It's called a convertible notebook and they've been around for years. I actually owned a Fujitsu T4220 a couple of years ago.
Couple of issues with this right off the bat that make it a no-go or a questionable buy at best.
1. Resistive multi-touch. Nope. Resistive screens suck. Sorry.
2. Widescreen touch/pen input on a device this small SUCKS. I know everyone wants wide screen on their laptop but when you flip this thing into tablet mode and start trying to take notes in portrait mode it's going to feel awfully cramped. Generally you want a slate tablet to be in 4:3 unless it's bigger than 13 inches. Above 13" you can start going to a wider aspect ratio because you still have enough room in portrait.
3. No pen input. The thing that was great a bout the T4220 was the Wacom active digitizer. Resistive allows me to use a stylus but it's not nearly accurate enough for real note-taking and without a slot for a stylus I'll just lose them over and over again.
4. Convertible notebooks suck. Even on the most expensive convertibles the hinge is weak and wears down over time. I'm not too interested in testing the hinge strength on a cheap convertible "netbook."
5. Battery life and power? My T4220 had 5-7 hours of battery life and a modular battery that loaded into my optical drive slot for an extra 3-5 hours of battery life. The point of a convertible is that you can type away on it and then flip it into a tablet and take hand-written notes all day long. If this thing can't last 8-5 it's not worth it.
So, at the end of the day, unless Asus blows me away with a ridiculously low price this is a definite "no buy." At this point it seems like it's a cross between two products (a notebook and a tablet) that doesn't enhance either. Seems to have the same problem the iPad is having... why would I want this device? Although I have to say I'd much rather have this device than an iPad. At least I can surf the whole web... even if it isn't the "best web experience I've ever had...."
Couple of issues with this right off the bat that make it a no-go or a questionable buy at best.
1. Resistive multi-touch. Nope. Resistive screens suck. Sorry.
2. Widescreen touch/pen input on a device this small SUCKS. I know everyone wants wide screen on their laptop but when you flip this thing into tablet mode and start trying to take notes in portrait mode it's going to feel awfully cramped. Generally you want a slate tablet to be in 4:3 unless it's bigger than 13 inches. Above 13" you can start going to a wider aspect ratio because you still have enough room in portrait.
3. No pen input. The thing that was great a bout the T4220 was the Wacom active digitizer. Resistive allows me to use a stylus but it's not nearly accurate enough for real note-taking and without a slot for a stylus I'll just lose them over and over again.
4. Convertible notebooks suck. Even on the most expensive convertibles the hinge is weak and wears down over time. I'm not too interested in testing the hinge strength on a cheap convertible "netbook."
5. Battery life and power? My T4220 had 5-7 hours of battery life and a modular battery that loaded into my optical drive slot for an extra 3-5 hours of battery life. The point of a convertible is that you can type away on it and then flip it into a tablet and take hand-written notes all day long. If this thing can't last 8-5 it's not worth it.
So, at the end of the day, unless Asus blows me away with a ridiculously low price this is a definite "no buy." At this point it seems like it's a cross between two products (a notebook and a tablet) that doesn't enhance either. Seems to have the same problem the iPad is having... why would I want this device? Although I have to say I'd much rather have this device than an iPad. At least I can surf the whole web... even if it isn't the "best web experience I've ever had...."
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