Asus Eee Pad Slider Review

Asus Eee Pad slider review

Overview and Planning

We were completely taken by the Eee Pad transformer when it came out because he did anything other than the iPad, and then gave himself room to breathe away from the high shelf rifles.

Now his brother, the Asus Eee Pad Slider has arrived, and manages to be in the same way.

The specifications are fairly typical of tablets in those days. Eee Pad Slider has a Nvidia Tegra to a 2-GHz system-on-a-chip that offers dual-core power and good graphics performance, which powers Android 3.1 from the box (even if you can switch to 3.2, then once you are connected to the Internet, and Android 4.0 update is on the way).

There is 1 GB of RAM to keep the smooth multitasking, with 16 GB or 32 GB of internal memory, but a microSD card slot means you can increase this. Wi-Fi is present in the 802.11n standard, which is Bluetooth.

The screen is a generous 10.1-inch 1280 x 800 IPS case, so there is plenty of room for Android 3.2 that show us what he has. Let's go into detail about the quality of the screen in the performance page.

Of course, behind the screen, where things get interesting. By entering the top of it, drag it up so it slides back and is at an angle to reveal the keypad.

The front of the unit is glossy black with a silver border, like a lot of pills, including the Galaxy Tab 10.1, but the keyboard and back cover of the slide Eee Pad is a sort of chocolate brown, with a matte finish.

This is an unusual direction for tablets, but one we think works for it. The more we used the Eee Pad slider, the more we found that it is a compressed target office, and aesthetics should really. Overall, it bears much more resemblance to a BlackBerry Boldhandset than the iPhone, and we doubt thats coincidence.

The build quality of the two halves of the sliding pad Eee is great, strong feeling completely and without notice. Our only (albeit very low) with the concerns are the junctions between the two.

We do not expect the hinge to break if someone, for no good reason, but the way the screen is just loose and wobbly when in vertical position is the unequal relationship in which the solids in the rest of the device.

There is also a ribbon connecting the screen to the keyboard. Although we have no doubt that this provides a huge advantage in power consumption using Bluetooth technology to connect the two is an obvious weak point if the cursor should be an unexpected trip to the land.

On the sides, you not only get your microSD card slot, but the lock button, a volume rocker, a reset button is too easy to press, a mini-HDMI port for video output, the connection owner Asus USB connectivity and charging, a 3.5mm headphone jack, and a full size USB port.

Having two separate halves slip this pill, inevitably, means that it is much thicker than the competition. A 273 x 180.3 x 17.3 mm, which is about twice the thickness of an iPad 2, and 960 g is about 50 percent heavier.

The weight difference actually has to go from being comfortable to hold to be too heavy to hold in one hand for long. Between this and the drag, which puts the screen into a perfect angle for the office and the use of knees, shows that the cursor Eee Pad is less of a competitor for tablets like the iPad, and targets netbooks replace small and portable.

Eee Pad slider seems to be available for around £ 450 in its 32 GB, which is not as cheap as less than half the keyboard of the Eee Pad Transformer, but is a good value compared to most other Android tablets.

Feature

It is obvious to draw the main feature is its slider slider Eee Pad. Offering a wide range of keys, which has options for home, back and menu, and some of the clues that will help you save energy faster if you're worried about your life. Specifically, you can turn Bluetooth on and off, turn WiFi on and off, and adjust the brightness.

Asus has taken the same route as the other manufacturers when it comes to adapting Android on tablets, and included a range of carefully selected applications and widgets to make the original cursor stand out.

ASUS Launcher widget is a slick displays various pieces of information, including the last open site, the music currently playing, appontments calendar, weather, date, and slide images.

There is a lot to cram into a widget, but it works very well with a simple, no frills. Undoubtedly, the launcher utilities prefer flash included in the Lenovo IdeaPad K1.

Regarding applications go, the most useful is undoubtedly Polaris Office because of the nature of the tablet. It's a very good integration with a smooth, surprisingly powerful interface and its ability to create text documents, spreadsheets and presentations.

Word processing is particularly impressive, with tools for indenting, text reflow, including refinement media sources, and more charges. In fact, we use the keyboard and the slider to write this review as a whole, without any problems in general (although a regular auto-save feature would be welcome).

Cleverly, the Asus is an impressive cloud deal with the cursor. ASUS WebStorage offers unlimited online storage for free the cursor. The application is easy to use, even if it is a shame that you're likely to see it integrated into applications often Dropbox.

Amazon Kindle customer belongs to the readers, such as Zinio, magazines and newspapers purchase Press Reader to get the right device. These are killer apps for the trio, offering a wide range of content, even if the Zinio Reader and press the button does not give you the flexibility to publications that you get the Apple iPad Kiosk.

Asus has also increased up to a built-in media with options MyNet, which increases both the media and the slider.

USB port on the side adds some handy features, too. The first is that, like the Asus Eee Pad Transformer, you can connect a USB mouse and check the shelf on the way. If you do a lot of word processing / spreadsheet work, you may find it useful.

It also acts as a mass storage USB host, so you can connect USB sticks or memory cards (with adapter) and use the File Manager application included to browse and transfer files.

Besides all this are the usual Google applications, including the Android Market. Nvidia Tegra area is also provided, making it easy to find games, if desired. No games are included, which is not surprising considering how this tablet feels more focused work.

Performance

Asus Eee Pad Slider you earn a large cross in the column performance of a very simple way: this is the most soft Android tablet we've seen yet.

Scroll to a home screen is as smooth as you want the list to open and close the application and in an instant, applications load quickly, the list of multitasking is smooth and stable - Android is at its best, for In general use, no doubt.

Continues to suffer from common deficiencies in Android, though. When you zoom or pan in a browser, is fast and responsive, but there may be a stutter, which makes it difficult to be precise. Sometimes particlarly the browser, there is a delay mysterious when you type in the address bar, which is frustrating.

The browser is fast to download sites, of course, but always remained a little 'behind the iPad iPhone OS 2 5 a head to head tests (as well as the flash on and off). Android 4.0 Android tablet seems to grow in this area, but the situation as it is.

And yes, Flash 11 is available in the Android Market for ever. And yes, the page to browse Flash content will significantly reduce the responsiveness of the browser. In addition, many of the videos on iPlayer was a strange black appeared in the past, but in the course of full-screen and a smaller browser window often caused the audio to go right up to today.

However, the videos do not play, and play without problems, so for those of us who can not live without the flash, the performance is as good as it can get for now.

Media stored on the device is playing fair. HD video in particular has been absolutely fantastic, both 1080p and 720p files play without problems. The murderess is a strong, clear display, though. It 'absolutely perfect for the video, and how to view the sliders sits when the display is off makes this a perfect pad will keep you entertained for a long trip (well, except for the battery, as we shall explain in a moment).

The screen is really the best thing about the Eee Pad Slider. A 1280 x 800, it is nice and high resolution, the text clear and easy to read. More than that, however, the colors are vivid and immensely attractive, and viewing angles are excellent. It is also lighter than many tablets Android. It is one of the best tablet screens we've seen, to put it simply.

Of course, the keyboard is a great feature of the Eee Pad Slider, because there is pretty much the reason. And the good news is that it's not bad. The buttons are quite small, but little 'space between them makes them easy to find without difficulty concentrating.

In fact, we found it easy to hit the right time the first key of more than 90 percent of the keyboard, despite its size. It is inevitable that further loss of keys that you would in a full-size keyboard, but no more than other small, portable keyboards.

Most of the 10 percent that we were not hitting the right keys had been hunting for things like control-alt, which are slightly displaced, like the keys Home, Back and Menu.

The only really annoying is that it is ridiculously easy to hit the up arrow button instead of the right Shift key. We did constantly throughout this review, and it becomes more boring every time.

You, of course, come to accept the design as you get used to, but even after several hours of use, we keep pressing the arrow cursed.

Yet, we do not, however, give thumbs up to the keyboard, and the angle of the display, making it reasonable easy to use. All the little quirks mobile keyboard layout, so do not mourn too much, although it can be annoying.

The last important thing for tablets, so is the battery life, and is probably the weakest area of ​​the cursor. Is observed for eight hours, but when we tried streaming video over Wi-Fi with the screen brightness turned all the way up, we have a little less than five hours out of it.

It's not terrible, though. You can expect a life much more energy than if you just use the type of documents, for example. While it is certainly well behind the iPad can give you, let us remember that it is more market-oriented portable netbook / smaller than the iPad, and compared with most laptops is the battery life in a large packing much easier.

And as so often in fashion, Eee Pad Slider features front and rear cameras. The 1.2-megapixel front camera is as good as it should be, pick up a decent amount of light. The angle of the screen when slid out to give the person you are chatting with a beautiful view of your nostrils, but it works pretty well.

YouTube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4fH8sE-xIRM

The back of five megapixels is proving to be surprisingly good on a sunny day, even the video is 720p it was quite low, with a huge amount of artefacting destroy any semblance of detail.

Opinion

It became clear to us when the cursor Asus Eee Pad does not pursue the same market as the iPad and Galaxy Tab 10.1. It's too heavy and too thick to make the same cut, due to its keyboard.

But as an alternative to a small laptop, it makes perfect sense. Suddenly, it seems small and light. Fast, even compared with much lower power of Windows 7 machines. It even comes with a large office suite ready to go. It is a tablet for the office desktop or home folder, and it really works.

We liked:

The screen is absolutely brilliant, which is always the first thing you want to see a tablet of errors.

The same goes for the feel and overall performance. While the softness in the browser and some other areas that are not as perfect as the iPad is a machine more than capable.

The way the keyboard slides puts the screen at an ideal angle on a desk or on your lap - something that has clearly been thought. And the keyboard itself is good enough for a small offering mobile good enough to write this review about.

Included applications are very useful, but fairly low-key, too. It is not bloatware - This is a large suite is available.

We did not like:

The only real disappointment with the cursor Eee Pad is the battery life. This is well below the size of the iPad, and we were expecting more. As mentioned, however, holds its own against this type of laptops are more likely to change, so it's not a deal breaker.

Similarly, it is robust and heavier than other bars in the main, which is a shame, but inevitable if we consider the mechanics and the necessary additional housing for its two halves. And again, it compares favorably with laptops.

References of our other hobbies are only very minor, really.

The keyboard is still difficult to use than the full size one, although it is very good overall. Some people may never find at home, but it's true for all small keyboards.

Android still needs to spit and polish here and there - I hope Android 4.0 will bring at least some of them and we can not wait to see the cursor with future versions of the Android.

Verdict:

Such as tablets, this is a gem slightly 'spoiled, with a gimmick that does not just make it stand out, but it makes a real benefit.

However, as a laptop replacement is versatle cold, light, and very desirable. As tools of the tablets, we hope that the Eee right cursor pad at the forefront of the revolution, thanks to its consistent performance, excellent screen, the software keyboard and practice more than adequate.