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Would I buy this or wait for the TF700T?

Mabaet

Newbie
Jan 11, 2012
27
6
The TFT700T will be out after many more months. But I've already waited many months for the TF201.

I'm not planning of buying TF201 then sell it before the TF700T comes out. Cuz if I have no luck of someone buying it... then I'm dead.

The only changes for now is the screen, the front camera, and the fix of BT GPS and WIFI. Soon it'll have better ram and other stuffs right?

Help me decide please...
 
I just ordered my TP and dock from another vendor and it's on its way (had to get the Champagne Gold instead of the Amethyst Gray I wanted, but oh well).

The bottom line is that I didn't feel like waiting another ~6 months for the HD version. I might have if the hands on writers were like, "OMG! HD SCREEN BLOWING MY MIND!" but it was more like, "it's definitely crisper". While there are wifi issues, it seems that for the most part, wifi works. Maybe not the fastest tablet in that regard, but it does what it has to do. And even with a 3G Galaxy Tab, I've used GPS once or twice, so that's no issue for me with a wifi tablet.

BTW, as you're waiting for the HD TP, they'll announce an octocore TP coming in 6 months. Then when you wait for that, there will be an octocore with a 3D screen. And so forth.

You gotta jump in the pool sometime.
 
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Some will argue that something better will always be coming out so why wait ? In the case of the Prime your have a design flaw that should not have happened. Its not like the GPS, Bluetooth and Wifi were new technology with unknown boundaries. Waiting on the TF700T over the Prime is not like waiting on better technology over the Prime. Your waiting for a fix to the screw up by Asus. I cannot see paying the full retail price for a product with an admitted design flaw that affects significant features of a tablet. This is not like a button that could be a in a better location or recessed more.

I'm not planning of buying TF201 then sell it before the TF700T comes out. Cuz if I have no luck of someone buying it... then I'm dead.

That is a good decision. Not only will it be used but it is flawed and news of the flaw has already spread enough to have an impact on the resale value. I had three Primes and before returning two of them due the flaw, I listed them locally to try to see if I could make just a little $25 profit each. I got 9 inquires, all asking if the units had the GPS / Wifi issue. Well I'm not going to lie so I told them yes and why they would not find a Prime that did not. The next day I returned them to BestBuy.

Help me decide please...

I would wait.. but if the GPS, current Bluetooth Streaming + Wifi issue and reduced Wifi range / performance are not a concern to you then you will be happy with the Prime. With the exception of the flaws, the Prime performance is excellent.

Cobravision it may appear that my first paragraph is in reference to your post. In general it is but I had already started my post prior to ever seeing yours. You just submitted before me :)
 
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I got my Prime a week ago and my keyboard yesterday. So far wifi is no issue at all and the GPS, with the ICS update, has improved. In my two car trips the GPS did loose satellite lock a couple of times but generally was OK. Asus is right when they characterized the GPS as not ready for prime time. The early GPS problems with it not appearing to work at all were fixed with ICS. 1080p is of no concern to me and I use my DX for GPS so I am glad I got this one rather than waiting for the new one.
 
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But when you get the TF700, it'll be superceded within a month or two by the announcement of a better version, for example a 12" version, or even an update the TF700 version with a 1.5ghz processor and the newly announced thinner gorilla glass. And that's before the other tablet manufacturers enter the race and show off their new tablets.

My close freind is head of Android Product Development for Motorola, and some of the tablet tech heading our way in the next 12 months is awesome. Motorola already have the successor to the Xoom 2 completed and being manufactured now, plus another 2 models - a 12" version and a higher-end version.

Asus are no doubt doing the same. They're already working on the next two tablets to follow the TF700, so this is in itself also already out of date.

And the day you place your order for the TF700, Asus will formally announce these next tablets which would be due for release a few months down the line.

If the TF700 was more powerful and had a larger screen, I'd have gone for it. As it stands, I can't see the need to wait until May and pay an extra
 
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In the case of the Prime your have a design flaw that should not have happened. Its not like the GPS, Bluetooth and Wifi were new technology with unknown boundaries. Waiting on the TF700T over the Prime is not like waiting on better technology over the Prime. Your waiting for a fix to the screw up by Asus. I cannot see paying the full retail price for a product with an admitted design flaw that affects significant features of a tablet. This is not like a button that could be a in a better location or recessed more.

You are correct, there is a design flaw that should not have happened. However, this design flaw has not yet affected me at all. I have zero problems streaming music via bluetooth. I have had no problems at all with the wifi range in my house (router in the basement, bedroom on the second floor). Also, when I purchased the Prime I had no intentions of using it for GPS, ever. I don't know if mine has the flaw because I haven't tested it, and will more than likely never have the need to test it as I use my phone and/or in-dash unit when I need directions.
In many cases, mine included, waiting for the TF700T is not waiting for a fix, because a fix would be the same product at the same price point with a problem fixed. I would not be willing to spend an extra $100 for an HD screen and a miniscule difference in a front camera.
Now if someone can get Gameloft to give their games some compatibility with the Prime and tell Sirius to put together an app for Tablets other than the iPad I can truly say that I have zero issues with my Prime whatsoever.
 
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I'm soooo happy to hear that. That was my biggest concern. I want to be able to stream Spotify and Google music to my hifi via bluetooth and use the TP as a sort of large interactive remote control. :D

My setup isn't elaborate. It's a $15 bluetooth speaker that I found at Best Buy a few years back. It connects to the Prime (although this particular speaker needs to be prompted to connect each time) with no problem, and it plays all the Prime's audio.
 
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The GPS receiver isn't as sensitive as my DX but it is now working. When I got my Prime with HC the Navigation App just didn't work. Since the upgrade to ICS the Navigation App has started working with only an occasional loss of satellite lock. I think they knew about the problems with the app but put their efforts into fixing the ICS version. After upgrading to ICS my Prime really took on a very solid personality. GPS performance isn't great but everything else about my Prime is first rate. Also love the keyboard.
 
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I have had no problems at all with the wifi range in my house (router in the basement, bedroom on the second floor).


This raises an important issue I've been meaning to ask about whenever I read that someone is not having wifi issues: what router are you using? My TP only has a strong signal when I'm in the same room as the router; one room (and one wall) away and the signal drops off significantly. I also have an introductory-level router that I will soon be replacing.
 
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This raises an important issue I've been meaning to ask about whenever I read that someone is not having wifi issues: what router are you using? My TP only has a strong signal when I'm in the same room as the router; one room (and one wall) away and the signal drops off significantly. I also have an introductory-level router that I will soon be replacing.

I use the basic wifi router that Fios installed. Not sure of the model of it right now while at work, but I can update later in the day when I get home. It seems to do a great job. It connects 2 computers that are wired to it. It also deals with 3 laptops an ipad and now my prime. It's also fed into an ethernet switch which connects to a PS3, XBox, Slingbox & TV.
 
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You are correct, there is a design flaw that should not have happened. However, this design flaw has not yet affected me at all. I have zero problems streaming music via bluetooth. I have had no problems at all with the wifi range in my house (router in the basement, bedroom on the second floor). Also, when I purchased the Prime I had no intentions of using it for GPS, ever. I don't know if mine has the flaw because I haven't tested it, and will more than likely never have the need to test it as I use my phone and/or in-dash unit when I need directions.
In many cases, mine included, waiting for the TF700T is not waiting for a fix, because a fix would be the same product at the same price point with a problem fixed. I would not be willing to spend an extra $100 for an HD screen and a miniscule difference in a front camera.
Now if someone can get Gameloft to give their games some compatibility with the Prime and tell Sirius to put together an app for Tablets other than the iPad I can truly say that I have zero issues with my Prime whatsoever.

In most cases people will not have any issues with range at home. My neighbor has no issue with connection in his home or to my router, which is two walls separated and only about 20 feet. He did see range issues at hotels where apparently the Prime was enough on the edge of its range that it could not provide a connection of any use. At the same time his phone and iPad 2 did.

I also had no problem streaming music over bluetooth. It streams great. The problem is WiFi transfer rate drops to ridiculous low rates when doing this. Big thread on it on XDA. Maybe it does not affect all units and if so its a crap shoot at best when you get one.
 
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You can bet your bottom dollar that whatever new devices are released in the next months, all will arrive with their own set of "issues" that some people will find unacceptable. To paraphrase Lincoln: You can please most of the people some of the time, some of the people most of the time, but not all of the people all of the time.

So, waiting for the next iteration may prove to be no more satisfactory. You never know.
 
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Lets be honest. No-one NEEDS a tablet we all just want one.;)

That's me, I can't think of any reason I actually need a tablet, but I just want one. Don't even know what I'll do with it. That said, I've decided to be a fence sitter. Its only been a few days since Asus revealed the TP-HD, and also back-handedly admitted they've f***ed up the TP design. So I can let myself wait a few weeks to see what the fallout is going to be. While I'd prefer to have faultless GPS, I do have other GPS capable devices, including a straight GPS. If Asus gets enough flack they say they will fix this, whether that requires a new back or what, then ok. If we suddenly see a nice price drop in the TP because of this, then winner winner chicken dinner. If none of that, we really don't know very much about the HD version, including full specs and actual release date. Summed all up, the fence post is comfortable at the moment, though I really feel for those of you who had a fast one pulled on you by Asus by not being fully honest a month ago. I figure this was why we saw the delays, while they figured out what they were going to do. It was probably pretty simple to jam an HD display into what sounds like a generic case, and say "See what we did!"
 
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You can bet your bottom dollar that whatever new devices are released in the next months, all will arrive with their own set of "issues" that some people will find unacceptable. To paraphrase Lincoln: You can please most of the people some of the time, some of the people most of the time, but not all of the people all of the time.

So, waiting for the next iteration may prove to be no more satisfactory. You never know.

i hear ya.

normally the gps/wifi issues would not have bothered me. but my gut is telling me to hold off on this one. (even thought i want it so badly!)

also, I think HD (1080p) will become a minimum standard for app developers.

one of the problems app developers have is that there are so many tablets with different resolutions and app developers cannot optimise their apps for all of them. so, i think, tablet developers will unify their resolutions with 1080p being the standard.

eventually, apps for tablets with a resolution less than 1080p will most likely be phased out.

*just my theory again! -still trying to convince myself not to get the TP*
 
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I'm also a fence sitter. Will just keep trying to squeeze more life out of my ipad1. It has been a rough start for this tablet. Its been a real fiasco. I think what these manufacturers like Asus and Acer are doing is part of why Google announced that they would be launching a tablet this year.

While competition is good it can also be a race to the bottom. And it seems like some developers just will not invest in the android tablet market. I'm really hoping this changes soon. But with so many different chips, ram, screen resolutions ect out for tablets I can understand why companies like gameloft wait. This is part of the reason Microsoft decided to control the windows phone 7 experience and minimum performance specs. Apple has a huge advantage over everyone because they can release top of the line hardware at almost cost and make a fortune from the app market. Plus developers know their products will work with everyone that may buy it.

So I sit. And I try to resist the urge to buy myself a new toy.

I've always said that apple ios is so boring. And it is. However so is a limited app market and choppy browser experience. I'm pulling for android big time. But issues like this cause concern.
 
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I've always said that apple ios is so boring. And it is. However so is a limited app market and choppy browser experience. I'm pulling for android big time. But issues like this cause concern.

I love the Android OS but would like to see them focus more on polishing performance. I did not care for ICS. What l saw of it looked promising at first but then it went completely downhill in 8 hours.
 
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I'm really pulling for Android as well. I currently use an old (but very good) Toshiba Portage' for all my laptop computing, but it's WinXP and I've never really 'liked' MS.

I've had my SGS (Samsung Galaxy S) for more than a year now and I love it. So, I'll be going to go Android on my next major device purchase. I've been 'sold' on the Asus TF idea for quite a while now. I've been doing my research (mostly online) and found out about the TF Prime. I think it's the best thing (tablet) out there, and I had planned to get one. I'm still kinda ol fashioned and I still like the idea of buying from a regular store outlet where I can do a 'hands on' before buying. So, I didn't go ahead and purchase online. Also, I'm not an 'early adopter', I wait a while and check out reports of those who are. In this case that has worked out well, as I now know of the TF700T, and THAT'S the one I want. I know there is also the possibility of some other tablet becoming available and perhaps being 'better', but as of now....it's the TF700T for me.

Now, if I can just locate an ASUS retailer (here in Thailand) who's going to have one of the first shipments....I'll be good to go.
To tell you the truth, I've even considered hoping over to Hong Kong or maybe even Taiwan to pick one up. Any thoughts on that???
 
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