Announced back in February, ASUS has launched their new mid-range Android tablet, the Transformer Pad TF300. It slots into their range between the original Transformer and the Transformer Prime. Like all Transformer models there is an optional keyboard dock that effectively turns it into an Android netbook.
The TF300 Transformer Pad is closer to the TF201 Transformer Prime than the original TF101 Transformer. Like the TF201, the TF300 has a quad-core NVIDIA Tegra 3 CPU, 1GB RAM, 802.11b/g/b WiFi, and a 10.1? 1280×800 display. However, the display is IPS, not Super IPS+, and it is only available in 16GB & 32GB versions – instead of 32GB or 64GB. The TF300 has Bluetooth 3.0+EDR, up from 2.1+EDR. The TF300 loses the flash on the rear camera, though it is still 8MP, with a 1.2MP front camera.
While the TF300 is currently only available with WiFi, it will also eventually come in HSPA+ & LTE versions. Battery life is 10 hours, 15 with the dock – down from 12/18 on the TF201. And it is physically slightly larger. But it also has a $399.99 MSRP for the 32GB model, $100 less than the Transformer Prime. However, with the TF201 available for less than the MSRP, while the TF300, being new, isn’t available at much of a discount, the gap is currently smaller. It isn’t a clear choice – do you get the TF300 with most of the features and save a little, or go for the slicker TF201 with all of the features for just a bit more?
When the forthcoming Transformer Pad Infinity, effectively an HD Transformer Prime, launches it’ll be interesting to see if they keep the original Prime in the lineup or drop it to create more differentiation in the lineup. For now I’m happy with my Transformer Prime.
