ASUS’s next-gen ASUS Eee Pad ‘TF300T’ Leaked Images

[dgstorm]

We have some leaked "nudies" of the TF300T, Asus' next Gen Eee Pad. Unfortunately there is no real info to go along with these pics... not even any rumors on specs. Of course, that won't keep us from speculating on the cool factor of this new product now will it?

What do you guys think will be under the hood of this one?

Source: TransformerForums via BGR

[gadgetrants]

OK, first: I thought it was the TF700T? Is this a different beast?

Second...I apologize for wandering astray, but as I was reading the above report at BGR, I stumbled onto:

Google's Nexus tablet may push Android partners out of the picture

And I have to share the STUPIDEST quote I've seen this year:

With prices of other Android tablets hovering around the iPad’s $500 entry point, however, a $199 tablet from Google would likely render partner offerings obsolete. Who would purchase a $500 Samsung tablet when $199 will get you a slate “of the highest quality” that will also be the first such device to receive new software updates as they become available?

Even though the author explicitly mentions that the Google-branded tablet is supposedly 7 inches, and that it's designed to compete with the Kindle, he goes on to compare it with the 10-inch class (which afaik tends to have a more elaborate and expensive feature-set, e.g., processor speed and RAM, not to mention LARGER SCREEN). These are not just two different sizes, but almost two different form-factors, and there is plenty of room for both. I think the logic of the comparison hinges critically on the meaning of the phrase "slate of the highest quality." But come on -- we all know if it retails for $199 it WILL NOT BE a high-end device. It may have better specs than your average 10-inch tablet, but it will not be "of the highest quality." That is what the $500-$700 price point is reserved for. Duh.

EDIT: OK, now that I'm on a roll (I clearly do not like Mr. Epstein's writing!), I then made my way to:

Tablet market to thin as failures drive PC vendors back to PCs

And yet another incredibly dumb quote:

A new report from DigiTimes on Thursday cites unnamed sources from within component suppliers in stating PC vendors such as HP, Acer, Asustek and Dell may abandon the tablet market next year.

HP? check
Acer? check
Asustek? check
Dell? check

WAIT!!!! ASUS??!?!?!??! Asustek "may abandon the tablet market in 2012?" My goodness, even if that was written in November 2011 it's still mind-bogglingly wrong. I think I need two Motrin. Wow.

-Matt

[xsylus]

@gadgetrants, as for any manufacture abandoning the tablet market; while it may be unlikely it's not a stretch to imagine since most if not all of the manufacture's are probably losing money in the tablet market. IMO "abandon" is too strong a word. More likely these companies might "restructure" their tablet productions and marketing. My contention will always be why pay $500+ for a tablet when I can get a laptop with similar specs, a built in keyboard, optical drive, etc for the same price or less? It seems the components for tablets cost more than they should; maybe the touch-screen circuits are part of the insane price range. The only way to truly compete with the iPAD 2 is to offer a tablet of equal or better quality for less than the iPAD 2. Most people would probably think why bother paying the same price for the "knock-off" when I can get an iPAD 2 for around the same price.

Getting back on topic with this thread...

Here are my speculations about the internal specs of the TF300T: my best guess would be that it's somewhere between the TF201 and the yet-to-be-released TF700. It may just be a TF201 with hardware fixes for the WiFi and GPS issues found in the TF201 which are believed to be caused by the aluminum construction. The back on the TF300T, based on the photos, looks more like the back of the TF101. I noticed the back is red, I wonder if ASUS is planning on releasing this in multiple color options. What I don't understand about the design is that if you look at almost every Sci-Fi film that includes people walking around with hand-held devices / tablets, the devices have a handle or someplace where they can be easily gripped and held. In my limited experience with tablets I've found that holding on to one of these ultra-thin tablets with one hand for more than a few minutes makes you're hand start to cramp up. I could see at least a small handle that slides out of the side or something. Either that or a little strip of nylon built in to the back where you can slide your fingers between to give you a better grip while allowing your hand to be more relaxed. While the TF300T may have a few mildly upgraded features over the TF201 - like maybe a higher megapixel camera or faster processor - for the most part I'd expect this to be a revised version of the TF201. The nice thing is if this comes out anytime soon the price of the TF201 might drop to a more reasonable and attainable level.

[Arkbird]

Well even if the tf201 drops, I know I won't be picking it up. These tablets are starting to get unaffordable. I'm waiting on their $250 ICS Tegra 3 tablet... The seven inch version. Seems affordable and a good buy to me.

Sent from my DROID BIONIC using DroidForums

[gadgetrants]

@gadgetrants, as for any manufacture abandoning the tablet market; while it may be unlikely it's not a stretch to imagine since most if not all of the manufacture's are probably losing money in the tablet market. IMO "abandon" is too strong a word. More likely these companies might "restructure" their tablet productions and marketing.

Sorry for pointing us off-topic but perhaps you misunderstood my faux-rage: my point was simply that Asus is doing very, very well tablet-wise. Their experience with the EEE Pad series is a wild success -- I can't say why, maybe it's because they priced the TF101 at $400 while the Xoom was $500, or because the TF201 was the first quad-core out of the gate. I am perfectly happy with the prediction that most/many/all others may fold -- they haven't come close to Asus' sales performance.

But the other issue of cost is certainly relevant too. My point was that *whoever* stays in the market can produce a cheaper ($200), smaller tablet and/or a larger ($500), more expensive tablet, and there will be consumers for both. As the Kindle seems to show, you sell a larger volume of the cheaper device, but that's just basic economics.

-Matt