ASUS Transformer Book T100HA-C4-GR 10.1-Inch 2 in 1 Touchscreen Laptop (Cherry Trail Quad-Core Z8500 Processor, 4GB RAM, 64GB Storage, Windows 10), Gray

Amazing value 2-in-1 machine, November 25, 2015

I purchased this wonderful little 2-in-1 two weeks ago at Microcenter and found that it meets all my needs and expectations, but not without a few quirks. This is not a Microsoft Surface, and it is definitely not the only laptop you should have if you do anything other than surf the web or do light word processing. This little machine does fill some niche purposes very well. Personally, I use it to do work on my 45 minute to hour long train ride commute. Its also great for couch web surfing and even some (very light) gaming. The 4 star rating is based on a complete understanding that this is a sub 0 tablet with included keyboard (0 at the time of this writing), so I have tempered my expectations accordingly and come away impressed.

PROS:
-Specs – price for performance – This is a sub 0 tablet that has an included keyboard, 4gb of ram and 64GB of storage. Hard to beat those specs for that price. Sure, the screen is only 1280×800 pixels, and its an Atom processor (though it is the newer Cherry Trail version), but this little machine works really well for day to day tasks. Those cheaper machines with only 2GB of RAM, 32GB of storage and a previous generation Bay Trail processor pale in comparison. Spend about 0 more to get this machine compared to those others and you will get better performance, and still save 0 compared a similarly specced Microsoft Surface 3 (not the Pro; the Surface 3 base model also has a Cherry Trail processor, only 2gb of ram, and 64GB of storage) plus its 0 keyboard (which is not included in the Surface 3 base price) and you’ll be really happy. Note that you’d have about 35gb of usable storage space when you first turn the laptop on.
-Form Factor – This little machine can fit (awkwardly) in my winter coat pocket. I’m pretty sure there are some cargo pockets this would fit into. Not that you would ever transport it that way, but the point is this thing is really compact. It’s a bit heavy, but that is really related to ensuring proper balance on your lap or on a table when you have the keyboard attached, so the weight it forgivable. Some people will complain about the weight, but I don’t see it as an issue. The tablet secures easily to the keyboard with magnets (no button to push or anything). The connection is secure enough that you can lift it by the tablet portion and the keyboard remains securely attached. Minimal effort is needed to separate the two parts. Also, unlike a Surface 3, the Asus T100 can easily be used as a laptop. The Surface 3, which does not have a hinge connecting the tablet and keyboard portion, does not do that as well. Not an issue if you are using them on tables, but definitely a consideration for couch surfing and working on the train.
-Straight Performance – The Asus T100HA is a workhorse for its size – remember this is essentially a tablet with a keyboard and not a true laptop. Internet Explorer, Chrome and other regular Windows applications open quickly and run well. Since it has 4GB RAM I can run lots of programs at one time without an issue. I even installed a recent 3D game (Divinity: Original Sin) just to see if it would run and found that the game was smooth enough to play on this *sub 0 tablet with keyboard.* Blows my mind really.

Middle of the Road – items that are neither good nor bad, but should be noted
-Keyboard – There’s not a lot Asus can do with the keyboard to make it really great at this size and price. I’ve used a netbook before (a really sturdy Acer Aspire One that served me well) so I knew what to expect. Its serviceable, but feels a little bit flimsy and hollow. Typing on it is just fine for me. I’m typing on it right now actually with minimal errors or issues. I wouldn’t want to write a thesis on this, but emails, short documents, etc., will work just fine. If this is a concern, I’d go out to a store and check it out since it is definitely a preference thing. But again, if you come into this purchase with the right mindset (this is a sub 0 tablet with included keyboard) you really shouldn’t be disappointed.
-Camera – its just okay. Nothing amazing, and definitely not something to rely on to take important photos. I don’t know why they even put a camera on this machine except to list it as a feature. Just about any phone is going to have a better camera, so just use that.
-Speakers – they produce sound, but not sound you want to rely on for much. Again though, what would you really expect at 0? They work for Youtube videos and minor stuff, but I wouldn’t rely on them to play music at a party.
-Wifi speed – The wifi is not slow by any means, but I will note that it is not capable of maxing out my 50mbs (essentially 7MBs) internet even on the 5ghz channel. Instead of 6.9MBs on downloads, I seemed to top out at 4.5 to 4.9MBs. Not a deal breaker by any means, but something to note. But really, with only 64GB of storage, you can’t be downloading too many…

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Underrated. Just what I needed., December 30, 2015

I received my T100HA three weeks ago from B&H Photo Video. After reading several negative reviews about this computer, I had half a mind to not open the box, and just send it back. But I really like to travel, and if it worked well, this would be the perfect portable for me. So I opened the box and began charging the computer. The next morning, after about 10 hours of charging, it still wasn’t charged up. I left it charging as I went to work, worrying that maybe I’d received a defective unit. When I came home, it was all charged. Over the next several weeks, as I’ve used it regularly, the T100HA has largely met my expectations. Of course my expectations are tempered by realizing it’s a small economical computer, which necessarily involves some compromises.

My observations:

Battery: I routinely let it discharge until there’s about 10% remaining, then turn it off & plug it in to the supplied charger. This past week it’s been taking just a little over 2.5 hours for it to recharge fully. While the computer is off, if you hold down the start button for a second or two, the screen will show an image of a battery with the amount of charge remaining. This image tends to report a lower charge than the battery icon on the screen when you’ve booted up the computer.
Keyboard: To me it has a nice feel. Of necessity, the keys are close together, which requires more care while typing, but I find it quite usable. I’m typing this review with it.
Tablet mode: When using it as a tablet, it’s very helpful to be sure it’s in tablet mode. In this mode, the applications you’ve pinned to start appear as easy to tap tiles, and this start view is displayed instead of the desktop, reminiscent of Windows 8. Also, when you touch your finger to a data entry field, the on screen keyboard automatically pops up. If you’re not in tablet mode, you can do a right swipe and select it from its "Action Center" tile.
A few peculiarities in tablet mode: If the computer goes to sleep, the only way I’ve found to awaken it is by briefly pressing the power button. In tablet mode, I can’t find a “Recycle Bin,” and I haven’t been able to select several lines of text by dragging my finger over the screen. However, it’s easy to copy and paste a single word by just holding your finger on the word.
Touchpad: Some reviewers have suggest buying a Bluetooth mouse, but the touchpad has worked well for me. Also it has some features a mouse doesn’t offer: you can use two fingers to scroll the screen, and by spreading your fingers you can zoom the screen.
USB Ports: The type C USB 3 port has worked well. Besides using it with USB 3 hard drives, I’ve plugged in an Ethernet adapter to access my home wired network. The USB 2 port on the keyboard has also worked fine. I’ve used it with a portable DVD/CD drive, and flash drives.
The Wifi has worked well at home, and with a couple of other Wifi networks to access the Internet.
Mini HDMI port: I used it to play a 90 minute video on the hard drive to a large screen TV. During this time I turned off the T100HA’s screen, and not much battery power was used.

After receiving my computer, the first thing I did as soon as it was charged up was to go to the Asus support page and download the latest BIOS update (I installed version 214), as well as other updates for the touchpad, display etc. Perhaps this prevented some of the problems other reviewers have mentioned. I think much of this updating may be automated by using the Asus Live Update utility. If you need to upgrade the BIOS (UEFI) manually, the method suggested on the Asus website, that is rebooting and pressing F2, didn’t work for me. What did work is Settings/Update & Security/Advanced Startup/Restart Now/Troubleshoot/Advanced Options/UEFI Firmware Settings/Restart…then from the BIOS screen go to Advanced/Start Easy Flash

A few minor annoyances:
As other reviewers have noted, it would be nice if the screen could tilt back a little further. I’ve often dealt with this by placing a notepad under the front of the keyboard.
About once a day the keyboard stops being recognized, and I can’t type or use the touchpad. Detaching, and the reattaching the screen, which is easy, sets things right.
On two occasions when I’ve tried to turn on the computer, the screen brightened a little, but nothing else happened. In this situation, I held down the power button for 30 to 60 seconds, and the computer booted up.
Sound: I wish the speakers produced a little more volume, but it’s been adequate for Skyping, and watching videos and movies. The speakers, as might be expected, don’t have much bass. Listening with headphones gives a pleasing experience.
Camera: The images produced by the 5MP back camera are not very sharp. I’ve attached a few for you to look at. The front 2MP webcam works satisfactorily for Skyping. Initially the picture displayed of myself was…

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