ASUS Transformer Pad TF701T – Review

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Today at hackinformer, we will be talking about the new version of the Transformer Pad TF701T . It is a hybrid between tablet and netbook that wants to continue in the philosophy of providing tablets like accessories and app’s. That allow you to replace the normal laptops, maintaining and quality price/ratio. The TF701T ASUS is top of the range, and is equipped with a quad-core Nvidia Tegra 4 Android updated to version 4.2, 2 GB of RAM, and a 10.1-inch IPS screen with a resolution of 2560×1600 pixels.

Externally it looks like a cured product : The body is characterized by metal finishes for a weight content of less than 600 grams which together with a thickness of 8.9 mm, make it extremely practical in transport. But what is striking is what we find inside : the Tegra 4 T40X system consists of a four-core CPU ARM Cortex A15 with a frequency of 1.7 GHz, coupled to a 72- core GPU. The RAM memory is enough for all the activities that we perform by cutting 2 GB, while for storage we can choose between two versions, 32 or 64 GB.

The 10.1 “display is typical of IPS LCD , characterized by a good resolution and excellent color rendering , with a 10-point multitouch support and scratch-resistant glass; whether you’re working that playing , the monitor will automatically adjust the brightness to the change of outdoor lighting.

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Hooking the Mobile Dock you can turn your tablet into a netbook in order to have a physical keyboard much more comfortable to type.

On the back and on the top there are also two cameras: one rear five-megapixel camera, with the ability to also record video at 1080p, while on the front there is a much more contained 1.2-megapixel camera for video calls and ordinary selfie.

At the time of review, the operating system was a customized version of Android 4.2 Jelly Bean based on the ASUS, but it certainly will be issued an update to the latest version 4.4 KitKat on board as the hardware is certainly capable of receiving the ‘update and run it properly without any problem.

Already from the name you can imagine the main quality of this tablet, to transform it into a netbook thanks to the Mobile Dock: at first sight it seems only a keyboard, but it is actually a docking station in all respects very compact. Inside is in fact the space for an additional battery that increases the weight of over 600 grams, but gives great autonomy to the tablet from ASUS.

Summing up the battery life of the tablet with the keyboard you are able to reach the 17 total hours of operation, which are not really anything bad for those who travel frequently and need a good technology base to work with and navigate.

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You can use the tablet in the traditional manner or as a laptop, closing the keyboard will protect the screen and will provide an additional battery.

On the body of the Mobile Dock space are other components: under the keyboard has a touchpad with two buttons on the sides of a USB 3.0 port and an SD card reader, as well as the MicroSD port and Micro-HDMI output. Other features include the inevitable output for headphones and microphone 3.5 mm.

To test the potential of the hardware product we used two of the most well-known benchmark, 3D Mark and Extreme Ice Storm Unlimited and Geekbench 3. The first round of testing found about 14000 as score, but it is an underpowered compared to the average value obtained in other tests, so we’ve closed all applications and retry.

On the second attempt, the results were more encouraging surpassing the 15377 points for the Unlimited version and 9241 for the Extreme version. In order to have a basis for comparison, we also offer some of the media tablet market in the ranking directly from Futuremark. As for Geekbench 3, the tablet from ASUS scored 2710 points reaching only the score obtained from the iPad Air (2695) and the Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 (2515).

The audio sector proved to be of good quality despite the small size of the device: the speaker is on the back of the tablet, but playback of audio files without distortion even if you can not reach high values. Of course, do not expect the quality of a Home Theatre system, and if you want to enjoy the best audio you can always put a pair of headphones.

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The keyboard is compact but complete except for the numeric keypad.

Thanks to the good quality built-in hardware, the use of the tablet, both in terms of work that play, it is more than satisfactory and excellent screen makes it a little hard to read both documents and browsing the internet.

The ability to hook the keyboard makes use Office much easier thanks to the ability to use all 10 inches of the screen instead of displaying more than one-third occupied by the virtual keyboard. We find the pre-installed Polaris Office suite, which allows you to view and edit documents created with Microsoft Office Suite; in case you have a subscription to Office 365, you can use the web app at the moment, although it is not excluded from the advent of the suites even after the arrival of Android IOS systems.

The panel will also be great for viewing movies in 1080p without any uncertainty in the process of reproduction and excellent color reproduction, as well as the visual quality is very satisfactory during the use of the games.

With Asphalt 9, One of the mostra demanding racing game currently on the market and the Mobile Transformer Pad TF701T did not bad an eyelid after several hours of sue, confirming it’s very fast and responsive even when the graphics processor was under stress.

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The Mobile Dock is a little heavy and the thickness is almost identical to that of the tablet so as not to make too big a combination tablet + keyboard.

Reproduction of classics such as Despicable Me: Minion Rush, Blitz Brigade! Frontline Commando and other securities that we tested with the tablet reviewed in the past have not given any problems: from the point of view of performance, the Tegra 4 confirms a platform of great substance with today’s games.

Wireless connectivity is provided by WiFi module 802.11 b / g / n dual-band 2.4GHz and 5GHz and one Bluetooth V3.0 + EDR and is guaranteed to support playback on the monitor through the Miracast protocol , although it is still underdeveloped .

There is no contrast, no LTE or 3G module for mobile connectivity without access to a wireless network : as is now the practice are also present for the change of orientation sensor , the sensor control and brightness adjustment, the GPS module , compass and gyroscope.

This new version of the tablet from ASUS comes with so much power , well supported by a battery up to it, especially enjoying assistance from additional battery pack offered by the keyboard, which makes it possible to further increase its hybrid nature especially for those looking for a comfortable platform to carry, with good performance and the ability to use working without ignoring some relaxing time .

The list price of the tablet and keyboard kit is 499 € or about $539 US, at the moment but you can order it on Amazon for a much more tempting € 399/$369 which makes the offer of ASUS is very competitive against other brands of tablet competitors, both portable low cost that offer performance equal to the asking price.

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http://www.amazon.com/Asus-TF701T-B1-GR-ASUS-10-1-Inch-Tablet/dp/B00FFF7DAK

His honor and his sins are the presence of the Android operating system, which like all tablets, including Apple, forced the choice, even among hundreds of options, in charge of applications at the operating system that does not always coincide for compatibility or to use they fit on a standard PC.

Aside from that, the quality of this Transformer Pad are undeniable and confirm the modern hardware running towards ever greater miniaturization of devices that could bring in just a few years the disappearance of the traditional laptop. Asus has definitely made a step forward in this direction.

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About Rocco Antonio Cannale

I dig the web to find always fresh news about the tech world, from gaming to smartphones through pc and reviews. I've grown with bread and videogames since the first time I saw one.

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