Questions before the Final Buy!

[andoroido]

Hello everyone, I am looking to buy a transformer very soon, and I am looking for few key features and their usability.

-How is the usability of other languages, how would I input japanese words, is there native support?
-Next, can I view network files of different OS's windows, linux [samba], and macs?
-Can I stream / watch these files from the network's location without coping them to my transformer?
-Does subtitles finally work with different file containers?
-Is 1080p format viewable on transformer, or does it have to be 720p size?
-Is the VNC usability and is there a video preview? Transformer controling Computer via linux and windows?
-Is the keyboard worth the price, do you like it, use it often?
-Why should I root it? What features or things could I do with the superuser?

Language support?
Viewing network?
Stream of videos and music?
Subtitles in movies?
Large size formats movies?
VNC usability?
Keyboard?
Root?

Thank you for any future help!

 

[charlibob]

Hello everyone, I am looking to buy a transformer very soon, and I am looking for few key features and their usability.

-How is the usability of other languages, how would I input japanese words, is there native support?
-Next, can I view network files of different OS's windows, linux [samba], and macs?
-Can I stream / watch these files from the network's location without coping them to my transformer?
-Does subtitles finally work with different file containers?
-Is 1080p format viewable on transformer, or does it have to be 720p size?
-Is the VNC usability and is there a video preview? Transformer controling Computer via linux and windows?
-Is the keyboard worth the price, do you like it, use it often?
-Why should I root it? What features or things could I do with the superuser?

Language support?
Viewing network?
Stream of videos and music?
Subtitles in movies?
Large size formats movies?
VNC usability?
Keyboard?
Root?

Thank you for any future help!

Wow, what a list of questions. I think you should address them directly to ASUS. BTW, I love my tf and keyboard.

 

[Traxion]

Sounds like you may need a laptop rather than a tablet.

 

[andoroido]

I am really interested in the transformer, and I think I won't regret buying it at all. I have tried to research all of these topics and came up with ok information, but I was looking for a more personal opinion. I don't know about the 1080p playback and I think input language support might be native, as the OS has multiple language support. Though,

charlibob, do you find yourself using the keyboard more then the tablet setup?

Thanks!

 

[mclarryjr]

I have mine docked in the keyboard most of the time, I only use the tablet only while sitting around at home. I find that typing is so much easier using the keyboard and really like the extra battery life it gives you. Hope this helps

 

[andoroido]

mclarryjr, Oh it does! Right now, I'm not really interested in the keyboard, [I just found out it's $150] but I am not a fan of on-board keyboards. So, I will most likely going be going down the path of the keyboard for usability and then tablet for movie watching.

Thanks!

 

[notserpmh]

Hello everyone, I am looking to buy a transformer very soon, and I am looking for few key features and their usability.

-Next, can I view network files of different OS's windows, linux [samba], and macs?

I can say yes for sure for Linux/Samba. I would recommend andSMB and/or andFTP (both free from Market). I'm not very familiar with macs

-Can I stream / watch these files from the network's location without coping them to my transformer?

Right now, I am using Subsonic (running on my Linux file server) to stream to my TF pretty much anywhere with Internet and it works great. Subsonic does require a $10 or $15 (can't remember which) one-time "donation" to be able to stream to android devices. It also takes a little server side setup, but not much.

I haven't found anything yet that can just play them from a file browser over the network, but then again, subsonic works fine so I haven't really tried.

-Is 1080p format viewable on transformer, or does it have to be 720p size?

Not sure. Using MoboPlayer, I have been able to play everything I have thrown at it, but I don't remember tying a 1080p video yet.

-Is the VNC usability and is there a video preview? Transformer controling Computer via linux and windows?

I have used LogMeIn (costs $30 for the app, the software for the computer is free) as well as RDP with great success (can't remember at this moment which RDP client I use, but it was free and is in the Market). I know there are some VNC clients as well, so I would assume it would really depend on a good VNC android client more than anything (which is really more of an Android thing and less of a TF thing).

-Is the keyboard worth the price, do you like it, use it often?

Maybe. To me, the biggest benefits of the keyboard are the extra battery life and having it as a "stand". I find that sometimes the keyboard is still kind of laggy even with the 3.1 update and that thanks to the size of the screen, I can sometimes type almost as fast using the Android on-screen keyboard as the dock. The dock also has a lot of extra shortcut buttons, which are nice, but also are easy to accidentally hit while typing (especially if you touch type and aren't accustomed to a small keyboard) that mess up what your are typing to take you out of your program. I'm sure that will get better with time though.

-Why should I root it? What features or things could I do with the superuser?

About the only reasons I would bother rooting the TF right now would be to remove a few of the Asus programs I don't care about and to install AdFree to cut down on ads. That said, the ads aren't that bad in general and I haven't run into any space issues yet, so I haven't bothered.

 

[mknollman123]

I do not have and do not really plan to buy the keyboard, but I am not using the TF to replace my netbook. Unfortunately due to the vehicle mount I use and some software I need I cannot go 100% android just yet, so I use an acer aspire one for work and the TF mostly for play (surfing, best email machine ever, games, videos, etc.)

I can type almost as fast in landscape with 2 hands on the virtual keyboard as I can on my netbook keyboard. I would say something around 30-40wpm or faster.

As far as streaming from a network - I use the built-in mynet software when I am in wifi range and have read it can be configured to work outside as well.

The only other benefit of rooting now would also be Titanium backup - this would be a nice way to get all your apps and saved games, settings, etc. from another android device onto the TF. I have rooted every other android device I have owned, but I have not yet been wooed into rooting the TF. Give me working Netflix or some custom roms and I would root in a heartbeat though.

 

[andoroido]

notserpmh, mknollman123, Thank you so much for the detail reply. It's really nice hearing your own personal experience with these applications and the TF. I am actually looking up many of these programs in youtube to see how they work!