The Asus Eee Pad Transformer TF101 is a

2-in-1 detachable tablet A 2-in-1 laptop, also known as 2-in-1 PC, 2-in-1 tablet, laplet, tabtop, laptop tablet, or simply 2-in-1, is a portable computer that has features of both tablet computer, tablets and laptops. 2-in-1 PCs consist of portable computer component ...

developed by Asus that runs the

Android Android may refer to: Science and technology * Android (robot), a humanoid robot or synthetic organism designed to imitate a human * Android (operating system), Google's mobile operating system ** Bugdroid, a Google mascot sometimes referred to ...

operating system. It is the first tablet in the

Asus Transformer Pad Asus Transformer is a series of 2-in-1 convertibles, detachables and hybrid tablet computers, designed and manufactured by Asus, consisting of three major lineups. Asus Transformer Pad Asus Transformer Book Asus Transformer Book is a line of ...

series. The Eee Pad Transformer features a display, an

Nvidia Nvidia CorporationOfficially written as NVIDIA and stylized in its logo as VIDIA with the lowercase "n" the same height as the uppercase "VIDIA"; formerly stylized as VIDIA with a large italicized lowercase "n" on products from the mid 1990s to ...

Tegra 2 Tegra is a system on a chip (SoC) series developed by Nvidia for mobile devices such as smartphones, personal digital assistants, and mobile Internet devices. The Tegra integrates an ARM architecture central processing unit (CPU), graphics proc ...

dual-core A multi-core processor is a microprocessor on a single integrated circuit with two or more separate processing units, called cores, each of which reads and executes program instructions. The instructions are ordinary CPU instructions (such a ...

chip, 1 GB of

RAM Ram, ram, or RAM may refer to: Animals * A male sheep * Ram cichlid, a freshwater tropical fish People * Ram (given name) * Ram (surname) * Ram (director) (Ramsubramaniam), an Indian Tamil film director * RAM (musician) (born 1974), Dutch * Ra ...

, and 16 or 32 GB of storage. The tablet initially launched with Android 3.1, nicknamed "Honeycomb", but was updated to support

Android 4.0.3 Android Ice Cream Sandwich (or Android 4.0) is the 9th major version of the Android mobile operating system developed by Google. Unveiled on October 19, 2011, Android 4.0 builds upon the significant changes made by the tablet-only release Androi ...

. The Eee Pad Transformer was announced at CES 2011, and was made available on 30 March 2011. The Transformer design includes an optional docking keyboard.

History

In February 2010, Asus announced that it would be producing a tablet PC in its

Asus Eee Asus Eee is a family of products by AsusTek Computer Inc. The product family began with the release of the Eee PC subnotebook in 2007; since then, the product family has diversified into a number of PC form factors. According to the company, the ...

line of products, designed to rival the

iPad The iPad is a brand of iOS and iPadOS-based tablet computers that are developed by Apple Inc. The iPad was conceived before the related iPhone but the iPhone was developed and released first. Speculation about the development, operating s ...

. Semiconductor company

Qualcomm Qualcomm () is an American multinational corporation headquartered in San Diego, California, and incorporated in Delaware. It creates semiconductors, software, and services related to wireless technology. It owns patents critical to the 5G, 4 ...

had previously displayed an

-based

smartbook A smartbook was a class of mobile device that combined certain features of both a smartphone and netbook computer, produced between 2009 and 2010. Smartbooks were advertised with features such as always on, all-day battery life, 3G, or Wi-Fi conn ...

manufactured by Asus at

Computex COMPUTEX Taipei, or Taipei International Information Technology Show (), is a computer expo held annually in Taipei, Taiwan. Since the early 2000s, it is one of the largest computer and technology trade shows in the world. The last COMPUTEX was ...

, generating interest in a laptop that uses the Android operating system; the device was ultimately scrapped out of concerns that the smartbook market was shrinking. In April, further details of a tablet PC in the Asus Eee line emerged, with Asus announcing that the device would support 3G connectivity and would be powered by an

ARM In human anatomy, the arm refers to the upper limb in common usage, although academically the term specifically means the upper arm between the glenohumeral joint (shoulder joint) and the elbow joint. The distal part of the upper limb between the ...

processor, followed by reports in July that two models would be produced, running Android instead of

Windows Embedded Compact 7 Windows Embedded Compact 7 (formerly known as Windows Embedded CE 7.0) is the seventh major release of the Windows Embedded CE operating system, released on March 1, 2011. Windows Embedded Compact 7 is a real-time OS, separate from the Windows NT ...

. Both models were previously showcased at Computex 2010, although the larger model failed to turn on during the presentation, leaving the smaller model on display. The Eee Pad Transformer was revealed at CES 2011.

Features

The Eee Pad is a

tablet computer A tablet computer, commonly shortened to tablet, is a mobile device, typically with a mobile operating system and touchscreen display processing circuitry, and a rechargeable battery in a single, thin and flat package. Tablets, being comput ...

with a 10.1"

IPS IPS, ips, or iPS may refer to: Science and technology Biology and medicine * ''Ips'' (genus), a genus of bark beetle * Induced pluripotent stem cell or iPS cells * Intermittent photic stimulation, a neuroimaging technique * Intraparietal sulcus, ...

multi-touch In computing, multi-touch is technology that enables a surface (a touchpad or touchscreen) to recognize the presence of more than one somatosensory system, point of contact with the surface at the same time. The origins of multitouch began at CER ...

screen Screen or Screens may refer to: Arts * Screen printing (also called ''silkscreening''), a method of printing * Big screen, a nickname associated with the motion picture industry * Split screen (filmmaking), a film composition paradigm in which mul ...

with a resolution of 1280 × 800 and an

system-on-a-chip A system on a chip or system-on-chip (SoC ; pl. ''SoCs'' ) is an integrated circuit that integrates most or all components of a computer or other electronic system. These components almost always include a central processing unit (CPU), memory ...

(SoC). It has an 802.11b/g/n

Wi-Fi Wi-Fi () is a family of wireless network protocols, based on the IEEE 802.11 family of standards, which are commonly used for local area networking of devices and Internet access, allowing nearby digital devices to exchange data by radio wave ...

module, but lacks 3G connectivity. The price at launch of the Eee Pad was £379 (£429 with dock).

Docking keyboard

An optional docking keyboard was available at launch. It features full QWERTY keys, touchpad, two

USB 2.0 Universal Serial Bus (USB) is an industry standard that establishes specifications for cables, connectors and protocols for connection, communication and power supply (interfacing) between computers, peripherals and other computers. A broad v ...

ports and one SD card reader as well as an additional battery that increases overall battery life from 9.5 to 16 hours. The USB ports support USB memory of any kind and also NTFS-formatted media with files larger than 4 GB. The SD card slot also supports NTFS-formatted media. The units marketed in Canada marked Canadian BI Lingual (CBIL) have a slightly modified keyboard layout in addition to support of accented characters. The Shift key and Enter key have been made smaller to accommodate two additional keys.

Software

The Transformer originally ran a modified version of Android 3.1 Honeycomb, but has since been updated to

. The on-screen navigation keys (home, back, menu) have been skinned to resemble the standard Android phone keys. The tablet is bundled with MyNet, MyLibrary, MyCloud, Press Reader, MyDesktop and Polaris Office 3, for full document editing. The first software update was released by Asus on 16 April 2011. This updated the system with extra widgets for MyZine, which is a desktop widget shop, for weather, email, calendar, gallery, etc. It also added MyCloud, a remote desktop app. As of early June 2011, Android 3.1 was released for the Transformer. It had general usability and speed updates, and added the ability to change the size of compatible widgets, added a large scroll bar to the browser, and allowed scrolling the currently open application screen, allowing many applications to be switched to quickly. On 16 July 2011, another

over the air Over the Air was an annual mobile technology-focused overnight hack day event held in London from 2008 to 2016. The two-day event would include practical and educational talks and a hacking competition. Sponsors of the event have included the B ...

software update for the Transformer was released. Beside the updates of the connectivity modules of the device, this changed the splashscreen, updated various apps, disabled the auto-rotate feature when the tablet is docked and added the

TegraZone market, with specific

Tegra Tegra is a system on a chip (SoC) series developed by Nvidia for mobile devices such as smartphones, personal digital assistants, and mobile Internet devices. The Tegra integrates an ARM architecture central processing unit (CPU), graphics proc ...

2 units apps and games. On 2 August 2011, the Transformer received updates to Android 3.2 and various minor changes. On 23 August 2011, the Transformer received another update, adding compatibility for the

Netflix Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a fil ...

application. Asus originally stated the Eee Pad Transformer will receive the Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich in mid-February 2012, but when mid-February came and no update was released, Asus said in a statement that they would delay the release until sometime in March, due to the software still having to go through approval from Google. On 23 February 2012, the 4.0.3 update rolled out to Taiwan Transformers with US tablets to get it a day later. UK tablets received it on 26 February 2012.

Successors

The

Asus Eee Pad Transformer Prime The Asus Eee Pad Transformer TF201 or Asus Eee Pad Transformer Prime is a 2-in-1 detachable tablet from the Asus Transformer Pad series. It is the world's first Android tablet computer with a quad-core processor, and a successor to the dual-cor ...

was announced by Asus in November 2011Darren Murph, 19 October 2011
Asus' Jonney Shih unveils Transformer Prime Android tablet: 10-inch, 8.3mm, quad-core Nvidia Tegra 3
Engadget as the successor to the Eee Pad Transformer. A teaser video was released by Asus on 19 October 2011, showing a slimmer design and a rear camera with LED flash. The tablet features a quad-core Nvidia Tegra 3 (Kal-El) chip by

, 10-inch display, micro-HDMI port, SD card slot, 14.5-hour battery life, and has a thickness of 8.3 mm. The US release date was 19 December 2011. In March 2012, the

Asus Transformer Pad Infinity Asus Transformer Pad TF700T or Asus Transformer Pad Infinity - is a tablet computer made by Asus, successor to the Asus Transformer Prime. The manufacturer announced it at CES 2012, less than a month after the original product launch, to launch ...

was announced, which has an upgraded screen resolution of 1920 x 1200 pixels.Billy Steele, 7 March 2012
The new iPad vs. the tablet elite: ASUS Transformer Pad Infinity 700, Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 and Toshiba Excite X10 LE
Engadget

References

External links

*
ASUS Eee Pad Transformer Review

Asus Eee Pad Transformer Full Performance Review
at HotHardware.com {{DEFAULTSORT:Asus Eee Top Eee Pad Transformer Tablet computers Android (operating system) devices Products introduced in 2011