Asus Transformer AiO P1801

Review: Asus Transformer AiO P1801

by Parm Mann on 11 March 2013, 16:00 3.5

Final thoughts and rating

The Transformer AiO is best suited to early adopters who are willing to accept the quirks and put in the effort that's required when managing two unique ecosystems.

The Transformer AiO is one answer to a question that not enough manufacturer's are tackling; how do you bridge the gap between desktop and tablet?

Asus's hybrid all-in-one is an innovative solution that offers plenty to admire, and having spent some quality time with the system we've come to appreciate the value in being able to literally take your desktop with you. Yet while there's merit to the concept, there are a couple of limitations that stifle the overall appeal.

The combination of Windows and Android results in a disjointed user experience, and the ability to remotely control the Windows 8 environment - which should have been the Transformer AiO's best feature - is too reliant on Wi-Fi signal strength and ultimately delivers a second-rate experience.

Asus has combined two independently-strong devices, but the compromises that result from the unnatural unification of Windows and Android result in a computing experience that isn't always intuitive. The Transformer AiO is therefore best suited to early adopters who are willing to accept the quirks and put in the effort that's required when managing two unique ecosystems.

There's still plenty of work to be done as far as hybrid computing solutions are concerned, but Asus's desktop/tablet mashup does provide a glimpse into the future. Looking ahead, we're intrigued by the prospect of hybrid PCs carrying next-generation Intel Haswell-powered tablets; such a thing will allow manufacturers to offer the core experience in the tablet itself, with the base station acting as a hub for expanded storage and discrete graphics.

We're expecting to see such products later this year and, though it's not quite ready for the mainstream just yet, the Transformer AiO is surely a sign of things to come.

The Good

Fast quad-core processor
Runs Windows and Android
Good build quality

The Bad

Laggy remote Windows experience
Limited graphics performance
Not the most portable tablet

HEXUS Rating

Asus Transformer AiO P1801

HEXUS Awards

Asus Transformer AiO P1801

HEXUS Where2Buy

The Asus Transformer AiO P1801 will be available from UK retailers beginning April 2013.

HEXUS Right2Reply

At HEXUS, we invite the companies whose products we test to comment on our articles. If any company representatives for the products reviewed choose to respond, we'll publish their commentary here verbatim.

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looks like an interesting device, what they should have done is stuff the android idea, and made it entirely windows, and made it so the tablet when detached from the desktop is just a client for a client-server based system so the base stations power is not wasted when being used in tablet form…but for that it would need good wireless, like constant, strong single 802.11ac.
as it is, its a step in the right direction, …we really are heading into a star trek world, where they have the central computer, then padd's and smaller computing devices all working wirelessly and seamlessly….all integrating into eachother with ease, and everything just working in sync

I like the concept, a lot. Would be nice to have Win8 on the tablet as well of course, although not sure how you'd still sync files/etc quickly over 2 installs of Win8 (or RT on one?)

The tablet does looks too big though, it seems like they realised a 10“ screen in ‘PC’ mode would be laughed at but, for me, 18” goes too far the other way.

A seperate PC dock and tablets available in multiple sizes would make more sense to me as a consumer, it'd be an issue for manufacturing so many different SKUs but would also allow an upgrade path for consumers.
Buy them seperately and decide you want a new/bigger/smaller/faster tablet? No problem, just buy another Asus tablet (they'd have to make all future tablets with the correct docking port) and you're done, need a higher spec base unit but want to keep your current tablet? No problem, just buy another!

This is bizarre. When they already make convertible Win 8 Pro notebooks that seamlessly transform to Win 8 Pro tablets (The Transformer Book), why not do the same and skip Android with the desktop version?!

http://www.asus.com/vivo/en/transformerBook.htm

Should be easier with such a large tablet as well. The other weird thing is how the two parts join is such a noticeably ugly fashion whereas their notebook equivalent joins and blends more seamlessly. No need for android, separate hdds etc. etc. I'm all for the idea of a desktop that's also a tablet but this is not the solution.

I think the concept was a good one, but the implementation just doesn't seem very attractive to me. 18" tablet.. Really?

Think of it as an all-in-one family computer that can have movies, music and recipe books loaded onto it's undockable 18“ android running screen and it begins to make sense. ”Get out of the den and take your Justin Bieber crap with you"

But heaven forbid I would never buy one! Family of four here so we've got one desktop, three laptops, four iPads, four smartphones and a few other bits and bobs.

We're well served with ‘normal’ gear without having to fill the house with frankencomputers like this. I bought an Asus computer once, the software component was terrible and as a company their support was awful. Okay for mobos etc but not for an all-in-one.