ASUS Transformer Book T100 Review: Redefining the Entry-Level Windows Notebook
by Anand Lal Shimpi on October 18, 2013 12:00 AM ESTCPU Performance
The Atom Z3740 in the T100 features a 9% lower base clock and 22.5% lower max turbo frequency than the Z3770 we previewed back at IDF. Given how good of a job Bay Trail does turboing up to max frequencies under normal use, I’d expect proportionally lower scores in our tests.
I’ll start with our cross platform browser based benchmarks before moving on to a look at the Z3740 vs. Z3770.
Note for all of these benchmarks I’ve used Google’s Chrome browser. IE11 integrates well into the modern UI of Windows 8.1 but is otherwise a pretty terrible browser by comparison. I think the modern UI Chrome experience on 8.1 isn’t as good, but it’s a better/faster/less-finicky option. Out of all of our tests only SunSpider seems to run quicker under IE11, whereas Chrome wins everywhere else. I think it’s a bit insane to switch between browsers based on the benchmark being run, so we’re sticking with Chrome across the board.
Lightly threaded performance is actually quite comparable to the Chromebook 11, which was a bit surprising. Throw a multitasking workload at the two notebooks and you'll separate the boys from the men though:
Chrome under Chrome OS performs extremely well for obvious reasons. But here the T100's additional cores and solid memory interface really come in handy when multitasking, there's hardly any performance penalty for this sort of multitasking on Bay Trail while the dual-core Cortex A15 based Chromebook needs serious help.
The T100 remains extremely competitive compared to the Chromebook 11 and definitely compared to Android tablets.
Next up is putting the Atom Z3740's performance in perspective compared to our earlier FFRD data:
In all of these tests we see nearly perfect scaling compared to the Atom Z3770. Turbo frequencies are regularly hit when under load, and as a result see see proportionally lower performance from the T100. I would’ve liked to have seen the Z3770 used in the T100, but not if it meant a higher price, an optional dock or a worse display.
GPU Performance
I didn’t have a ton of time to go through gaming performance on the T100, but with a quarter of the EUs of Ivy Bridge it’s clear that you shouldn’t expect a GPU monster out of Bay Trail. In our cross platform graphics tests however the T100 is quite competitive, although not industry leading by any means.
I did see some choppy animations at times and indications that the GPU (or its drivers) weren’t up to snuff, but that’s exclusively in classic desktop mode. In the modern UI, the Atom Z3740 was very smooth.
Storage Performance
Our Android IO tests rely on Androbench with a relatively limited LBA span. I increased the difficulty of the test a bit under Windows 8.1 but still kept it reasonable since we are dealing with eMMC solutions. I’m testing across a 1GB LBA span and testing for a period of 1 minute, which is an ok balance between difficulty of workload and sensitivity to the fact that we’re evaluating low-class SSDs here.
Sequential read and write performance is competitive with the high-end examples we’ve seen in the Android space. Random read performance is similarly good, while random write performance is appreciably better than what we’re used to in Android tablets. It is good to see ASUS/Intel/Microsoft concerned about random write performance, but I’d still like to see a 5 - 10x increase in these numbers with a focus on sustained performance before I’m truly happy.
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OneOfTheseDays - Friday, October 18, 2013 - link
For starters, the colors of this display are not so wholly imbalanced that your parents are going to think something is wrong with the display. The display is fine for every day users and nobody is likely to complain about quality other than serious enthusiasts or professionals who require such accuracy who would NEVER BUY THIS DEVICE to begin with.It's an idiotic premise that display calibration is paramount in a $350 device.
Nagorak - Friday, October 18, 2013 - link
They wouldn't take issue with the colors though. Most people are not aware of that kind of nitpicky detail. That said, I think it's fair to point it out, but it's also true that it's irrelevant to most people.Speaking for myself, I never calibrated my desktop monitor, nor checked to make sure it was calibrated properly. Maybe it is, but I've never even bothered to check. Everything has always looked fine on it. And I'm actually a serious PC user unlike most people.
ricardodawkins - Friday, October 18, 2013 - link
+920aaronr - Friday, October 18, 2013 - link
Please test Linux compatibility or at least see if you can boot from USB.Thank you!
typicalGeek - Friday, October 18, 2013 - link
I think this device is hitting on all cylinders for the target group I think they're after: potential Surface 2 (ARM version) buyers.* For those that would pay more for the higher performing CPU: you're not the target of this machine. This is for those that shop price first, features 2nd.
* For those that would pay more for more RAM, storage, calibrated display, etc. - see my previous comment.
* For those wondering about the graphics performance when used for gaming: you're REALLY not the target of this machine.
I for one think this machine appears to do what it is designed to do VERY well. First, hits MUCH lower than Surface 2 price points. 2nd, functions as either a laptop or tablet (duplicate the function of Surface). 3rd have excellent battery life. 4th, run a x86 version of Windows - allowing the vast majority of Windows software to be run. (Surface 2 can't do that, Surface Pro cost even more.)
If you're looking at the T100 vs. the CHEAPEST surface 2 tablet, it's what, $229 MORE by the time you pay for the keyboard cover. What are the advantages at this point of going with the Surface 2 vs. the T100? If you can come up with any, are they really worth a 65% price premium?
If I had any desire for a Surface type computer, and especially if I was on a tight budget, this unit would be at the top of my list for consideration.
Nagorak - Friday, October 18, 2013 - link
Microsoft really screwed the pooch with the Surface 2. At the price point it's at it should be running Bay Trail and be full Windows 8.1. The current Surface 2 should have been Surface Lite 2 and cost at least $50 less. They price their ARM tablet too high, so it has no reason for being when other companies are coming out with full X86 tablets for less.chizow - Friday, October 18, 2013 - link
I totally agree, I think they are trying to protect the "Pro" line though but a Bay Trail with full x86 Windows 8.1 for < $500 in that Surface chassis would've been a slam dunk.chizow - Friday, October 18, 2013 - link
I almost pulled the trigger on this for Amazon pre-order, but couldn't find any info about a stylus for this. Anyone have any info on it?My wife really wants a decent tablet/laptop hybrid but really wants the stylus for notetaking/document mark-up. There's also the Dell Venue 8" options but she really wants the 10" and all other 10" I have seen go into the ridiculous Surface Pro price range of $900+.
Nagorak - Friday, October 18, 2013 - link
You should be able to get a capacitive stylus for it. That works the same as a finger does. The Dell tablet only has a capacitive stylus too. A capacitive stylus costs less than $20.chizow - Friday, October 18, 2013 - link
Cool thanks, wasn't sure about the integration/usability on that, any thoughts? Good functionality with One Note and other COTS software? I haven't used much of the touch functionality of Win8, so I'm not sure if Stylus functionality is native or not. I guess it won't have any place to just slide it into the chassis like some of the ones that integrate Stylus either?