The ASUS Transformer Book Trio: Atom + Haswell, Android + Windows 8
by Anand Lal Shimpi on June 3, 2013 3:31 AM EST- Posted in
- Tablets
- Asus
- Mobile
- Laptops
- Trade Shows
- Computex 2013
- Notebooks
Now on to notebooks, ASUS just announced the Transformer Book Trio - what it is calling the world's first three-in-one notebook, tablet and desktop PC. In a move that's sure to keep Microsoft grumpy, the TF Book Trio runs both Windows 8 and Android. It looks like the 1080p IPS display portion of the detachable notebook is an Android tablet, while the base runs Windows 8.
Since both OSes are running at the same time, just on different pieces of hardware, you can switch between OSes instantaneously. As a tablet, it's an Android device, but as a notebook it's a Windows 8 PC (or a docked Android tablet I guess). You can also use the PC base to drive an external display wirelessly.
The tablet portion is driven by an Intel Atom SoC (Z2580), while the PC base runs a Haswell CPU.
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ET - Monday, June 3, 2013 - link
I noticed that too. Bean me up, Scotty.MartinT - Monday, June 3, 2013 - link
No kitchen sink or microwave? Bummer!jjj - Monday, June 3, 2013 - link
Decent product refreshes from Asus but this one is just idiotic. They could make an argument that the base can be the desktop for the household (or user) but it has a freaking U series CPU so their bet is on Intel's marketing fooling consumers, not an ideal strategy.abhifreeman - Monday, June 3, 2013 - link
Too much! When you run out of options/creativity, you follow addition/subtraction. Might be good for consumers, but it doesn't look that great for technology.takeship - Monday, June 3, 2013 - link
While I applaud Asus's committment to "throw everything at a wall and see what sticks" I can't imagine that this will be even close to most consumers price range. The intel chips alone have to be what, $550 combined?mudu8 - Monday, June 3, 2013 - link
I like how in the first slide they can't seem to spell Jelly Bean correctly.Bobs_Your_Uncle - Monday, June 3, 2013 - link
Actually, they got the "Beam" part of it right. You see, the Really Big selling point on this dual CPU unit is that it's now supporting Transporter Functionality! Using this little baby while in bed, you can now summon jelly, (jam, preserves, marmalade, etc; whatever your wife insisted upon that you forgot to bring) to go with morning "Toasts"!I apologize!
flyingpants1 - Monday, June 3, 2013 - link
Why so negative? I think it's brilliant. It actually makes a lot of sense. While you're at home, you can dock it and use it as a full desktop, AND have a tablet to mess around with while you're on the couch. Combine the two and you have a laptop you can take anywhere.I still think it's the wrong approach. Here's what I'm thinking..
Let's say the goal for the mass market convertible laptop is some sort of 800gram 11.6" Core i5 laptop, but also functions as a tablet for the casual stuff (I'm totally ignoring Atom-based full Win8 convertibles because they are too slow).
In a *totally ideal* scenario, you'd have the power of a Core i5-based laptop, AND the 10+ hour tablet battery life that comes from running an Atom (even when running Win8 desktop apps).
The end goal:
Imagine a dual-core Haswell... with a third Atom "battery-saver core" or "companion core" like the Tegra 3 has. On the same die. Instead of further underclocking Haswell, you'd just switch to Atom. Just like Windows has power management options now, you could choose to go into Atom-Only mode when in Tablet mode, or whenever on battery, or whenever you want.
BMNify - Monday, June 3, 2013 - link
In a *totally ideal* scenario you'd have a laptop and a tablet. You'd choose the right sized tablet and the right sized laptop and the proper power plants and OS for each device. Sound familiar?I've run out of popcorn watching these product announcements. If you want *totally ideal*, you need a smartphone with a Core iwhatever processor and 500GB of storage that gets 10+ hours of battery life and ships with a truly ubiquitous OS. Then you chose the tablet dock, laptop dock and desktop dock that suits your needs. Or wait 'till Google comes out with surgical implants.
However, in the real world, for now at least, me thinks seeing this thingy is a sign of desperation and Apple was right.
AbbyYen - Monday, June 3, 2013 - link
now, install and run win 7 on laptop mode then It's perfect!run win8 rt or Android with jobs switching simultaneously. say typing on words in lappy mode then unplug to show client or other department or to printing room.
run both tablet and laptop system together when on power plug stage, so u can direct switching without losing ur work. Then in battery stage, only a special program memory chip is working. store all the .docx, .xlsx etc. Once unplug, ARM chip started, read the memory chip then run the mobile office version.
HOW HARD CAN IT BE?
(win7 mode in lappy mode because I don't touch on lappy mode.with keyboard, touch pad and mouse nearer then the screen. and also the finger mark problem. further more, xp or win7 desktop mode! metro mode is dizzy, messy, tedious, sux, faint, head pain.)