Pros: Before getting into the details of the review, I wanted to state the Transformer T100 is by no means a perfect device, but it is a welcome and much-needed entry into a sub-$500 market devoid of any full Windows 8 x86 devices, filled with limited toy devices based on Android, iOS and Windows 8 RT (ARM). It does so much right and includes a ton of hardware and features, all for the amazing price tag of $399. Please see Other Thoughts section for more info on where this can go. Here are some of the many Pros of this device compared to the competition. -Full Windows 8 x86 (Intel). The Atom Z3740 is a 64-bit SoC but does not support Windows x64 yet; the included version is 32-bit Windows 8.1 Home. This means this tablet can run ALL of your native Windows legacy apps and programs, unlike Windows RT which is very limited in what it supports. -Full Microsoft Enterprise and Office support. For Enterprise users this means full Active Directory support for seamless integration as well as Outlook and Microsoft Exchange functionality. For students and professionals, this means perfect support for documents, PowerPoint slides, OneNote. -Keyboard included! High-quality Chiclet style keyboard is included. The layout is a bit small but the feel is very good. Button press feels good with solid travel distance and it also includes a touchpad with click buttons. Some tablets will charge you $100+ for a keyboard dock or touchpad. The dock keyboard is seamlessly integrated and is enabled instantly, no lag, no fuss to go from laptop to tablet mode and back. -Expandability and connectivity options – This device includes microSD card slot and microHDMI output on the tablet portion as well as a full-size USB 3.0 port for external storage or device connections. -Snappy processor – The Bay Trail Atom Z3740 is not fast compared to your desktop or even Ultrabook or MacBook options out there, but it feels just as fast as Android, iOS and WinRT devices out there. Most impressive to me is this tablet is able to stream 1080p CableCARD premium content from my Silicon Dust HD HomeRun Prime in 1080p to my TV. I have a laptop with a Core 2 Duo and an older 8400GS that has trouble with this bitstream and this tablet, which is about 1/4th the size handles it with ease! -Amazing Battery Life, Stays cool – As advertised, this thing will last all day while being used for ~10 hours. If you use it less than that, you may go days between charges. It doesn’t get hot at all, no fans, no moving parts, no noise. Just amazing! -Great screen! – Ignore the complaints about low-resolution, yes you can see some pixilation on large text and images may seem a bit blurrier due to fewer pixels, but overall this is an impressive IPS display with vivid, vibrant colors. It is easy to read 1 pixel wide text and webpages and in Metro mode, all of the text in each app looks great. High Build Quality – It is mostly plastic, but it does not feel cheap but it will at

Cons: As I stated earlier, the device is not perfect, there are many Cons but none are major enough to dock eggs, however, they are certainly things Asus can improve upon for future versions of this excellent 2-in-1. -The included AC adapter does not provide enough power to power the unit AND charge it simultaneously. The wall wart provides ~10W of power while charging and ~10W while in use measured using a Kill-A-Watt meter, so that tells me it only provides 10W but the tablet uses 10W while in use, meaning no charge while in use. If you connect to a 5W max USB port on your PC, you will actually still drain power while connected. -Powering On/Off requires you to hold the power button for a LONG time. Like 20-30 seconds. Battery charge speed is pretty good, not great, as long as the power is off or you are in hibernate (lid closed) you can get a full charge in about 4 hours. -This is more of a knock on Microsoft, but they require you to pay an additional $99 to upgrade Windows 8 Home to Windows 8 Pro Pack just to get Windows Media Center functionality. I don’t feel they should charge for something that came in Windows 7 for free. -The dock locking system is somewhat inconsistent. The left “hook” does not always seem to catch quickly and easily and can come loose if the tablet portion is held without supporting the keyboard. I do think this may be just a minor defect with my unit. Pressing hard enough does lock it in place. -No native stylus support. I bought a capacitive stylus and it works OK but my wife is not thrilled with it. A nice active stylus would put this device on the path to perfection. -When making touch gestures, there is a slight outline from the depression of your fingers on the screen’s mask. I don’t know if this is a Windows 8 feature or not as this is the first touch device I have used extensively using Win8. -The Windows Home button is located in an awkward location. It is on the bottom of the tablet in tablet mode, or the upper left in laptop mode near the volume rocker. Most Windows tablets have a capacitive Home button that is also the Windows 8 logo. -The buttons themselves are located on the backside of the bezel, making them difficult to press and depress efficiently. -Touchpad is serviceable but not great, seems to have some deadspots near the top of the pad. -Most of my complaints are with Windows 8.1 actually. It’s just clunky and I’m not really used to the touch-based version, although I have gotten used to the desktop version for the most part.

Overall Review: I really feel like this is the device that Microsoft’s Surface 2 should have been. Instead of an ARM chip and Windows RT, Microsoft should have gone with a Bay Trail Atom and full Windows 8.1 x86 (64-bit). I can understand why they want to develop for ARM, but there is a huge discrepancy in the marketplace between the limited usefulness of Windows RT-based Surface devices and the expensive Windows x86-based Surface Pro devices. Devices based on Bay Trail Atom could have closed that gap. The Surface 2’s build quality should be Asus’ target for their next generation of the Transformer T100. Here’s a list of possible upgrades, maybe if Asus could price the T100’s successor $100 more and include some or all of these changes for $500 or less! 1) 1080p screen 2) Windows 8.1 Pro x64 3) Aluminum or Mg chassis? 4) Backlit keyboard with integrated battery 5) Integrated Active Stylus For those that want most of these features without waiting, the Dell Venue Pro 11 will be released soon with many of these features for around $550 + $160 (keyboard + stylus). Overall my wife and I love this tablet. She uses it for school, I use it around the house to watch Live TV or surf the web. It’s really the first tablet we feel we did not have to make any compromises and we do own numerous Android and iOS devices. This really is disruptive technology that will put quite a bit of pressure on Android/iOS devices and may very well expedite the adoption of Windows 8.1 for touch-based devices. There’s good reason it is selling out very quickly here and elsewhere! It is not perfect by any means but it is the first cheap tablet experience that gives you the full Windows 8 experience.

Pros: Manageable size, good battery life, full Windows 8.1 (not RT), Office included, USB charging (see cons), full USB 3.0 port on dock, micro HDMI output, MicroSD expansion. There is a lot to like about this tablet and it brings a lot to the table for its price point; to find anything with comparable features and hardware you would be spending closer to $1,000. I appreciate the Transformer book for its ability to function as both a tablet and netbook; the dock is very easy to attach/detach. The ability to run regular desktop Windows applications is a big plus for me over an Android or iOS device. The onscreen keyboard configuration is well laid out, making typing moderately easy without the keyboard dock; the letter keys are split in half along the two sides of the screen so you can use your thumbs to type while holding the device.

Cons: Charging from USB very slow, USB 3.0 port doesn't always accept older USB plugs, graphics chipset not very beefy, low upgradability, 32-bit Windows, all plastic construction. While 2 GB of RAM is sufficient for Windows 8.1 and many common applications, it's not very much for a machine with a quad-core processor and integrated graphics. Everything is soldered to the motherboard, so the only expansion options you have are up to 128 GB of additional storage via the MicroSD slot. In what must have been a cost-saving measure, the device uses a 32-bit EFI even though the Z3740 is a 64-bit chip, so you can't install 64-bit Windows or apps for better performance. In case you were wondering, the dock that comes with this model does not have a drive bay--the 32 GB model comes with an extra 500 GB drive in the dock. So, if you need more stoarage beyond the 64 GB onboard SSD and 128 GB of MicroSD, you will have to use the USB port in the dock to attach more storage. You may be disappointed in performance if you are a gamer, the generic Intel HD Graphics chipset doesn't really impress and chokes on pretty much everything but casual gaming. Even older titles like Day of Defeat will be running at 40-50 fps, though newer games like Team Fortress 2 and Skyrim can run around 30 fps if you turn down the detail enough. I wouldn't recommend using this to play multiplayer FPS games, though it might suffice for light MMOs, RTS, classic and casual gaming. The dock hinge is not very reliable past 90 degrees, or if you pick up the tablet and the dock is suspended by the tablet. When that happens, you may lose connection with the dock, which is especially annoying if you have anything connected to the dock's USB port, like a hard drive. If you don't really need the USB port, a Bluetooth keyboard might be a better way to go, though you will lose a little battery life with Bluetooth on.

Overall Review: Even though you can charge the device from any USB port, charging is slow and the battery will continue to discharge if the device is in use while charging. Your choice of USB port or power supply can help the charge speed, but even the factory supplied charger doesn't provide enough power to charge the battery and run the device, and the battery will continue to discharge slowly. Even though the charger is rated at 10 W, the device will only draw a maximum of 5 W. However, once charged the battery life is pretty decent and you can expect to get a good 8 hours of use from it if you turn off Bluetooth; 10 might be possible if you turned the display brightness down enough. For daily use, I would recommend a cover and screen protector as everything is plastic and thus prone to scratching. Make sure you get a cover that will hold the keyboard dock, if you want to use this device to get any work done bringing the dock along is a must as the on-screen keyboard will hamper your typing speed. This device will probably be sufficient for the majority of users, though if you are a gamer or tech addict you will probably end up wanting a more powerful tablet.

Pros: I had left a 3-egg review partially because of a charging issue. I think the problem was on my end or righted itself, as charging is now fast and I've measured the current drain using Netflix over wireless with max brightness and keyboard attached as less than the power supply - meaning it keeps up at 100% battery. The MS Office apps are functional and it's nice to be able to zoom in and out easily. The micro SD appears to be SDXC, meaning very fast transfers, and the USB3 port on the keyboard gets me ~45 MB/s transfers, meaning that copying gigabytes of videos or mp3s takes only minutes.

Cons: Aside from the charging issues that's fixed now, I had two cons: 1) the touchpad "buttons" are part of the pad, and take more force than actual buttons. I wouldn't want to use it for prolonged periods. If you tend to rest a finger on a touchpad button while using it, that counts as a touch, so you['ll have to adjust. 2) There appears to be no screen gesture software for Win8 desktop mode. A tablet I owned years ago with Vista allowed using screen swipes as "back" and "up arrow" etc. Win8 tablet app mode (default) is built around screen gestures, so maybe Asus didn't see the need for desktop mode.

Overall Review: Windows 8 makes it really easy to create a recovery disk (it only took them two decades). You know that hidden recovery partition that eats up 6-10 GB on laptops? You can now buy an 8 GB flash drive (or two for $10), and create recovery drives, then delete that partition and free up the space. Also, do a Windows 8 search for "file recovery" (google it). You can create a system image quite easily. These are the first things I did when I started using this computer.

Pros: Good processing and graphics speed Not RT runs most windows software Fast USB 3.0 in keyboard Durable glass touch screen with bright IPS display

Cons: No Outlook 2013 Relatively slow internal SSD Keyboard mouse pad not the best

Overall Review: This machine has been great for taking work with me and still have good portability and with ability to run a lot of older windows software. Internal SSD read speed 50MB/sec Internal SSD write speed 30MB/sec USB 3.0 read/write speed maxes out the stick 190MB/sec

Pros: Features a New Baytrail ATOM Processor. The chip is an absolute game changer (on this platform). Its a power house of a quadcore machine that makes this rig perform better than most entry level laptops. The eMMC drive is super snappy and contains full Windows 8.1 on it, and minimal bloat. This thing runs as smoothly as an ipad and as fast as a good android phone except that it is, in fact, a fully fledged x64 capable machine. Although it isn't a gaming rig, I have successfully loaded FFXIV:ARR on it. It ran the game but not at playable framerates. It does play World of Warcraft and League of Legends at 45fps on low settings at native resolution. USB 3.0 Port!!

Cons: The keyboard and tablet interface seem to be loose on my particular unit. Repositioning it fixes the issue, but it can be annoying. That said, I rarely use the keyboard over the touch unless I'm playing a game or something. The USB 3.0 port will not power more demanding devices but will run thumb drives and enclosures with SSDs in them. Update your BIOS immediately to fix a whole slew of issues regarding this unit. Do not do anything else until you update it.

Overall Review: There is no rear facing camera. The thing is a finger print magnet. You must use a 10W+ usb port to charge the unit. The charging usb port cannot be used for devices. It supports intel WiDi. I have used this on my friends 1080p LED HDTV. Its nice to not have to connect an HDMI cable. It also streams sound. It was laggy on his TV but for the most part played 1080p videos without issue. Give this thing a try. More devices will be coming out on this platform.

Pros: -Comes with a keyboard. There aren't many (if any) that offer that standard. -Windows 8.1 is fantastically smooth. I literally opened all of the programs and apps I had (11) and it was still running smoothly. -Intel Atom Bay Trail Processor. Uses much less energy to do the same task than the Intel i series or even the previous generation Atoms. Look for Intel Z3000 series to make sure it has Bay Trail. -11 hour battery life. I can kill it in 8 if I use it constantly. But it usually lasts much longer if you have it set to go to sleep after being idle for 5 minutes. -64GB Solid State Drive. Makes for extremely fast startup, restart, shutdown, and wakeups. 15 seconds to home screen from cold start. -Comes with Microsoft Office 2013. Fantastic addition saving you from going out and buying a copy.

Cons: -Long charging time, about 6 hours from what I could tell. But that's acceptable when I only have to charge it once a day. -Flimsy Keyboard. The keyboard is very flexible and mine wasn't square meaning all 4 corners of the keyboard did not touch a flat surface. -Small Keyboard, Not to be unexpected, however the right shift key is smaller than the left. Making for a lot of mistakes. -Bad hinge design. Mine may have been defective, but it started to have connectivity issues after a month. It would disconnect from the tablet if it was open more than 90 degrees. -Plain design. A boring grey color covers the entire thing. Not objectively bad, but it was easily preventable. Probably grey to keep costs down. -Asus Smart Gesture is awful. Smart gesture allows the user to use various shortcut functions by using the edges of the touch pad but it is too easy to accidentally trigger. I uninstalled the software completely.

Overall Review: Overall, I gave this a 4 out of 5 because it sets a new standard for what a tablet should be. I shouldn't have to settle for 5 hours of battery life. I shouldn't have to settle with slow start up times or buggy software. I shouldn't have to settle for a toy. I should have a device that is portable still usable to get actual work done. This tablet absolutely delivers. Granted my situation is a little unique. I don't own a smart phone and have a very nice desktop. This tablet fills my mobile needs entirely. The defective keyboard was very professionally handled by Asus and had it back to me in almost a week. I couldn't be happier with the service I got. But the keyboard is the reason I gave this a 4 instead of a 5 Get a skin for it. Cases are very awkward when every side has some sort of connector or port on it. Skinomi makes a great skin and it will prevent the scratches that are bound to happen to a plastic bodied tablet. The direct competitor to this tablet, in my opinion, is the Dell Venue Pro 8 or Dell Venue Pro 11. Look into those as well before you buy.

Pros: Turns on in under 10 seconds. Quality build. Affordability. Asus service. Tablet OR laptop.

Cons: MicroSD card slot. Touchpad. Very small text on webpages without magnifying. Haven't found many accessories yet. Needs a good case.

Overall Review: I've owned and built many PCs over the years. With every new one, I endured hours of setup, updating, uninstalling bloatware, tweaking settings and disabling unnecessary Microsoft fluff to get the most out of my computer. That didn't happen with this one. Other than charging it for 6 hours, I was fully updated and running in 45 minutes. Would have been sooner but I took the advice of other reviewers and updated the BIOS before anything else. Even that was simple and fast. I downloaded the new BIOS from the Asus website, extracted the file to a flash drive, plugged it into the T100, booted into the BIOS, flashed the new one and was done. After that, a few updates by Windows updates and it was ready to go. I expected to have to manually add all of my printers but Win8 added all three of my wireless printers automatically during the initial setup. Very nice. As for performance, perfect for me. I don't do gaming and just needed something that worked like a regular PC but was portable. This was perfect. The new Intel chip runs everything smoothly and online HD video is crisp and flawless (and that from an AMD fanboy). No need to upgrade the 2gb of memory as it is more than adequate. One thing that helped me pull the trigger on this deal on Newegg is the extended holiday return policy. I've got until Jan 31, 2014 to really play with this. It may not be necessary. One egg deducted for the MicroSD slot. Most slots I've used are recessed. This one is not and so the card sticks out enough that, as mentioned by another reviewer, it easily falls out if bumped. I'm also not a big fan of the volume rocker. It doesn't have enough "feel" to it to make it easy to use. The touchpad isn't very good either but no biggie as I don't use it much. I would dub this and inside-the-park home run by Asus. Didn't quite clear the fence, but they still scored.

Pros: I bought this notbook because I needed a light travel computer for mostly trip report and the occassional touch up of office products. It came with MS Office student version. It worked like a champ for just over a year and then one weekend after cahrging it up for my trip when I got to the hotel it did not startup at all. Only had a red light when I plugged it in. When I returned from the trip I attempted to use ASUS website to get if fixed but thier site did not work properly or was really confusing because nothing seemed to work. I ended up callig and only waitng a few minutes when I was greated by an ASUS person. We quicckly rechecked things I already checked and determined it was the logic board or the flashdrive had crashed. He told me the system was under warranty and explained what I had to do and I sent it that afternoon overnight to ASUS. A week later I got back my notebook/tablet working fine. I had to re-install the office and the few file on it were lost forever but that did not bother. I'm surprised I hear so man compaints with ASUS. I normally buy only their products for hardware, i.,e., MB, graphic cards, etc and have never had an issue with ASUS products. I have had no less than 5 of ther topline motherboards over the last ten years. This is the first time I had to ever contact ASUS over any product I have had from them and while the website needs cleaning I had no issues with tech support or the time it took to fix the computer. I normally don't place review but this one was warranted because of the great service I did revceive from ASUS. I will also be a buyer of ASUS products and hope I never experience some people put on this site about ASUS.

Cons: None

Overall Review: While the T100TA is a fairly inexpensive notebook/tablet I believe it serves and fulfills my needs.