Full Review: ASUS Transformer Book T100

The ASUS Transformer Book T100 was one of the few Windows 8 hybrid machines that got us excited this year upon announcement. The thought of having a fully featured Windows 8 laptop with a detachable tablet at an affordable price was a compelling offer for several reasons. First, we can’t do our blogging on an iPad even if we got a keyboard for it. Second, the ASUS Transformer Book T100’s capability to let you use the complete (not watered down) Microsoft Office suite was, in our minds, a true game changer. Lastly, the portable and compact form factor made it an ideal entertainment and media device.

In the last few weeks we’ve been alternating between the ASUS Transformer Book T100 and our usual daily driver laptop. We’re happy to report that the ASUS Transformer Book T100 performed like a true soldier – reliable, sturdy, and versatile. Read on for our full review.

ASUS Transformer Book T100 Spec Sheet

• Intel Atom Bay Trail-T Z3740 Quad-core Processor
• 2GB RAM
• Intel HD Graphics
• 64GB Internal Storage Options, expandable via MicroSD
• 10.1-inch IPS Panel, 1366×768 Display Resolution
• HDMI, USB 3.0, Micro USB Ports
• 11 Hours Battery LIfe
• Pre-installed with Microsoft Office Home & Student 2013

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Made for Portability

The ASUS Transformer Book T100, when closed, looks like your usual PC netbook. The chassis is mostly made from glossy plastic that’s colored dark blue/gray. Along the sides you’ll find all the ports plus the buttons/controls – micro HDMI, USB 3.0, micro SD, micro USB, power lock, volume rocker, and a dedicated Windows Home button under the volume rocker (weird placement). In terms of branding, the ASUS logo is proudly embossed at the top of the lid and a sticker of Windows 8 is at the bottom.

Opening it will reveal the 10.1-inch IPS Panel and the Keyboard Docking Station. Let’s start with the display! While the resolution, color production, and viewing angles are quite good, 10.1-inches is really not the best sized display especially if you’re going to use this for extended hours for productivity or even gaming activities. For short bursts of work (like when you’re on-the-go), it does the job but if you will be using it for hours you might end up a bit frustrated with the 10.1-inch display size. Fortunately there are workarounds for this. For example, you can connect the T100 to a bigger monitor via micro HDMI and then connect a better keyboard via USB. You can basically use the machine as your PC but the monitor and keyboard will be different.

By the way, one last gripe before we move to the keyboard — the Windows logo on the bezel of the display is just for aesthetics. It doesn’t have any function unlike other Windows tablets. We kept on pressing this to go to the Metro interface to no avail, lol.

Next let’s check out the Keyboard Docking Station. The chiclet keys are actually very responsive and nice to type on due to the tactile feel. However it is quite cramped since it’s made for a 10.1-inch display. The touchpad is also kind hard to press down on. Best way to use for extended periods of time? Bring your own mouse or touchpad, hehe.

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There’s a deep slide-based button on the keyboard that you use to detach the 10.1-inch display so you can use it as a Windows 8 tablet. What do you do with a Windows-based tablet? Based on our initial few weeks with it, we used it more as a multi-media player and basic communications device (e-mail, social networking). Usual way we used it was work for half an hour to an hour in laptop mode and then detach use a tablet for “break time” when we watch movies or waste time on Facebook, Twitter, or Web Browsing.

When it comes to the hardware, the ASUS Transformer Book T100 shines as a portable, compact, and on-the-go hybrid machine.

Performance: Surprisingly Very Capable!

So what the Intel Atom Bay Trail-T Z3740 Quad-core Processor combined with 2GB RAM and Intel HD Graphics do? Apparently, a lot!

From a productivity standpoint, you can pretty much do almost all the usual tasks without any major lags or delays. This includes the full suite of Microsoft Office — Word, PowerPoint, Outlook, and Excel. Connect a nice responsive mouse via USB and you can work on your next presentation, report, or excel worksheet as if you were on a normal laptop. By the way, when in laptop mode, we used the device mostly on Desktop UI (see photo below). We only used Metro when we were using it as a tablet.

For gaming we installed and played (without any major issues but on Low-Mid settings) StarCraft 2, HON, LOL, and Diablo 3. Looks like the new Baytrail of Intel can really do a lot of wonders even with the low price point. Definitely two thumps up from us for this!

While there’s definitely sufficient power in the machine, as mentioned earlier the 10.1-inch display can be taxing on your eyes if you use it for prolonged periods.

Verdict: Redefines the Segment

The ASUS Transformer Book T100 will go on to define and reinvigorate the hybrid segment for computers. At Php23,995 it’s truly a game-changing product and given enough marketing support, the T100 can easily qualify as the hybrid machine of choice of a lot of a consumers. That’s probably the case already though since we were told that it’s currently sold out in gadget stores in malls. Stores are waiting for the new batch of orders to come in. Naks, what a good problem to have! Hehe.

As a last tip: if you want to maximize the T100 we suggest you build around it. Get a monitor, mouse, and keyboard for prolonged sessions.