bucks for the 32gb wifi model so i'll see how it goes
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Try like $350 today on WOOT.com