I have a Nexus 7 2012 that I am going to pass that down to my youngest daughter for Xmas and I am thinking about a replacement.
Everything I've read seems to point to this as something that will handle my college school work (CS) and still be able to have some fun with it (games, media, traveling, etc).
The keyboard dock is what elevates this and the only close competitor seems to be the HP Slatebook X2 (as far as I can tell).
My question is, would you buy it NOW, or wait until spring 2015 to see if there is something new that competes with the Transformer TF701 ? Is there even talk of a replacement model??
Thanks!
I am in the same boat. I have owned three prevoius Transformer model. FYI don't the HP tablet, owned it for a week and return it. The TF701 looks attractive with the pricing now
Sent from my SM-P600 using XDA Free mobile app
I think it's a good tablet for a lower price yes.
I would not say do not buy it as it is good.
It may not be the best however with what may soon come out, but we'll likely be paying for that, whatever that is(nvidia, octacores, hybrids etc.)
For gaming is very good and as a development device I would say so. It needs more developers.
Although the tegra targeted games are limited and more directed toward the Shield. But it shouldnt matter. Games like Dead Trigger 2, need 4 speed MW show you that its quite capable. I would say if it meets your needs and your on a budget it might make it ideal. :good:
YayYouFixedIt said:
I think it's a good tablet for a lower price yes.
I would not say do not buy it as it is good.
It may not be the best however with what may soon come out, but we'll likely be paying for that, whatever that is(nvidia, octacores, hybrids etc.)
For gaming is very good and as a development device I would say so. It needs more developers.
Although the tegra targeted games are limited and more directed toward the Shield. But it shouldnt matter. Games like Dead Trigger 2, need 4 speed MW show you that its quite capable. I would say if it meets your needs and your on a budget it might make it ideal. :good:
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
My thought about this device was that it would allow be to still have great screen resolution, still give a lot of flexibility with ports and expansion, and be much smaller/lighter than lugging my aging macbook pro 15" around to school.
What about the KitKat sd card writing issue? I've never unlocked any of my android devices and it sounds like if I get the TF701 that I'm going to have an issue being able to expand the memory. I am hoping to use this in class which means I may need to write to USB keys or sd cards.
It's either this device or a chromebook (and I don't think a chromebook will work for my school work).
dsnye said:
My thought about this device was that it would allow be to still have great screen resolution, still give a lot of flexibility with ports and expansion, and be much smaller/lighter than lugging my aging macbook pro 15" around to school.
What about the KitKat sd card writing issue? I've never unlocked any of my android devices and it sounds like if I get the TF701 that I'm going to have an issue being able to expand the memory. I am hoping to use this in class which means I may need to write to USB keys or sd cards.
It's either this device or a chromebook (and I don't think a chromebook will work for my school work).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I dont see a problem with the microsd card myself.
I dont own a dock so I cant say how well those features are working. I wouldnt think theres too much of an issue.
I would not buy a chromebook myself. I never owned one and would not as it sounds like it is only limited to a web browser and as well having security and privacy issues. I could be wrong.
Could this be a total replacement for a mac or pc? Hard for me to say. Not likely.
There is no touch in the recovery yet. No linux yet afaik. But you can use linux deploy and vnc quite well to it. Not really an issue. I like the HDMI out. Get a proper game controller and its a gaming platform. We'll see what the future holds with Lollipop on the way.
Otherwise I think it has been pretty good. If you can return it and get it at a good price. Might be worth a try.
For what it's worth...
dsnye said:
I have a Nexus 7 2012 that I am going to pass that down to my youngest daughter for Xmas and I am thinking about a replacement.
Everything I've read seems to point to this as something that will handle my college school work (CS) and still be able to have some fun with it (games, media, traveling, etc).
The keyboard dock is what elevates this and the only close competitor seems to be the HP Slatebook X2 (as far as I can tell).
My question is, would you buy it NOW, or wait until spring 2015 to see if there is something new that competes with the Transformer TF701 ? Is there even talk of a replacement model??
Thanks!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This is the age old dilemma we tech fans face. Do we wait for that next big "shiny" just around the corner. The difficulty is that there will always be something bigger and better just around the corner. And the thing to remember also, as was pointed out by another poster, when it does arrive, it will be at a premium price.
So, for what it's worth, I'd say, if the tablet satisfies your needs now and a little in the future, go ahead and get it now. I had a 700, and migrated to a 701. And for all the little irritating "bumps" with Asus/KK, etc, I'm very happy with my tablet. When the new thing arrives, if you have the cash, and it appeals to you, get that one. In the mean time, you'll be having fun with the 701. If you simply wait, you'll be missing out on a lot of utility/fun.
I loves me my baby. :silly:
warning:
you unlock bootloader, you void your whole warranty(including hardware warranty).
So unless you don't want to root, go buy a nexus device.
alvinma said:
warning:
you unlock bootloader, you void your whole warranty(including hardware warranty).
So unless you don't want to root, go buy a nexus device.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That is a good point.
I'm biased and I do like this tablet very much, but at this point in time I probably would think about it more.
They put a lot of power behind those Chromebooks. I'm not so sure why. Supposedly you can dual boot Linux on them. But they some have arm as well as Tegra k1 processors. Hard to say how linux would install and operate on them.
You can always buy one and return it.......so you can have a taste of the ddifference between a nexus tablet and this one.
personally I recommend you buy a nexus 9 or nexus 10, not only because the better user experience(yes it hardly feels like butter smoth on ASUS stock 4.3), but also because of the customer support and quality ensured by Google, Samsung &htc. I went to RMA my TF701t recently and their serve cenTer is full of the smell of bureaucracy, 4 PPL at front desk doing nothing.......leaves me imagining charges after void warranty goes into those ppl's pocket.......so not gonna buy any ASUS product in the future......
The OP mentions he may need to be able to read and write to USB keys and SD cards, for which the TF701 and dock would be much more convenient. None of the Nexus tablets has a card slot, and to read flash drives you'd need to install a third-party file browser and use a USB OTG adaptor.
I'm guessing the lack of news from Asus means that they're giving up on the high end of the tablet market, so there may be no true successor to the TF701.
I think the TF701 is still great feature-wise, but you should try to get a broad-coverage warranty if you buy it! There have been too many users with dock problems, and as others have mentioned you'll void Asus' warranty if you unlock the bootloader to install custom roms.
Related
I'm thinking hard but not sure what to do.
Someone at work wants to buy my old Dell XPS M140. I've upgraded the original 1.83Ghz processor with 2GB DDR2 RAM and Windows 7. They have offered $400 US.
I always said that I wanted to wait to get rid of that (or replace it without selling it) when there was a decent netvertible or tablet PC out there. Right now, I can't find anything to replace it!!!
I've looked at reviews of the Viliv S10 Blade, Eee PC T101MT, and Lenovo IdeaPad S10-3T, all with bad hardware or slower performance. I definitely will not be buying anything that's slower than my current laptop. I take very good care of my PCs so it runs nice.
I discovered the HP Touchsmart TM2T today, which looked nice in the beginning, but in order for that to last me 3-5 years, I'd have to upgrade the processor and available RAM making it over $1000 US.
Talking about an upgrade just gets me excited but I don't want to make an irrational decision. Nowadays, I only use my laptop for travel but it's a must have (going to Boston in 2 weeks). My fiancee has a laptop, but I do have a touch of the "I want to drive" attitude when it comes to tech stuff.
This all in the same week that I'll probably be purchasing a Canon 500D DSLR camera. HMMMMM..... I don't like to blow money on my tech purchases. I feel I really need to get my money's worth in use. Notice that my XPS M140 was released and purchased in 2005.
Any advice?
Well, if you can't find anything that you like and waiting isn't a possibility I wouldn't sell. But, this oportunity may not come again? I'd suggest doing what you feel would be the most logical for your situation. If it were me, I would sell it and wait, but that may not be an option if you really need something before you can sell.
Sell it and get an ipad man srsly
AND WHY IS IT THAT I CANNOT TYPE IN ALL CAPS ANYMORE WTF
Please, no Apple products. I'm not slow with technology so I don't need things dumbed down.
I might go ahead and sell. Really, where am I going to get $400 for a 5 year old laptop anywhere? I think that's half off the original price. HOOGA!
Exactly. I would sell it to. Good luck!
"HP Touchsmart TM2T"
I would be careful getting that
it's in the same line of hp combi tablets which overheat and die in huge numbers and hp
fight to avoid any sort of rma
mine which is an older generation tx1270 only works now and then because it gets too hot and both the wifi chip and gpu loose connection with the pcb
overheating it for a while makes it come back to life but only for soo long
also it gets too hot to use as a tablet and makes too much noise
of cause the tm2t don't got the culpit nvidia 6250 which hp's poor cooling design caused the issue but would still not trust hp
Don't get the HP. I have had 3 HP tablets (1000, 1100, and the touchsmart - upgraded all to 2G of memory). As the poster above me stated the touchsmart gets very hot and eventually ine died while the 2 older slate-types are both running strong. I love my tablets but the touchsmart is not a good buy.
Look around for something better. I also have a netbook and while it won't run my Access databases it runs most everything else just fine. It's over a year old Samsung and I put an additional gig of memory. All in all ran me just over $300 from Amazon (including the $25 for the extra memory).
Depends on what you need from a PC. I find that my netbook does everything my touchsmart did and just about as fast.
donnaw said:
Don't get the HP. I have had 3 HP tablets (1000, 1100, and the touchsmart - upgraded all to 2G of memory). As the poster above me stated the touchsmart gets very hot and eventually ine died while the 2 older slate-types are both running strong. I love my tablets but the touchsmart is not a good buy.
Look around for something better. I also have a netbook and while it won't run my Access databases it runs most everything else just fine. It's over a year old Samsung and I put an additional gig of memory. All in all ran me just over $300 from Amazon (including the $25 for the extra memory).
Depends on what you need from a PC. I find that my netbook does everything my touchsmart did and just about as fast.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ugh, that's such a shame.
I guess there really isn't anything I want right now. I want a multitouch tablet because I want to be there when the multitouch revolution turns, but there is absolutely nothing good in that market for a reasonable price. The Fujistu's are just way too expensive.
UGH, this pisses me off.
Did not make me happy either since it was 3 months after warranty expired. Too expensive to fix. Since I had had so much good luck with the previous models I was pretty unhappy at the quality. It was a nice PC. Oh well....
I'm waiting on a new slate too and was waiting for HP to put out their new one running Win7. But I'm reading that they pulled the plug. We'll see. I would spring for it even after the touchsmart thing. I want one that runs a full Windows OS (not an IPad or some such). Perhaps later this fall something will come out.
Good luck on your hunt.
Not saying the Ipad is bad but I want a full OS. I have some apps I need to load and Ipad won't handle them. So it doesn't meet my needs. Since I own a bunch of Apple stock I am glad that it meets a lot of other's needs. Just doesn't cut it for me.
Yeah, I'd like a full OS, too. One without boundaries and rules.
it looks like the HP Touchsmart Tm2 is coming out with i3 and i5 versions this summer. I'm in line...
sandboxlove said:
actually i played with the ipad, it wasnt nearly as bad as people were making it out to be.
the only reason i wouldnt go there is lack of usb ports (and need for about 40 different adapters to obtain usb) and no flash.
why the hell wouldnt apple include a usb port? jesus
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I agree, the iPad is fun to use but it lacks the major functionality like editing audio like a pro.
sandboxlove said:
actually i played with the ipad, it wasnt nearly as bad as people were making it out to be.
the only reason i wouldnt go there is lack of usb ports (and need for about 40 different adapters to obtain usb) and no flash.
why the hell wouldnt apple include a usb port? jesus
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Because consumers will still buy the iPad, and the next gen is probably going to have USB ports.
lol ive played with a ipad myself not a bad idea but really its just a big ipod touch and if you can get $400 for a 5 year old laptop do it personaly i would never spend that much for a laptop that old not seeing how i spent 480 and got a brandnew notebook with dual core 2.1 4gigs of ram 320gig hdd and ati Hd3200 video card and i have it hooked upto my 46inch samsung dlp hdtv through HDMI
igotit989 said:
lol ive played with a ipad myself not a bad idea but really its just a big ipod touch and if you can get $400 for a 5 year old laptop do it personaly i would never spend that much for a laptop that old not seeing how i spent 480 and got a brandnew notebook with dual core 2.1 4gigs of ram 320gig hdd and ati Hd3200 video card and i have it hooked upto my 46inch samsung dlp hdtv through HDMI
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well, I'm optimizing it for him (Best Buy charges $200 for that) and it has Office Pro and Windows 7, free wireless mouse, Kensington laptop bag, and a bunch of other accessories.
Hi all. Im considering to buy a touchpad for personal uses. I understand that webOS is rather ok, except for the lack of applications to play around with and thus android is there to save the day. However are there any major bugs in the android alpha builds? The price to me is very reasonable. Another thing that worries me is the internal memory, that is if the 16gb will run out fast? Please, any touchpad users just help me to recommend, that would be great!
Buying HP Touch pad and have ICS on it is worth it. After ICS update on HP Touch pad I have compare Motorola XOOM and HP Touch pad they both look same you will lot and lots of money buying HP Touch pad.
At firesale prices? Yes. Otherwise, why not wait for the next wave of ICS tablets to come out?
Its not really that firesale pirced where i'm from... abour 170USD.. but thats considered affordable still to me. But is it worth getting one? As in would i regret once i bought it?
thunderskain said:
Hi all. Im considering to buy a touchpad for personal uses. I understand that webOS is rather ok, except for the lack of applications to play around with and thus android is there to save the day. However are there any major bugs in the android alpha builds? The price to me is very reasonable. Another thing that worries me is the internal memory, that is if the 16gb will run out fast? Please, any touchpad users just help me to recommend, that would be great!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
WebOS is under sung. It has some really cool features, and I'm personally hoping to see it grow and expand in the coming years.
That said, there's also Android. But as skypagers fails to point out...there are still quite a few significant bugs to be worked out in both Gingerbread and ICS builds. Including camera functionality, including chat (in both GB and ICS), video playback, including youtube (in the ICS builds), skype etc etc etc. The sh*t crashes and you might get force-closes and reboots...they're not uncommon at all.
But really it's personal preference. If you've got the scratch, just get a 64GB Transformer Prime with the docking station. If money means nothing, then avoid the HPTP. It's high maintenance, and still everything doesn't work. If you're looking for a badass deal on a great tablet that let's you modify, hack and tweak the f*ck out of it...then the HPTP is for you.
I got 2 32GB's in the 2nd firesale and my wife and I both love them. But my roommate just got his Transformer Prime...let's just say that now, I'm strongly considering selling mine to upgrade to the 700 when it drops in a few months.
I agree with danknee, if you can wait and have the loot. Get something that will be less maintenance. But if you can get a kickass deal, which would put a HPTP in your hands tomorrow...why wait?
I personally like web os better than Android. If you install preware and adjust a few things, the touchpad is rather enjoyable. While there is a lack of apps, if you're plans for the touchpad are mostly web browsing, music, video playback, and an occasional game, you'll have no regrets. And if you get bored or find yourself needing more, there's always android.
BTW, I own 2 32gb touchpads, one dualboots with cm7 and the other cm9. Space has never been an issue either. I have all seasons of archer, ugly Americans, bobs burgers, a half dozen hour long comedy specials, and a few gigs of music. With all that, still have 11gb free. So space hasn't been an issue yet.
sean is here. said:
WebOS is under sung. It has some really cool features, and I'm personally hoping to see it grow and expand in the coming years.
That said, there's also Android. But as skypagers fails to point out...there are still quite a few significant bugs to be worked out in both Gingerbread and ICS builds. Including camera functionality, including chat (in both GB and ICS), video playback, including youtube (in the ICS builds), skype etc etc etc. The sh*t crashes and you might get force-closes and reboots...they're not uncommon at all.
But really it's personal preference. If you've got the scratch, just get a 64GB Transformer Prime with the docking station. If money means nothing, then avoid the HPTP. It's high maintenance, and still everything doesn't work. If you're looking for a badass deal on a great tablet that let's you modify, hack and tweak the f*ck out of it...then the HPTP is for you.
I got 2 32GB's in the 2nd firesale and my wife and I both love them. But my roommate just got his Transformer Prime...let's just say that now, I'm strongly considering selling mine to upgrade to the 700 when it drops in a few months.
I agree with danknee, if you can wait and have the loot. Get something that will be less maintenance. But if you can get a kickass deal, which would put a HPTP in your hands tomorrow...why wait?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for the in deph analysis. I have to agree with what you said there. Understand the new ics tablets are a better choice for now but yeah, money wise is an issue so I have to lower my limits. Basically I don't really hve any uses for a tablet but just wanna get one so as to experience the tablet feel and when time to come I'm bored, I could just sell it off. So high priced tablets are a no go for me. Besides, the transformer prime does not seem to be available in my country yet.
Based on everyone replies, I think I could make a better choice now! Thanks guys!
Sent from my HTC Pyramid using xda premium
Consider this: ASUSEee Pad MeMO 370T. For about $250 you get a quad core 7" that comes with ICS. Of course you are going to have to wait to get one like the rest of us until the second quarter of the year. I'm planning on picking one of these bad boy when it comes out.
For what you want to do, no. For learning how to mess around with this stuff, sure. But its not a reliable device for everyday use not yet at least. Wait for the new wave of tablets and get something from a decent company like Asus or Samsung .
Fehnix22 said:
For what you want to do, no. For learning how to mess around with this stuff, sure. But its not a reliable device for everyday use not yet at least. Wait for the new wave of tablets and get something from a decent company like Asus or Samsung .
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This is good advice. I'd also say that even if you do get your Touchpad running Android as well as the rest of us, there might be some issues that will never go away. I'm not sure there are enough developer resources to fix the spotty WiFi, the sound distortion on sleep, the camera, or the dozens of other little imperfections. It's a device for the hobbyist.
I have most of my music collection on my 16 GB Touchpad and still have a few gigabytes left. It's good enough, although you'd only be able to store half a dozen movies on there at once.
While I think the touchpad is an awesome device and disagree with many of the complaints about CM9 being showstoppers, thought I'd share the Acer Iconia a500 is $299 on woot.com. Today only, while supplies last. 32 GB, 10.1" screen, tegra 2 1GHz dual core, 1GB RAM, microSD slot, running honeycomb. Similar specs to the TouchPad, but was designed for Android.
Sent from my Galaxy S II (i777)
Acer Iconia a500 is $299 on woot.com
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
don't think it worth 130$ more.
IMHO:
If you have low budget and you are not perfectionist - buy touchpad. Yes, it's not perfect, it still have some bugs in 2.3 but they are minor and overall it's working pretty good. And stable enough 4.0 we will probably see in next few months.
Also check 7" formfactor, if you like it then probably better to wait for asus 7" tablet for 250$.
If you have 500-600$ in your pocket that you don't need, wait for updated transformer prime or something like this
getbuzzin said:
Consider this: ASUSEee Pad MeMO 370T. For about $250 you get a quad core 7" that comes with ICS. Of course you are going to have to wait to get one like the rest of us until the second quarter of the year. I'm planning on picking one of these bad boy when it comes out.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah, heard about that and it sounds too good a bargain too. But does ASUS have good android development around? At least i can see that the touchpad has a ready team of developers right now...
and the $250 is the dual core model..
go for it, not only can u run android but web os and Linux this thing is pretty much the hd2 of tablets, I just picked up mine for 150$ and I'm loving it.
my honest review...
I've never owned an 'official' android tablet. I have 2 touchpads and one nook color. The HP touch pad is a great device. But there are some serious downsides:
1: fit & finish... there's a reason for so many refurbished models. My wife's is hardly used and has a cracked case near the speaker. It has maybe 2 hours of use total. And its been in a case 100% of the time. No explanation HP. None at all. I won't send it back because everything else works.
2: Android is a shoehorn and always will be. The current WIFI and kernel glitch are the only two real downsides to android on the Touch pad. If you use Gtalk w/video chat or Skype also stay away. The front camera isn't working, but it sucks anyways so IMO its not an issue. ICS is the only way to use the touch pad. GB was more stable but ICS is built for tablets and it shows. The kernel being very buggy for OTG is also a annoyance.
3: its a little heavier and a little thicker than the competition. Its noticeable but not really bad. The formfactor is also much different. The Touchpad is square like the iPad and the Xoom, 10.1, Transformer are more rectangular. If you like holding an original iPad then this isn't much different. Don't discount WebOS either. Its a very pretty OS. It has a lot of nice features. I don't use it much but its not awful and useless like some people make it. It is going to find much less use now that ICS brings that killer web browser.
My conclusion.....
The touchpad is still a sweet deal. 170ish for a 10in 1.5ghz 1GB ram 16GB is great. The nook tablet comes close but its more expensive and 7in. When you start getting close to 250 for a 32GB its a little rougher, especially with the deals on woot and stuff. Also compusa has refurb Transformer 16gb for 299 which isn't bad.
Sent From Nexi - The Galaxy Nexus
Padfone or G-Nexus-7 combination
I've been using a SIM-free (unlocked and rooted) Motorola Atrix 4G with the lapdock everyday as my "daily-driver" phone/laptop solution since April of last year. I used the webtop, and later on, a modded version of Gentoo with Google Docs and Libre Office to get things done. I work at a university, so if I need something other than regular office software, I just use one of the hundreds of workstations I have access to on our campuses-- I've never experienced the so-called limitations that the lapdock+phone combo presents, and the fact that I ride very crowded trains in Tokyo precludes me from bringing my $1500+ laptop around everyday.
So when the Asus Padfone came out, I was sure that this would be my upgrade path! A phone that goes into a tablet that clips onto a keyboard. Brilliant! But hang on-- now there's the Nexus 7... Pure Google, and OPEN... That plus a Galaxy-Nexus... hmmmmm.... Could that also do the trick??
Well, there's always "let's wait and see a few more months..." But the obvious happened a week ago-- my Atrix's screen gave up the ghost... Sure I can plug it into HDMI, and use the lapdock just fine, but I can't use it as a phone... GRRRR!! Oh, and check out my location to the left-- I live in JAPAN, but I travel a lot, and go back to the US every year; actually, I'm going home in a week for a month!! So I NEED a phone either just before I go, or when I get there....
REQUIREMENTS:
- SIM Free (unlocked): I travel. A lot. Internationally. I needs my unlock!
- Multi-band support: Japan uses 2100MHz for HSPA+, and so does most of Asia. The US is 850, 1900, 1700... I'd like to find a phone that supports both of these... The Padfone will only support the Asian frequency, but nothing in the States-- I'd be stuck on 2G back home for a month... I can tolerate that though because I'll at least have AT&T hotspot support. The G-Nexus of course has a PENTABAND 3G radio (why the F don't other phones <other than the iPhone> have this same radio?!) so it'll work with whatever network I throw at it.
- Open bootloader/Rooted: One of the things I really enjoyed about my Atrix was being able to tweak tweak tweak. The Nexus devices don't need an explanation here-- They're designed to root and tweak. The Padfone can be rooted now--but it's bootloader is locked... But with the exotic tweaks made to get the tablet and phone UI to work, I doubt I'd use a custom ROM anyhow.
- Tablet/Phone combo: I got spoiled by my Atrix. Being able to use a physical keyboard to respond to an incoming text message is really habit-forming. Especially if I need to type it in Japanese. Of course the Padfone would win here... Not sure if there's an app that lets you see the text and MMSs on a phone through a tablet though. The other obvious thing here is that the Padphone *IS* the tablet, once docked into the PadStation. No tethering, no separate data plan, no hotspot needed. The G-Nexus-7 combo would see me tethering the G-Nex to the Nex-7. Is there a simple app that can make an on-demand data connection between the two happen at will?
- Updates: This is what pissed me off about Motorola. The OG Atrix's Tegra 2 processor can more than handle ICS, but here it is almost 6 months later, and nothing. Luckily I can get Kang builds, but certain things just don't work for me--for example Chrome crashes ALL the time. Camera sucks, etc. Hence, I'm over using another Moto device. Obviously the Nexus duo will ALWAYS get the latest and greatest; no-brainer there. Asus? The TF series got their updates to ICS within the first 3 months IIRC. Since Jelly Bean is just a point update, perhaps the Padfone will see an update in the fall sometime--I can live with that.
- Ease of use: Not the OS, but the physical pieces... The G-Nex-7 combo is easy in the way that both are able to use the same charger (micro USB). Padfone just nests together. I like how the Padfone keyboard has USB ports and an SD card slot... Not to mentin BATTERIES galore. It's hard as hell trying to find a place to charge my phone all the time, and sometimes I'd just use the Moto's lapdock as a battery charger!
- Price: this is the kicker... The Galaxy Nexus/ Nexus 7 Combo will come out to less than US$600 when bought from the Google store. Even buying from a grey-market distributor in Taiwan, I can't buy the Padfone/PadStation/Keyboard combo for less that US$1000... I have barely that much to spend though.
Friends, I need some help deciding! Here are my pros and cons for each device as it stands today. I'm posting this in the Padfone, Galaxy Nexus, Nexus 7, and my old Motorola Atrix forums as well. I want some good honest and thoughtful opinions-- no haterism, flaming, or retardedness please. This is an extremely important purchase for me, and needs to be done ASAP.
As always, thank you so much for your opinions!
Your answer is in the OP. You're welcome.
starrwulfe said:
Not sure if there's an app that lets you see the text and MMSs on a phone through a tablet though
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.apdroid.tabtalk
And if you need a physical keyboard you can get a compact Bluetooth one off eBay for like $35 (maybe less?)
I own the Prime. Asus is TERRIBLE with their software support. Absolutely terrible. Go with the Nexus and enjoy quality software support from Google.
Sent from my Transformer Prime TF201 using xda premium
Psipherious said:
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.apdroid.tabtalk
And if you need a physical keyboard you can get a compact Bluetooth one off eBay for like $35 (maybe less?)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanx for that app tip! That's going on the "save" list. I can go to Akihabara (the famous Tokyo electronics shopping area) and get one for maybe even less--that's definitely part of my solution if I do the G-Nex-7 thing.
nyijedi said:
I own the Prime. Asus is TERRIBLE with their software support. Absolutely terrible. Go with the Nexus and enjoy quality software support from Google.
Sent from my Transformer Prime TF201 using xda premium
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And I've heard about ASUS's bad support at times... One of the reasons I switched from using an HP laptop to an Apple one, was because I can walk into any Apple store worldwide and get help with it. (I'm just as mad about them suing everyone into oblivion, and I'm not that flattered with iOS the way I am with Android, but I loves me some OSX for sure.)
Keep the opinions coming y'all. Thanx!
I've owned more than enough Android devices and the thing that always leaves me disenchanted with them in the end is the update fragmentation. I have the n7 on preorder and my x2 is set to be replaced by the g-nex in August. This is just my opinion but I think it's insane that I have to keep flashing roms that may or may not have all of my hardware working correctly just to get an update. Nexus devices represent what I feel google should have done at Androids launch to combat Apple. I plan to use my n7 as an iPad alternative until Windows Surface launches and I can get a tab with fully featured office for productivity.
Sent from my DROID X2 using xda premium
nyijedi said:
I own the Prime. Asus is TERRIBLE with their software support. Absolutely terrible. Go with the Nexus and enjoy quality software support from Google.
Sent from my Transformer Prime TF201 using xda premium
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Ya i've been waiting for the new asus infinity to come out but i know it will never get updated and i can at least get a bluetooth keyboard or some extra keyboard hooked up to the nexus 7 and type away
Gnex + N7 combo hands down.
Nexcellent said:
Gnex + N7 combo hands down.
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+1
10char
Nexcellent said:
Gnex + N7 combo hands down.
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Exactly this. If for nothing else, these two solid reasons:
A GNex + a Nexus 7 are cheaper than a Padfone
And the battery on the GSM model of the GNex is excellent compared to its LTE counterpart.
Treat yourself to some delicious Jelly Bean. =]
Not to mention, you can just buy the $70 3800mAh extended battery from Seidio with NFC if you are worried about battery life, and you'll still be paying way less than the Padfone. I ordered one for my dad's Verizon GNex the other day, and will finally be able to put in his phone when he comes home on sunday, since no other battery has been good enough, even with the Gummy ROM on his phone. =[
Hmm. Good point. One of my main concerns is battery life since I'll be tethering with this combo a lot. I forgot the NFC chip is in the battery and not the body... also I wonder if NFC is compatible with the Felicia systems used here in Japan for things like train passes and e-money.... the phone I'm using now has it... not a necessity though.
Sent from my SBM005SH using xda-developers app
seff5677 said:
Ya i've been waiting for the new asus infinity to come out but i know it will never get updated and i can at least get a bluetooth keyboard or some extra keyboard hooked up to the nexus 7 and type away
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Click to collapse
I wouldn't just worry about timely updates. I'd worry about decent performance. My Prime is a quad core device and it sucks total ass at playing games, browsing, and just about everything else. Constant lags and crashes. It's enraging. Do yourself a favor and stay away from Asus devices (the Nexus 7 will likely be different since it's a google device). You'll save yourself some huge headaches.
Sent from my Transformer Prime TF201 using xda premium
I think it's incredibly odd that there is so much Asus hate yet the N7 is an Asus device itself. Performance-wise with the N7, i'd imagine apps would perform similarly to the transformer prime seeing as it uses the same processor...
jpxdude said:
I think it's incredibly odd that there is so much Asus hate yet the N7 is an Asus device itself. Performance-wise with the N7, i'd imagine apps would perform similarly to the transformer prime seeing as it uses the same processor...
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The reason for the Asus hate is not their hardware, it's how they bloat up the OS after google passes it off to them. With the n7 Asus has nothing to do with the OS, they just make the hardware.
Sent from my DROID X2 using xda premium
So far most responses seem to support the Nexus combo.
I, however, when reading how you use your devices was thinking PadFone all the way. It seems like a better fit for you.
But just my 2 cents.
CGI_Ram said:
So far most responses seem to support the Nexus combo.
I, however, when reading how you use your devices was thinking PadFone all the way. It seems like a better fit for you.
But just my 2 cents.
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Click to collapse
The problem is, I think most of the benefits he would get from the padfone would be too minor to justify a $300-$400 price premium. And I am also not sure how well the phone part of it does by itself etc, Ive yet to check some reviews of the padfone. For all that extra money he could by himself some nice cases, screen protectors, bluetooth headsets etc. Even a pack of those little nfc coin things he might be able to put to good use.
Sent from my HTC Mecha using xda premium
jpxdude said:
I think it's incredibly odd that there is so much Asus hate yet the N7 is an Asus device itself. Performance-wise with the N7, i'd imagine apps would perform similarly to the transformer prime seeing as it uses the same processor...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Believe me, I was super pissed when word leaked that Asus was making the Nexus tablet. I'm not buying one solely for that reason. However, I do think the N7 should be okay since Google is taking care of the software instead of Asus and oversaw the hardware. Asus is completely incompetent. Google is not.
And as a Prime owner, if apps on the N7 perform similarly as the Prime, I'd suggest throwing it in the garbage. All browsers, Google Earth, tegra games - they're god awful on the Prime. Some of them are literally unusable. With that said, I'm sure apps on the N7 will run great thanks to Google.
Have I mentioned how awful Asus is?
Sent from my Transformer Prime TF201 using xda premium
I also use the Atrix + Laprtock as my entire molbile solution. And this includes "real" work which needs substantial typeing and screen real estate.
For me, dropping down to 10 inch would be a killer. I have tried using 10 inch netbooks, and it is a real pain. But maybe the OP can get away with this (younger eyes on a higher res screan, perhaps smaller fingers/hands).
But no way in the world can one work like this on a 7 inch screen.
If one is using the pair for light browsing + media then I cerrtainly see the GN + N7 as a sound choice. But for a working laptop replacement, not for me. Alas I am not certain a padphone works either (though I like the concept). I would certainly be concerned about the phone itself (there are a lot of deatils in this area that do not show up in specs, ask Apple).
A shame the OP just busted his scrreen. I suspect the right answer is to wait several months.
exwannabe said:
I also use the Atrix + Laprtock as my entire molbile solution. And this includes "real" work which needs substantial typeing and screen real estate.
For me, dropping down to 10 inch would be a killer.
But no way in the world can one work like this on a 7 inch screen.
A shame the OP just busted his scrreen. I suspect the right answer is to wait several months.
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Click to collapse
I had exactly that same question, so I trekked over to the local electronics shop near my home here in Yokohama, and they have an Asus TF201 set up there on wifi. The tablet's dimensions are Padfone sized-- 10 inches. They also had the keydock there too, so I got to test that out as well... Wow. Color me impressed. Remember, the 10" IPS screen has more pixels and a much wider and brighter viewing angle than the Moto OG Lapdock. The keyboard was also easy to type on, and I love the fact that there are actual keys for Home, Back, Volume, Menu, Play/Pause and so on.
CGI_Ram said:
So far most responses seem to support the Nexus combo.
I, however, when reading how you use your devices was thinking PadFone all the way. It seems like a better fit for you.
But just my 2 cents.
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Click to collapse
You're right-- It does seem like a better fit to me too, the more I think of it. Going and actually futzing with the TF201 yesterday didn't help though...
TauxiC said:
The problem is, I think most of the benefits he would get from the padfone would be too minor to justify a $300-$400 price premium. And I am also not sure how well the phone part of it does by itself etc, Ive yet to check some reviews of the padfone. For all that extra money he could by himself some nice cases, screen protectors, bluetooth headsets etc. Even a pack of those little nfc coin things he might be able to put to good use.
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Click to collapse
The phone part did pretty well according to Anandtech and Engadget--
Bear in mind that this is supposed to be saving me the cost of getting a netbook to take to work with me everyday as well too... As far as accessories, well I already have 2 bluetooth headsets just sitting on my desk in front of me now, along with a microUSB to USB port adaptor and micro HDMI M/F cables. All this was from me using the Atrix in various situations.
And while the Nexus Duo is a powerful combo, there are 2 things that I absolutely need to have in a device for the way I work-- SD card adaptor and Ethernet Adaptor.
I work in the Media faculty at the university and also teach photojournalism classes; I also freelance a lot too, and one of the things that helps me a lot, is being able to yank my SD card out the camera, snap it into a USB card reader and plug it into the Lapdock and have the Atrix see it, mount it, and access it. I can then do whatever I need to do to the pix while sitting on the train (Did you know the Bullet Trains here all have Wifi onboard, and can be used while in tunnels? I once wrote and uploaded 2 magazine articles, pix and all while on a 3 hour train ride!) The Padfone's keyboard dock has a full sized SDXC card adapter built in...
Also, while my university has wifi almost everywhere on campus, I cannot access the secured parts of the network where we house our common files for grading and such. We can only use the PC labs, office PC pools, or the ethernet ports in the staff rooms. Currently I use a small wifi adapter in bridge mode sometimes-- of course with the SSID not broadcast. But a better solution would be to get a USB Ethernet adaptor. I know the Transformer series has this baked into their kernels-- I think the Padfone can do it too. But I need to do some checking.
Can the Nexus Duo do some/any of these? Let me know how, so I can check off the boxes!
I wouldn't touch an android or ios tablet after the specs of the Microsoft surface the other windows 8 tablet with ivy bridge processors were revealed. Im done with android on anything but my smartphone. Only thing I need to know is the batter life on those beast.
IMHO, the answer is yes. Not only are they not including a memory card slot, but they are now intentionally removing the ability to attach external mass storage to the device. This feature has been built into android for a couple of versions now and the only possible reason is them forcing you to use their cloud, which is compounded by this being a wifi-only device.
Google, I'm really starting to be frustrated by your choices. Yes, this will be hacked to a solution, but it shouldn't have to be. I really REALLY really want to like the nexus 7 and buy one, but I just can't. Not in this handicapped format. That's just my 2 cent rant.
usb otg still works though..
Pretty sure it was just to keep costs down...
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using xda premium
El Daddy said:
Pretty sure it was just to keep costs down...
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using xda premium
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For which part? memory card slots are cheap and take up very little space. The act of removing usb storage ability from the OS took labor and therefore cost them money. I see very little cost saving in any of these decisions.
Seeing how Cloud functionality is Google's bread and butter, it seems only logical that they would do something like this, as they are attracting people to their ecosystem. The N7 is the perfect consumption device to do this.
For content creation, you should probably consider either an iPad or laptop, and again to hold stuff like various media and software, you would be better off with an Archos tablet, like the G9 series.
It even tells you when you try to buy the device that 'Nexus 7 was built for Google Play' it's not like they are trying to deceive people, so people with the wrong expectation that jump into purchasing one only have theirselves to blame:
https://play.google.com/store/devices/details/Nexus_7_8GB?id=nexus_7_8gb
I admit disappointment in not having microSD or the $50 upgrade for 8GB of additional storage. But I don't think Google is evil. I feel like I'm still getting a great deal out of this. Google and ASUS are making very little off the hardware, so it's natural that Google is going to put some limitations in to push people towards it's cloud content. I felt it was a reasonable compromise, so I bought one.
Poke_N_PDA said:
For which part? memory card slots are cheap and take up very little space. The act of removing usb storage ability from the OS took labor and therefore cost them money. I see very little cost saving in any of these decisions.
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I'm talking about the SD card slot. Also nexus devices haven't had an SD slot since the Nexus One. This is the way they want to go.
As far as USB storage. I'm pretty sure you can't use a USB stick via OTG without root access anyway.
I would state my opinions on both but I'm sure they differ from yours, so I will refrain to avoid a flame fest.
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using xda premium
Poke_N_PDA said:
For which part? memory card slots are cheap and take up very little space. The act of removing usb storage ability from the OS took labor and therefore cost them money. I see very little cost saving in any of these decisions.
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30 cents isn't much per unit but when you consider it's 30 cents say multiplied by 500,00 it adds up. Jellybean isn't out yet, it could be something as simple as bug that's causing the usb issues.
El Daddy I know the sgs 2 can do usb stick via otg without root.
I don't understand what the problem is. You stated that you're not buying it, therefore you're not stuck with something you don't want. There are plenty of tablets out there; surely there's ONE with the specs you want to buy. Why call Google evil because they didn't make something YOU want? It's a business decision. What do you call the other companies that don't live up to your expectations??
Ravynmagi said:
But I don't think Google is evil. I feel like I'm still getting a great deal out of this. Google and ASUS are making very little off the hardware, so it's natural that Google is going to put some limitations in to push people towards it's cloud content.
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They essentially neutered a good tablet (the Asus Me307t) in order to serve their own purposes. I call that evil.
Is it still a good deal? Yes. But by partnering like this, they've made it a worse deal than it otherwise would have been.
Microsoft surface running full windows 8
/thread
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Eagle1337 said:
El Daddy I know the sgs 2 can do usb stick via otg without root.
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That's probably a feature Samsung added.
Nexus devices don't have this functionality without root. (there is no way to mount it)
thebobp said:
They essentially neutered a good tablet (the Asus Me307t) in order to serve their own purposes. I call that evil.
Is it still a good deal? Yes. But by partnering like this, they've made it a worse deal than it otherwise would have been.
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Click to collapse
Why do you say that google netured the Me307t? I think it more likely Asus agreeded to hold off on releasing it for a few months in return for getting manufacturing right for a Nexus tablet, now they have that and the ability to bring out their own badged device with a spec boost to help them sell it.
I refer you to Google's slogan:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Don't_be_evil
I for one take them at their word. Heck of a lot better than other companies I could name.
shuflie said:
Why do you say that google netured the Me307t? I think it more likely Asus agreeded to hold off on releasing it for a few months in return for getting manufacturing right for a Nexus tablet, now they have that and the ability to bring out their own badged device with a spec boost to help them sell it.
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First of all, the Nexus and me307t are the same.
As for Asus releasing an "upgraded version" or a version more true to the original, I don't find that plausible at all; economies of scale, and by then the demand for such a similar tablet would be largely sated anyway.
Poke_N_PDA said:
For which part? memory card slots are cheap and take up very little space. The act of removing usb storage ability from the OS took labor and therefore cost them money. I see very little cost saving in any of these decisions.
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The actual hardware is cheap, however the licensing is not, it would have been around $30 extra each port.
If the missing options are bothering you so much then don't buy it. Calling Google "Evil" because they made a business decision to cut cost and promote their cloud platform is a bit extreme. Now calling Apple "Evil" for using super glue to secure their Lithium-Ion battery to the frame/bezel of their MacBook pretty much making the battery irreplaceable due to the high risk of the battery being damages and spilling toxic material all over is a fair statement. If the N7 doesn't meet your requirement then wait for another 7 inch tab maybe Asus will release another version of the Me307t.
Poke_N_PDA said:
IMHO, the answer is yes. Not only are they not including a memory card slot, but they are now intentionally removing the ability to attach external mass storage to the device. This feature has been built into android for a couple of versions now and the only possible reason is them forcing you to use their cloud, which is compounded by this being a wifi-only device.
Google, I'm really starting to be frustrated by your choices. Yes, this will be hacked to a solution, but it shouldn't have to be. I really REALLY really want to like the nexus 7 and buy one, but I just can't. Not in this handicapped format. That's just my 2 cent rant.
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Click to collapse
Dude, take 2 seconds and read the forums. The tablet supports USB storage. Now do a favor to anyone else that reads this thread and update your original post; you're going to confuse a lot of people.
jpoirier587 said:
Microsoft surface running full windows 8
/thread
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4x the price (assumed but likely), different hardware category altogether.
No. Where did they intentionally limit mass storage? A Googler even said that it is easy for a dev to write an app for the Nexus 7 to enable USB OTG without rooting.
They had a vision for this tablet as a window into the Play Store and as a direct competitor to Amazon's Kindle. And that's what it is. Would I have liked a SD slot? Hell yes. Is it evil that Google has said they want to move away from micro sd storage? Hell no.
Looking at replacing my TF201. I don't see any marshmallow roms even though my TF201, and the 300 both have them. I know this device is a couple years old, but I don't require a lot from the hardware for what I'm using it for. Has development stopped here, or is there still some life to be had?
Any helpful comments welcomed.
Thanks,
Matt
Compared to the TF201 this is so much better..consider to the TF300 with Tim's tweaks..it's so so..
But with that in mind..if you pick one up for $100-$150 then I would say go for it..
Pershoot is keeping a server going so that we get CM 12.1 lollipop 5.1.1 and we may even go to 13 as it matures..
As a general driver, it's ok.. games are fine and Kodi while travelling for HDMI input is good..makes it a light weight entertainment system..I usually carry a Bluetooth speaker so between music and movies/tv shows, I have a good travel system..
I still use mine daily, but as a media consumption device -- reading articles saved via Pocket, or watching videos. You can get better tablets for gaming (e.g. the Nvidia Shield), but I remember a year ago considering a replacement while getting my TF701 repaired, and there was nothing on the market that suited my needs.
All the 10" tablets were either: loaded with bloatware (Samsung), lacked an SD card slot (Nexus), or didn't have a Retina-level display. It was hard to find one that met my three criteria other than the TF701.
At the present time, I suppose the latest Sony or Dell might fit the bill, but it also depends on what price you can get and what sort of warranty. I find I almost never use the keyboard dock because I end up doing all my work on one of my laptops, but that could change if/when we get Marshmallow via Cyanogenmod.
Thanks for the replies. Got mine on Monday, and you were correct none of the problems with the 201 are there.
Yes, I am happy with it..
I bounce between a Nexus 7 and the TF701..
One thing I did do as its a known issue with these because of the low grade ram they used..
I use a program that I picked up from the Nexus 7 thread..it's called .. trimmer (fstrim) and set it to run once a day.. it might be placebo but I feel.it just helps to keep these and the Nexus 7 run a little smoother ..
I think this is what the cromi and zombi where achieving with running the Rom off a good sdcard. But I never felt I needed to go that route..
matthall9815 said:
Looking at replacing my TF201. I don't see any marshmallow roms even though my TF201, and the 300 both have them. I know this device is a couple years old, but I don't require a lot from the hardware for what I'm using it for. Has development stopped here, or is there still some life to be had?
Any helpful comments welcomed.
Thanks,
Matt
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There's more support on the tf300 for some unknown reason
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