I just got my Asus EeePad Transformer and I have a few words.

[motoprof]

What's wrong with me using my transformer as a toy? It is a toy and I like big boy toys to play with :-$ Plus, another astute poster once wrote "Yes Steve Jobes, I do want to watch porn on my phone"

 

[liquidxit2]

No. The tablet does more then a $500 computer. Please show me a new computer that can go with you that can be used to draw flow charts for an application or storyboard a website, and then turn around and develope the website and run vim over ssh to put the flowchart to use. There isn't one. Sorry to all those naysayers but its just not possible to spend $500 on a computer that does everything the transformer does.

As for toys and netbooks are concerned the asus processor may not have as many pulses a second as intels atom or amds alu chips, but it does the same things just as fast or faster. Hell my single core 800mhz htc evo shift works better then a netbook. About those saying its a toy, well to some it is. But to others its a dedicated laptop/computer or an indespensible tool that fills a role only replacable by exspensive tablet PCs but at the fraction of the price and size.

It doesn't matter what the tablet is used for as long as it does the job you bought it for.

Sent from my PG06100 using Tapatalk

 

[flipdippy]

No. The tablet does more then a $500 computer. Please show me a new computer that can go with you that can be used to draw flow charts for an application or storyboard a website, and then turn around and develope the website and run vim over ssh to put the flowchart to use. There isn't one. Sorry to all those naysayers but its just not possible to spend $500 on a computer that does everything the transformer does.

As for toys and netbooks are concerned the asus processor may not have as many pulses a second as intels atom or amds alu chips, but it does the same things just as fast or faster. Hell my single core 800mhz htc evo shift works better then a netbook. About those saying its a toy, well to some it is. But to others its a dedicated laptop/computer or an indespensible tool that fills a role only replacable by exspensive tablet PCs but at the fraction of the price and size.

It doesn't matter what the tablet is used for as long as it does the job you bought it for.

Sent from my PG06100 using Tapatalk

I didn't comment on tablets as work tools. My point remains - for consumers, what exactly other than shiny new toy factor do tablets bring to the table?

And more specifically, why should anyone rush out to buy a TF or iPad or Xoom when it's clear this market is going to move quickly, and there will be better tablets with more power and many more apps, including potential 'killer apps' by as early as holiday season 2011?

Or as a more clear analogy - taking away the shiny new toy factor, I still don't see a good reason to buy one unless you have disposable income lying around or a kid wants one, etc.

JMO

 

[liquidxit2]

I didn't comment on tablets as work tools. My point remains - for consumers, what exactly other than shiny new toy factor do tablets bring to the table?

Think you should read my post again. For $500 you cannot get a laptop that does what this tablet does. Sure you can do it on a smartphone, but drawing on a sub 4in screen is near useless. If you need a tablet but cannot afford one right now android and IOS tablets are the segment for you.

And more specifically, why should anyone rush out to buy a TF or iPad or Xoom when it's clear this market is going to move quickly, and there will be better tablets with more power and many more apps, including potential 'killer apps' by as early as holiday season 2011?

The market is moving quickly because it literally is the hottest market right now. Does that mean I have to or will replace my transformer when the newest thing comes out? No. Maybe there are a few that do that but most people (Even techies) dont. I have a buddy thats one of my fellow techies that bought an ipad when they first came out and still has his ipad 1.

As for apps, well those new "killer apps" will work on the transformer.

Or as a more clear analogy - taking away the shiny new toy factor, I still don't see a good reason to buy one unless you have disposable income lying around or a kid wants one, etc.

JMO

Or again you need a tablet but cannot afford a tablet PC.

I used to be of the same mindset as you until I realized how useful they can be. I used to tease my buddy and mom about the fact that tablets are neat but just a toy. Well I took one to work one day (wanna hear excessive? my mom has a galaxy tab AND an ipad 1) to test if it could replace my white board and honestly it could. Ill still keep the whiteboard for nostalgia or when I wanna brainstorm with my eyes off a screen, but 95% of my brainstorming time will be done on a tablet again.

 

[mknollman123]

@flipdippy - this is getting tired man - if you do not see a use case for the tablet don't buy one. Vote with your wallet and stop wasting space on a specific device forum with naysayer comments about an entire form factor.

I like a good debate as much as the next nerd but sheesh

The OP is for folks with a new Asus TF looks like you don't fit that dude, which is fine. This first impressions thread has turned into the defend my purchase from strangers thread - moving on

 

[Kodros]

No. The tablet does more then a $500 computer. Please show me a new computer that can go with you that can be used to draw flow charts for an application or storyboard a website, and then turn around and develope the website and run vim over ssh to put the flowchart to use. There isn't one. Sorry to all those naysayers but its just not possible to spend $500 on a computer that does everything the transformer does.

I have to disagree. You're doing things that can be done on a $500 computer. While it might be slightly easier to create flow charts on a tablet, it can be done and has been done for many years on a PC.

 

[Kodros]

I didn't comment on tablets as work tools. My point remains - for consumers, what exactly other than shiny new toy factor do tablets bring to the table?

You're thinking about tablets like I once did when I first heard about them. I thought they were stupid because it's just a bigger smartphone without the phone. Many people thought that. Then over the months I realized that when I was home, all I was doing was using my smartphone and not touching my PC. So, obviously, having a bigger screen while keeping the freedom of a smartphone is what sold me.

It's really that simple. You're thinking too much about it.

 

[kareden]

Your Mind Is Made Up

@flipdippy - My mistake was in believing you when you said you "were all ears " or something to that effect. I gave you a number of ways that I use my tab and all you got was that I was using it to web surf. Well of course I 'm web surfing! About 80-90% of anything useful done on a computer these days involves web surfing!

Something else I said that you dismissed was that my tab is replacing my netbook. As another poster said, today's tablets are more powerful than last year's netbooks. So obviously, you are just not interested. No one ever said that having a tablet was some sort of life requirement. For me, however it definitely adds value. You don't want or need one - fine. To each his own. And now I am officially done talking with you. I am returning to my regularly scheduled programming (on my Transformer, thank you very much) .

 

[tiger541]

I got mine a couple of days ago, and I am loving it. I really want to try out the dock as I think it will be useful.
I started reading this post when it first came out, and I appreciated the "first thoughts" theme.
But reading the the latest posts, it has become a "why is a tablet useful/ vs netbooks/ vs phones/ vs PCs, etc".
Well maybe my post will not get lost in all that:
I picked mine TF up at Best Buy, and could not wait to set it up. I went to the local McDonalds to chew off some of their wifi, but it gave me issues, so I went back to my office and tethered off my gingerbread running HD2. As soon as I logged in with my google account, it started downloading some of the apps, etc.
I noticed after a day that the Asus home screen apps did not work correctly. I also noticed that the GPS took awhile the first couple of times. After the update to 3.1, it all cleared up. I am really enjoying the IPS screen, the fast wifi speeds, the responsive touch. Honeycomb can get sluggish or laggy at times, but nothing majorly disappointing.
Biggest disappointment is the lack of apps, but in time they will come.
I really like the fit and finish of the tablet, does not feel like a cheap tablet.
The lack of USB is ok, no biggie. the MicroSD is cool enough.
no speaker issues here, no screen bleed issues, no creaks in the body of the tablet, charger is working fine.
I have been bringing it to work and have been trying to incorporate it, using contacts, gmail, talk, the browser, springpad app.
All in all I am really satisfied. I thought I would want the Sammy 10.1, but in the end I am happy with the versatility and quality the Asus has.

 

[Kronko]

Guys, can we just stay on the topic? I started this post just to share my experience with the tab. hoping to help others and interchange ideas of how to make the best of the transformer. Peace.

 

[h00ligan]

My dock got returned yesterday. Tablet goes back tomorrow. I'll revisit when te transformer 2 comes out.

Overall android is interesting and I love tue form factor of the tf, but I don't have any desire to play 'find a good one' or 'wait for updates to fix basic things' as most of this will be accomplished when the platform matures...so why pay to beta test.

Definitely can understand why people love the device, but weak app availably, shoddy build, immature os all need to improve for my needs.

Again, no hate here, sorry I didn't have a more positive experience with the one device I received.

 

[wmurch3]

Got my transformer and dock yesterday. Love the build quality. Everything seems really well built. I had an acer iconia but decided to get the transformer when it became more available. The transformer is a lot lighter than the iconia which is great. The IPS panel is fantastic but I will definitely be getting a anti-glare shield like I do for all these glossy screens.

The dock is definitey worth the investement if you do a lot of typing (which I do).

Other things I love:
-Honeycomb syncs all my Google services out of the box. With Google Music, Amazon MP3 player, Dropbox, and Picasa integration - i don't need to connect to a computer at all.
- Chrome bookmark sync is a godsend!
-The keyboard dock adds a lot of functionality.

Things I don't like:
-Definite lag when typing in the default browser using the keyboard dock.
-touchpad is sensitive to accidental swipes when typing. (function key to disable trackpad is a great)
-Screen has a lot of glare. i really wish this glossy trend would end so I don't have to keep applying third party anti-glare screen protetors.

Overall: very Happy

 

[rndman]

Got my transformer and dock yesterday. Love the build quality. Everything seems really well built. I had an acer iconia but decided to get the transformer when it became more available. The transformer is a lot lighter than the iconia which is great. The IPS panel is fantastic but I will definitely be getting a anti-glare shield like I do for all these glossy screens.

The dock is definitey worth the investement if you do a lot of typing (which I do).

Other things I love:
-Honeycomb syncs all my Google services out of the box. With Google Music, Amazon MP3 player, Dropbox, and Picasa integration - i don't need to connect to a computer at all.
- Chrome bookmark sync is a godsend!
-The keyboard dock adds a lot of functionality.

Things I don't like:
-Definite lag when typing in the default browser using the keyboard dock.
-touchpad is sensitive to accidental swipes when typing. (function key to disable trackpad is a great)
-Screen has a lot of glare. i really wish this glossy trend would end so I don't have to keep applying third party anti-glare screen protetors.

Overall: very Happy

I got my Tf-101 (16GB). I still don't have the notification for 3.1 update. How long does it take.
BTW, a dumb question, where and how do you see if the notification has arrived?
Really appreciate your help.

 

[Kronko]

I got my Tf-101 (16GB). I still don't have the notification for 3.1 update. How long does it take.
BTW, a dumb question, where and how do you see if the notification has arrived?
Really appreciate your help.

It took a minute after I plugged it in to show a notification at the bottom right, by the clock. Make sure that you are connected to internet (wifi).

 

[ShadowCatcher]

I got my Tf-101 (16GB). I still don't have the notification for 3.1 update. How long does it take.
BTW, a dumb question, where and how do you see if the notification has arrived?
Really appreciate your help.

You should have received a notification (lower right hand corner with all the other info) soon after connecting to Wi-Fi. ASUS posted the 3.1 update to their support website - you may just want to download and manually install at this point. Go to: http://www.asus.com/Eee/Eee_Pad/Eee_Pad_Transformer_TF101/#download Choose 'Android' for the OS and the expand the 'Firmware' section. Choose the proper SKU version - probably US of you are in the United States - download and install following the instructions provided.

 

[rndman]

You should have received a notification (lower right hand corner with all the other info) soon after connecting to Wi-Fi. ASUS posted the 3.1 update to their support website - you may just want to download and manually install at this point. Go to: ASUSTeK Computer Inc. - Eee- ASUS Eee Pad Transformer TF101 Choose 'Android' for the OS and the expand the 'Firmware' section. Choose the proper SKU version - probably US of you are in the United States - download and install following the instructions provided.

Thanks. I downloaded the Firmware. But not sure how to launch it.
I downloaded on the eee pad itself.
I did not see any instructions. Could you please point me to a link?

Thanks

 

[ShadowCatcher]

Thanks. I downloaded the Firmware. But not sure how to launch it.
I downloaded on the eee pad itself.
I did not see any instructions. Could you please point me to a link?

Thanks

Here are the instructions:

1. To begin, download the update from the download link and copy it to the root of your SD card.

2. Once done, make sure that your device is plugged into the power mains or has over 50% battery left. Power the device off.

3. Press both the Volume Down key and the Power key at the same and keep them pressed till you see a ROM boot screen.

4. You will be advised to press the Volume Up key in under 5 seconds to start the ROM update process. Do that and wait till the device updates and reboots.

5. When the device reboots, you will be notified in 5 minutes that the docking station (if you have the docking station and it's attached) has a firmware update available - latest version seems to be 0209. Follow the on-screen instructions and update the docking station. The device will reboot again.

That should do it.

 

[flipdippy]

I see I am in the minority on this but I dont think it strayed off topic. The user experience is an integral part of the subjective topic of initial thoughts. I bought a tf with an open mind, and my general feeling so far is meh, I am not as blown away as the first time I saw the original nexus.

The hardware is fine IMO but I agree with those who say honeycomb is not complete, it is 1.0 software for a device it is unclear as to its mass market appeal.

Mine will go back this week and I will wait and see how things look when ics is released.

 

[rndman]

Here are the instructions:

1. To begin, download the update from the download link and copy it to the root of your SD card.

2. Once done, make sure that your device is plugged into the power mains or has over 50% battery left. Power the device off.

3. Press both the Volume Down key and the Power key at the same and keep them pressed till you see a ROM boot screen.

4. You will be advised to press the Volume Up key in under 5 seconds to start the ROM update process. Do that and wait till the device updates and reboots.

5. When the device reboots, you will be notified in 5 minutes that the docking station (if you have the docking station and it's attached) has a firmware update available - latest version seems to be 0209. Follow the on-screen instructions and update the docking station. The device will reboot again.

That should do it.

Thank you very much.
So the SD card will contain the .zip file that is downloaded. No extraction of any kind of this zip file should be done. Is this correct?

 

[ShadowCatcher]

Thank you very much.
So the SD card will contain the .zip file that is downloaded. No extraction of any kind of this zip file should be done. Is this correct?

Correct. Put it in the root directory - where nothing but the / shows. Don't change the name or unzip. XDA has good instructions also or just Google. Even the AndroidCentral thread on installing the leaked 3.1 version has good instructions. It's the same process no matter where you get the file from...

Good luck & enjoy your Transformer!