Time for a tablet: Asus vs. Lenovo

I have been biding my time for a while now and have decided it's time to splurge. I'm starting WGU Dec 1 and would like an e-reader, but would rather have a full tablet that could replace 90% of what I use my desktop for.

I have been given an iPad 3G to play with by my company and the more I use it, the more I hate it. Apple just doesn't do it for me.

That leaves Android and Windows. I think that Windows 8 will be awesome on a tablet. However, that is 8 to 12 months away.

We are down to Android.

I LOVE my Android 3.2 phone. Android 4, designed for tablets, should be pretty nice.

I am currently considering 2 models, based not only on specs, but also on the previous models' features and brand reputation.

Asus Transformer Prime

Lenovo ??

Both of these are being released in December but not much has been said about the Lenovo. Of course, the manufacturer's websites are quite glib.

Any thoughts? Other models you have had good experience with?

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Comments

Everyone

I know a couple people with the original Asus Transformer, they really like it. I'm digging the specs on the new Transformer Prime. I'd get one (and the keyboard dock!) if I could actually justify the expense of such a device.

Tackle

It's hard to say what would be best for you. Both of those will be around the $500-$600 dollar mark when they're released, just guessing.

I know you say you want to replace 90% of what you do on your desktop, depending on what you do it may be possible. Tablets are primarily for reading, web surfing, e-mail, light document editing and as a bonus...all the Andriod Apps.

The original Asus Transformer (released 6+ months ago) was rated one of the best tablets of the year.
The Galaxy Tab 10.1 has the best specs when compared to current tablets.

A few things I look at when considering tablets, these will differ depending on your needs:

3G capable or Wifi only
Built in GPS antenna
Bluetooth
Internal Storage
Capable to expand storage (Micro SD or regular SD?)
Build Quality
Gorilla glass or not
HDMI
Matte or glossy finish
How sharp are the edges
Android Version? Any hint that they'll get an update?
# of hard buttons and do they feel like they will last thousands of clicks (HP touchpad button sucks)
If it's already realsed, how is the ROM development? CM7 working on it?
Accessories?
Price?

swild

I went to best buy to feel out the tablets. I like the Asus the best. The Tab just didn't quite do it for me.

to answer your points:
3G or WiFi: I currently have a Verizon aircard in my laptop, a Sprint MiFi, a Verizon MiFi, and a T-Mobile Android phone. It's nice to have it built in but I don't mind tethering to another device.

GPS: A must.
Bluetooth: preferred
Internal storage: 64GB minimum
SD storage: a must. Don't care the format.
Build Quality: it has to be tough or have a decent cover. Big fan of Otterbox. Love the aluminum of Asus, hate the colors.
Gorilla Glass: highly preferred, goes with build quality
HDMI: a must.
Matte or Glossy: prefer Matte. Screen can be changed with a screen cover.
Sharp Edges? Don't care at all.
Android version: minimum 3.2, preferred 4.0 (upgradable)
I like having one physical button for power, no more buttons. One of the few things I like about the iPad is the power button (not the on-screen button, the top, right button) Don't like physical volume rockers.
The one's I'm considering are not released, however, I like the included apps on both tablets.
Accessories: Not too big on accessories, depending. I LOVE LOVE LOVE Lenovo's Digitizer Pen. A physical keyboard is nice, but not a deal breaker. A good case is appreciated but, once again, depending on build quality.
Price: negotiable. Willing to pay for quality.

wiseguy

If you are willing to get the current Asus tablet there's an awesome deal on Black Friday at Best Buy for $249 according to Maximum PC.

Link :Maximum PC | Nab An Eee Pad Transformer For The Price Of A Bookstore Tablet At Best Buy On Black Friday

swild

That is a good deal, but even if I wasn't working that day, I wouldn't be caught dead shopping on Black Friday. Too bad it isn't online. For that price, I wouldn't mind buying it just to ebay it for $100 more.

Whiteout

I have a Lenovo ThinkPad that I use at work and love it. Everything is pretty seamless and smooth. Sometimes I will get some lag when typing on a web browser, but that is about the only con. My favorite feature is the stylus. You can write with it and it turns what you wrote into typed text, it is actually very accurate (even with my poor hand writing). We have a verizon MiFi in my office and it syncs up with that very easily and with the 4G here in the seattle area, it is very fast!

Overall I think it is a great tablet.

Oh one other thing. I can't figure out how to access drop down lists on buttons...? Doesnt work like my android phone, where you just hold down on the button and the drop down list pops up.

Wow, just saw that link for the $250 Asus. I think I might actually go out and black friday and try to pick on of those up.

kriscamaro68

I would hold out for the Lenovo Tablet. If the specs that are up at endgadget are correct than it should be a bit faster than the asus prime.

Asus prime specs:
1.4ghz quad core
1gb of ddr2 800 mhz

Lenovo specs:
1.6ghz quad core
2gb of ddr3 1600 mhz
plus its awesome to have a fingerprint reader on a tablet.

The memory speed alone would be why I get the lenovo. Plus its suppose to come with ics preinstalled. My guess is to that netflix will be supported while other tablet makers may not be.

universalfrost

buddy has the toshiba tablet and loves it (they have a sale at newegg for $299 right now).

I am in the same boat as you on the ipad. I have a gen1 64gb that work made me have (I have used it very little and the wife mostly uses it for surf videos and games) . I usually use my netbook when I am on the go. Recently I got my hands on a samsung tab 7" and fell in love with it.

perfect size for carrying with you, can read ebooks and surf the web, etc... i love my 7" samsung tab and i barely use the netbook or notebook anymore and the kindle I got for free from preplogic has only been used 2 times before I got the tab and none since. The ipad stays either at work or with my wife....

get the samsung!

chrisone

transformer prime

demonfurbie

im shopping around my self and ive come to a few realiazations

1. its all about the ports and expansions
2. on device storage is nice but not a deal breaker with the price of sd cards
3. full size usb is a must
4. standard usb charging is a must i dont wanna be stuck with a broken charger and 50 or more to replace it

things i can live with out

1. back faceing camera

nerdydad

Sorry, I have to say it:

I would hold out until the Windows 36 tablets come out, I hear the specs are going to be 12" 3d flexible screen, 500PB (petabyte) of RAM and 64YB (yottabyte) of storage. I mean, if you buy anything now, it is just going to be obsolete when this thing comes out.

swild

kriscamaro68 wrote: »

I would hold out for the Lenovo Tablet. If the specs that are up at endgadget are correct than it should be a bit faster than the asus prime.

Asus prime specs:
1.4ghz quad core
1gb of ddr2 800 mhz

Lenovo specs:
1.6ghz quad core
2gb of ddr3 1600 mhz
plus its awesome to have a fingerprint reader on a tablet.

The memory speed alone would be why I get the lenovo. Plus its suppose to come with ics preinstalled. My guess is to that netflix will be supported while other tablet makers may not be.

I saw where it said that the Lenovo would have double the memory, but didn't see the memory or processor speeds. Can you link that?

The double memory alone almost decides it in favor of the Lenovo, also, that fingerprint scanner doubles as a "digital joystick" which I am VERY curious about. If it is like a touchpad mouse right where your index finger is when holding it, that would be amazing. Looks like I will probably be waiting for the Lenovo. As Valentine Michael Smith says, "Waiting is."

tpatt100

I would look at more than specs, I see this all the time on the Android forums and a lot of Android devices are competing with each other based purely on "specs" but throwing bigger/faster hardware doesn't always mean the device performs better. I would check out the review sites and see some benchmarks but most importantly I would look at who is making the device

shaqazoolu

I have the original Transformer and it's awesome. The Prime is supposed to be launched in December some time so I recommend holding out for that and either picking up the one that I have for a bargain or going all out and getting a Prime. The Lenovo tab has promise, but Asus has clearly already established themselves as a (if not the) premier Android tablet provider. This means that their devices will likely be the first to get compatibility support and new software (ICS and beyond) similar to how Samsung is with phones.

wilsonian

Would anyone consider the Galaxy 10.1 or are there better units out there?

demonfurbie

wilsonian wrote: »

Would anyone consider the Galaxy 10.1 or are there better units out there?

the issue with the galaxy is that expand-ability is next to none and its a dual core when quad cores are out or coming with in the next 2 months

shaqazoolu

IMO, if you want a status symbol, get a Galaxy tab. If you want something functional, get a Transformer or Iconia. If you want something that is cheap, slightly less powerful but will still be useful, get a Kindle Fire.

kriscamaro68

swild wrote: »

I saw where it said that the Lenovo would have double the memory, but didn't see the memory or processor speeds. Can you link that?

The double memory alone almost decides it in favor of the Lenovo, also, that fingerprint scanner doubles as a "digital joystick" which I am VERY curious about. If it is like a touchpad mouse right where your index finger is when holding it, that would be amazing. Looks like I will probably be waiting for the Lenovo. As Valentine Michael Smith says, "Waiting is."

Here is the link to the specs: Exclusive: Lenovo to release a 10.1-inch Ice Cream Sandwich tablet with 1.6GHz Tegra 3 by year's end -- Engadget

I think the speed of the ram will make a big difference in the response time of this tablet. Only reviews will tell though.

kriscamaro68

tpatt100 wrote: »

I would look at more than specs, I see this all the time on the Android forums and a lot of Android devices are competing with each other based purely on "specs" but throwing bigger/faster hardware doesn't always mean the device performs better. I would check out the review sites and see some benchmarks but most importantly I would look at who is making the device

Not sure how they can compete with specs considering that just about every android tablet has the same tegra 2 processor and all run the same speed ddr2 and all have 1gb of ram. The only difference in specs is the camera and screens used. Not much else spec wise that sets any of them apart.

SteveLord

kriscamaro68 wrote: »

Not sure how they can compete with specs considering that just about every android tablet has the same tegra 2 processor and all run the same speed ddr2 and all have 1gb of ram. The only difference in specs is the camera and screens used. Not much else spec wise that sets any of them apart.

Exactly. And cores/"Ghz" are nothing but a means to drain battery faster, but make for a great buzzword for phonesheep to buy products. Even the most taxing PC games barely use 4 cores.

tpatt100

kriscamaro68 wrote: »

Not sure how they can compete with specs considering that just about every android tablet has the same tegra 2 processor and all run the same speed ddr2 and all have 1gb of ram. The only difference in specs is the camera and screens used. Not much else spec wise that sets any of them apart.

Do they? hmm my experience I was speaking from was when I was shopping around for a new Android phone. Everybody was arguing over specs alone and I was reading how some phones had hardware that was great but lousy software behind it like the software pairing with the camera on the phone.

kriscamaro68

tpatt100 wrote: »

Do they? hmm my experience I was speaking from was when I was shopping around for a new Android phone. Everybody was arguing over specs alone and I was reading how some phones had hardware that was great but lousy software behind it like the software pairing with the camera on the phone.

Phones are a different story. There is so many different hardware setups for phones that it could be on par with the amount of stars in the galaxy. As for current tablets they are all pretty much the same thing. As for what is coming out, so far I have only seen asus and lenovo come out with possible specs and they differ in what they offer for once.

demonfurbie

after seeing this

NVIDIA Tegra 3: Side by Side Comparisons - YouTube

i know that quad core is most def the way to go when shopping

the blog where i got the vid

http://blogs.computerworld.com/19245/asus_transformer_prime_quad_core

SteveLord

demonfurbie wrote: »

after seeing this

NVIDIA Tegra 3: Side by Side Comparisons - YouTube

i know that quad core is most def the way to go when shopping

the blog where i got the vid

Asus Transformer Prime: Does quad-core really matter? - Computerworld Blogs

Awesome. I should totally believe a video promoting an Nvidia product...that was created by Nvidia because they would never stretch it just a little bit. Also, using the term "Competition" without any specifics is perfectly acceptable.

erpadmin

I just spent hours playing with the Toshiba Thrive. I already updated it with Honeycomb 3.2 before I put anything else on it. So far, it seems stable. Skype works, Netflix quality is so-so but watchable. I have the 16GB model and that's without an 80GB SD card (so far). If you can find one at the $299 price point, I'd hold off for that. It is a bit heavier than the Tab, but it's really not terrible. I have it tethered to a rooted 3G phone and the Internet speed is really not terrible. (Necessary if you take this thing out of the house, IMO.)

Whether it's for work or play, it doesn't seem like a terrible tablet. It gets decent reviews and Toshiba is not known for making s----y product. Updating to Honeycomb 3.2 (legitimately through Toshiba) was very straightforward once I had a wifi connection.

tpatt100

Went to Best Buy today during lunch to get a new xbox controller, checked out the Kindle Fire. Its a really nice device I wouldnt trade in my ipad for it though but it seems to be a good fit for somebody who has an e ink kindle and wants a tablet just not the price. Its like sort of in the middle of an ereader and tablet.

Anyways I picked up a Xoom, not sure if the Best Buy near my house had some crappy Xooms on display but this one was very snappy, not laggy like the other one I tried. I also checked out the "Family" edition one and the price seemed nice. I have a first gen iPad and I want something a little quicker but dont want to pay for an iPad. I just need to check to see if there are Android apps for the apps I use for WGU and their ebooks.

SteveLord

tpatt100 wrote: »

Went to Best Buy today during lunch to get a new xbox controller, checked out the Kindle Fire. Its a really nice device I wouldnt trade in my ipad for it though but it seems to be a good fit for somebody who has an e ink kindle and wants a tablet just not the price. Its like sort of in the middle of an ereader and tablet.

Anyways I picked up a Xoom, not sure if the Best Buy near my house had some crappy Xooms on display but this one was very snappy, not laggy like the other one I tried. I also checked out the "Family" edition one and the price seemed nice. I have a first gen iPad and I want something a little quicker but dont want to pay for an iPad. I just need to check to see if there are Android apps for the apps I use for WGU and their ebooks.

I have a Xoom and it does perform well. The weight and shape don't rub me the right way though. SplashTop is a great remote desktop app you can use over wifi to play videos or even games on your destkop, from the Xoom.

demonfurbie

amazon market place is nice to add to any android tablet

nmap can be added as well

https://market.android.com/details?id=com.wjholden.nmap&feature=search_result#?t=W251bGwsMSwyLDEsImNvbS53amhvbGRlbi5ubWFwIl0.

swild

I really like the asus and the keyboard but I think that I am going to have to wait for the Lenovo. The stylus and the double ram are really made me decide. I'm hoping that it comes out before Christmas. I have the money set aside now and will just have to sit on it until it comes out. Of course if it gets crappy reviews, I will hate that I waited and will go get the asus anyways.

Dakinggamer87

I'm waiting for the Asus Transformer Prime if I decide to get a tablet