For university: ASUS Zenbook or Transformer Prime?

How soon do you need to make a decision?

Do you need to run specific software on it?
When you turn in a paper, does it have to be in a specific format?

If all you need to do is research on the internet and write some texts then a tablet can work. If you need to produce the texts in a very specific format (i.e. word97-type .doc file) it can still work, as long as you manage to find an app that can save your work in that format (which might get difficult for many closed-source formats).
If you don't mind doing your research and drafts on one device (the tablet) and then put out the finished product/paper on another device (your desktop or macbook) then get the tablet.

The tablet is easier to take along even if you are not sure if you will need it that day because it is lighter and you don't need to bring your charger.

If you want to keep your university work on one device and don't want to switch devices as needed then get the Win7 laptop.

Klosteral, if you are a bloke over 160cm, you will be able to hull a full size 15-16 inch laptop no problem. Don't underestimate your muscle strength.

@WR2

Start at $899 AUD

What's the 16GB & 32GB SSD versions of Transformers going for there?

You do have a desktop/desktop replacement laptop to work with too?
Since you're working with Android I'm thinking 16GB SSD is going to be plenty.

Hey, thanks for the rapid responses!

Alright, I am going to answer your queries from top to bottom:
Technically, I am not going straight into university but I am finishing my secondary school courses, it's just that I am planning to hold onto my computer for a couple years yet so I figured plan ahead instead of thinking about the 'now'. That said, I am doing top level physics, maths specialist (aka applied) and chemistry however none of these courses need specialised programs.

Most of the time when I turn in a paper it is in "Microsoft Word 2004 *.doc" or I physically hand in the paper as a printed copy so the pre-loaded Polaris Office should be able to do that fine; it has presets to save in .doc, .xls and .ppt (I forget what the third one is so I am just writing .ppt).

The reason I am looking at the tablet and the ultrabook is not because I am concerned about the weight - no, I considered laptops in the 3kg area - the reason is the battery life. I can see myself using this system all day not plugged in, then add on top of that the places I would go such as a coffee shop or a mate's place where I really don't have the option to "plug in".

According to ASUS, the Prime will last for 18 hours and the UX31E will keep running for almost 8 hours. According to reviews which are more "reliable" sources for this kind of thing, the Prime will keep kicking for over 14 hours whilst the ultrabook caves in at 5h:40m which is still brilliant compared to most laptops, though will it suit my needs I am not sure.

Previously, the Australian government supplied all secondary students with MacBooks - now all us PC users were very disappointed but hey, it was free - so I was very used to switching my files between computers; not only that but actually changing program formats just for the sake of it.

Also, bear in mind that I am looking at the 64GB Transformer Prime TF201 (and not the Transformer TF101) becasue the Prime outperforms the original in almost every way. As for processor *edit, by processor I mean disk space* I am willing to part with an extra few hundred if it gives me the peace of mind that I won't run out of space in years to come but if I do, I can buy a 32GB or even 64GB MicroSD expansion card.

At home, I have two desktop computers - an LGA775 at 3.0GHz and this LGA1155 at 4.5GHz (both OC'd) - and the latter of these will be my tether. Most of the data going onto the tablet would be streamed from the desktop over WiFi or via USB cable if I went with the tablet, however the UX31E would effectively be another entire computer and I don't see the necessity in having three decent-spec PC's around my home, even if one is "portable".

If I don't get the computer before I start back, I might keep doing my work on good ol' paper while I sus out my courses and see exactly what I need to do and what I will need to do it as well as comparing other students' computers.

Thanks guys,
-Klosteral

What do students without extra long battery life do? You could do the same
Piece of mind at $500 extra? Maybe not so much. That's $500GB for 48GB's worth of storage?
Buy a 16GB version now, upgrade to a new 16GB follow-on replacement in 3 years and still come out $100 to the good.
The only reason you'd need 64GB was if was the ONLY computer you'd be using. And got lazy.

I think you will find a Window OS PC more useful in science/engineering, and it is not necessary an ultrabook.

ASUS Eeepad Transformer
Tegra 2, 1GHz dual core
16GB/32GB
Sub-HD screen/camera

ASUS Eeepad Transformer Prime
Tegra 3, 1GHz Quad-Core
32GB/64GB
HD Camera, AMOLED screen

Basically, the Prime is a much better tablet and the smallest it comes is 32GB. Also, I am going by the MicroSD as "only if I need it" as opposed to buying it from the start.

Pyree, what are your reasons for saying a Windows based PC will be better for Science (say, over Android or Mac OS)?

Thanks,
-Klosteral

I have the TF101 and it is an amazing tool, and if it wasn't for the fact they screwed up on the case design & releasing a better Transformer in less than 6 months already I would of updated to the newer model.

Personally I wouldn't buy a tablet right now for a possible tool in the next years, especially with the tablet market moving as its current pace.

From experience, Android is doing what it is intended to do, even at the version sitting on my TF101 (can't wait for ICS push from Asus!). There are still times where I wish it was W7 running on my tablet, but I've always found ways around my little issues (like buy some cheap apps that make mail/sync/etc... better).

It doesn't seem like you absolutely need a mobile solution right now, I wouldn't be surprised if too many of your friends/co-students have these nifty tools and you're just drooling for one Nothing wrong with that!

More IPad 3 rumours about specs being more clear in Feb., TF700 should have fixed the GPS/Wi-Fi issues some are having and have an insanely good resolution too for a 10", but Tegra 3 already isn't the best performer GPU-wise and it should be the same chip at 1920x1200, which has me a bit worried. Samsung's new 2560x1600 tablet rumours as well, the possibility of AMD "Ultrabooks" to force prices down, etc...

The next 2-3 months will see some incredible movement in the tablet/ultra-portable scene, love it

I used the TF101 (without keyboard) over the holidays and I was pretty happy with it until it was time to do any keyboarding/writing.
8 hours of movies and 24hrs of music fit on a 8GB microSD card. Free games like ZombieKill made for a nice quiet road trip.

What you say is fair enough and I will definitely hold off as long as I can. I do not want to sink money into this to find out that it was "optional" or just some kind of gimmick that we should need a laptop; my desktops are doing fine for now. As for the fact that my peers might have these high-end items its actually the other way around. They use the cheapest 'coolest looking' things they can find and I tell you that they do not do the job. They will have performance issues, battery life issues and all manner of rediculous things; I am trying to avoid every problem I can think of before I get to it.

I have done some looking into the new AMD Bulldozer chips and I am really not too certain of how they are going to perform, even in "ultrabooks" as you said, however the price shift that it will force is definitely something a consumer such as myself should be aware of.

I just want to clarify that when I say I am looking at the Transfomer Prime I am looking at a laptop that can function as a tablet in a 50-50 manner. The Eee Slate, Samsung Galaxy Tab and Motorola Zoom (as well as the Acer Transformer 'copies') do not fit my bill because they were designed as nothing more than tablets.

Also, if the 64GB TF201 will cost $900 and the UX31E will cost $1400 then sure, the ultrabook is the better option but is the Windows PC, bigger keyboard and faster processing power really worth the $500? Now, before you say it I know it is my decision. That said, can you all offer personal opinions, regardless of upcoming devices if you just had to blindly pick between the two computers as a student, which would you go for?

Thanks, sorry for the confusion,
-Klosteral

There are cheaper ones but they are either
a) Smaller
b) Lower spec

And as far as fully-fledged PC's go, I would not want anything lower in spec than the UX31E, or any smaller than 13", personally.

When I factor in the upgrades I choose to make, that Lenovo does have its benefits however the price of those upgrades, including the DIY RAM and postage, the price comes to about the same as the UX31E which will be of a sturdier build and more suitable for my current needs, I think.

I think I will just have to try and bloat my budget for the UX31E and use it as something of a "proxy" computer, seeing as it has no internal DVD drive, with all the data being streamed onto it from my desktop via USB, ethernet or WiFi.

As I have been doing more reading, the new Transformer Prime may be a little bit too buggy to buy straight out but with the release of Android 4.0 ICS and a notable price difference, I still cannot rule it out.

I think I will have to wait until I start back and see what tasks are going to be most defining of my choice and leave it between these two until then.

Thank you all for your help!

That is what I would say myself.
Personally, I would rather have the Eee Pad Transformer Prime but I am unsure of whether it will do everything I want it to.

The only "specialized" task I might want it to do would be music and audio processing - such as with Audacity or GarageBand (equivilents, that is).

Finally, I found myself a third unit to compare with. This third unit is cheaper than the ultrabooks with better battery life and faster specs, even if it is flimsier in build quality and not as flash to look at.

ASUS Transformer Prime TF201 (Tablet)
10.1" IPS+ Touchscreen
Nvidia Tegra 3 Quad-Core processor
32GB/64GB SSD Capacity
18 hours battery life
Full QWERTY keyboard, USB2.0 etc
Android 3.2.1 HC/4.0 ICS
$892

ASUS U31SD-RX049V (Ultraportable)
13.3" (1366x768) LCD
Intel i5-2410M 2.3GHz (2.9GHz turbo)
500GB 5400RPM (Upg. 240GB SSD)
4GB DDR3 1333MHz (Upg. 8Gb RAM)
Nvidia GT520M 1GB Graphics
3 x USB 2.0 / HDMI / VGA
Windows 7 Home Premium
8-Cell battery / 10+ Hours
$1070 ($677 + Upg. $369 + $24)

Opinions/flames?
- Klosteral