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After reading all the negative posts made by a tiny few people, I registered just to set the record straight.
Prime is the best tablet out there, period. It can be tablet or laptop, has quad core power and so thin and light. You need to spend time with it to know how awesome it is. A very vocal minority of annoying people posting useless complaints and a lot of them are ignorant. Check out the polls and you will see majority of forum is totally in love with this.
Uneducated people using HC think this tablet should not stutter at all navigating UI. Guess what? HC is not optimized for quad core. ICS will be out soon and will fix this. This is first release people! Also firmware is coming down often from Asus to help. Also factory resetting easilly returns the Prime to responsiveness when needed. Asus deserves props for launching most powerful tablet at excellent price. This baby is 10 times better than iPad.
Browser is great too, but if its too sluggish for you just get Opera! We have choices people. Stock browser just gives you a taste of what is out there.
People complaining about GPS have started 3 threads on it. Is that really necessary? I come to XDA to find out new tricks and hacks for my TFP, not to read pages of complaints made by select few people. For majority of us GPS is not an issue. Google maps shows my position just fine. Anyone wanting 10" GPS for driving around should go get a real GPS. This is a TABLET. Even Asus Sweeden says GPS is just extra feature, not even a primary sensor. You should be happy it has EXTRA FEATURE, not complain about it! Truth is most people don't care about GPS anyway.
As for loose LCD screen, again first release. You knew there will be some minor issues so why complain about minor things. I am almost finished with my "Superglue Mod" which completely and easilly fixes this issue. I will post instructions after I figure out how to remove glue fingerprints from under screen.
Light bleed can only be seen in dark room, or during startup, but I believe my superglue mod will also fix screen bleed. Just have to figure out how to do it without glue fingerprints. For now I am recommend people just leave it alone and give factory glue more time to set. Also firmware may fix this.
Some peoples have said screen is too yellow. Its actually just color temperature they choose and is a design feature, and good personal preferance. Many people wear yellow glasses for driving or shooting to ENHANCE what they see. I for one am glad for some very slight yellow tint, because now display is enhanced.
WiFi is more than acceptable. Although not as good as my phone's but soon I expect other modders to come out with case hack which will make WiFi perfect. Might even help GPS.
Battery life is the best also.
Dead GPS isn't a useless complaint, but indeed a very valid one imho.
Not to mention it didnt start out as an "extra" feature, but was later made out to be, just to cover their asses.
And I don't know what polls you've been looking at, but the ones Ive seen were showing that the majority was less then satisfied.
And if you deem it acceptable for the first batch to pretty much fall apart, you are an idiot.
There is no excuse for piss poor QC, especially for devices of this price caliber.
You're already super gluing your screen, hope the 500 bucks was worth it?
Firmware doesnt fix hardware problems like screen bleeding either.
I agree, this is a great tablet. Some people wouldn't know what to do with themselves if they couldn't complain.
I have had no problems and the screen and battery exceed my expectations. Glad I bought it.
Sent from my Transformer Prime TF201 using xda premium
Kobald said:
Prime is the best tablet out there, period. It can be tablet or laptop, has quad core power and so thin and light. You need to spend time with it to know how awesome it is. A very vocal minority of annoying people posting useless complaints and a lot of them are ignorant.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think it's beneficial all that complaining - it's pushing ASUS to develop a GPS solution.
That's pressure that helps us all.
I think it could be done more sophisticatedly however - seems like a lot of pouting going on.
However, it's a minor issue and I agree with you 100% -
Awesome battery life!!
This is right on the money! Thanks for those comments....Now I just can't wait to get mine.
It's just very sad that as consumers we have to anticipate the minor errors for initial production units. You would assume the QC for these companies would identify issues, but I think there is so much demand on a product that the company would rather release a few under par units to be returned later than delay the release. Either way, my philosophy has always been that I don't "NEED" the product right away, so sit back and wait until I'm comfortable spending the money on that product and peruse and reviews so I know what to expect. Sometimes I even decided I didn't want the product after the reviews.
I'm glad to see your positive and realistic comments. I'm right on track with your post.
Kobald said:
After reading all the negative posts made by a tiny few people, I registered just to set the record straight.
Prime is the best tablet out there, period. It can be tablet or laptop, has quad core power and so thin and light. You need to spend time with it to know how awesome it is. A very vocal minority of annoying people posting useless complaints and a lot of them are ignorant. Check out the polls and you will see majority of forum is totally in love with this.
Uneducated people using HC think this tablet should not stutter at all navigating UI. Guess what? HC is not optimized for quad core. ICS will be out soon and will fix this. This is first release people! Also firmware is coming down often from Asus to help. Also factory resetting easilly returns the Prime to responsiveness when needed. Asus deserves props for launching most powerful tablet at excellent price. This baby is 10 times better than iPad.
Browser is great too, but if its too sluggish for you just get Opera! We have choices people. Stock browser just gives you a taste of what is out there.
People complaining about GPS have started 3 threads on it. Is that really necessary? I come to XDA to find out new tricks and hacks for my TFP, not to read pages of complaints made by select few people. For majority of us GPS is not an issue. Google maps shows my position just fine. Anyone wanting 10" GPS for driving around should go get a real GPS. This is a TABLET. Even Asus Sweeden says GPS is just extra feature, not even a primary sensor. You should be happy it has EXTRA FEATURE, not complain about it! Truth is most people don't care about GPS anyway.
As for loose LCD screen, again first release. You knew there will be some minor issues so why complain about minor things. I am almost finished with my "Superglue Mod" which completely and easilly fixes this issue. I will post instructions after I figure out how to remove glue fingerprints from under screen.
Light bleed can only be seen in dark room, or during startup, but I believe my superglue mod will also fix screen bleed. Just have to figure out how to do it without glue fingerprints. For now I am recommend people just leave it alone and give factory glue more time to set. Also firmware may fix this.
Some peoples have said screen is too yellow. Its actually just color temperature they choose and is a design feature, and good personal preferance. Many people wear yellow glasses for driving or shooting to ENHANCE what they see. I for one am glad for some very slight yellow tint, because now display is enhanced.
WiFi is more than acceptable. Although not as good as my phone's but soon I expect other modders to come out with case hack which will make WiFi perfect. Might even help GPS.
Battery life is the best also.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You had me inspired...right up until the super glue finger prints. Yike! What where you thinking?
If Asus can revise the hardware in order to fix GPS and strengthen Wifi to be comparable to other tablets, and can improve their QC, and ICS lives up to what people expect of it, then I will deem the Transformer Prime the best current tablet. So a Transformer Prime with fixed GPS, improved Wifi, no QC issues, and ICS is what I would call the best current tablet. It needs this confluence of improvements to be deemed "best". But I would not call it the best in its current state.
As to the OP, that is probably one of the most idiotic posts I have seen in this forum so far.
Kobald said:
After reading all the negative posts made by a tiny few people, I registered just to set the record straight.
Prime is the best tablet out there, period. It can be tablet or laptop, has quad core power and so thin and light. You need to spend time with it to know how awesome it is. A very vocal minority of annoying people posting useless complaints and a lot of them are ignorant. Check out the polls and you will see majority of forum is totally in love with this.
Uneducated people using HC think this tablet should not stutter at all navigating UI. Guess what? HC is not optimized for quad core. ICS will be out soon and will fix this. This is first release people! Also firmware is coming down often from Asus to help. Also factory resetting easilly returns the Prime to responsiveness when needed. Asus deserves props for launching most powerful tablet at excellent price. This baby is 10 times better than iPad.
Browser is great too, but if its too sluggish for you just get Opera! We have choices people. Stock browser just gives you a taste of what is out there.
People complaining about GPS have started 3 threads on it. Is that really necessary? I come to XDA to find out new tricks and hacks for my TFP, not to read pages of complaints made by select few people. For majority of us GPS is not an issue. Google maps shows my position just fine. Anyone wanting 10" GPS for driving around should go get a real GPS. This is a TABLET. Even Asus Sweeden says GPS is just extra feature, not even a primary sensor. You should be happy it has EXTRA FEATURE, not complain about it! Truth is most people don't care about GPS anyway.
As for loose LCD screen, again first release. You knew there will be some minor issues so why complain about minor things. I am almost finished with my "Superglue Mod" which completely and easilly fixes this issue. I will post instructions after I figure out how to remove glue fingerprints from under screen.
Light bleed can only be seen in dark room, or during startup, but I believe my superglue mod will also fix screen bleed. Just have to figure out how to do it without glue fingerprints. For now I am recommend people just leave it alone and give factory glue more time to set. Also firmware may fix this.
Some peoples have said screen is too yellow. Its actually just color temperature they choose and is a design feature, and good personal preferance. Many people wear yellow glasses for driving or shooting to ENHANCE what they see. I for one am glad for some very slight yellow tint, because now display is enhanced.
WiFi is more than acceptable. Although not as good as my phone's but soon I expect other modders to come out with case hack which will make WiFi perfect. Might even help GPS.
Battery life is the best also.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
that's what I've been saying but seems obvious. alot of the negative complainers aren't getting the point. they wouldn't know a good thing if it hit them in the face.
robomo said:
I think it's beneficial all that complaining - it's pushing ASUS to develop a GPS solution.
That's pressure that helps us all.
I think it could be done more sophisticatedly however - seems like a lot of pouting going on.
However, it's a minor issue and I agree with you 100% -
Awesome battery life!!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I agree with you also. nothing wrong with voicing complaints and dislikes with the device. but do so in a more proper and constructive manner. pouting and telling people not to get the device because they had a bad experience isn't helping anyone. I think the biggest GPS thread is the only one trying to help figure out a solution. all others are just rants and overly exaggerated.
redlin'r said:
This is right on the money! Thanks for those comments....Now I just can't wait to get mine.
It's just very sad that as consumers we have to anticipate the minor errors for initial production units. You would assume the QC for these companies would identify issues, but I think there is so much demand on a product that the company would rather release a few under par units to be returned later than delay the release. Either way, my philosophy has always been that I don't "NEED" the product right away, so sit back and wait until I'm comfortable spending the money on that product and peruse and reviews so I know what to expect. Sometimes I even decided I didn't want the product after the reviews.
I'm glad to see your positive and realistic comments. I'm right on track with your post.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
we need more posts and threads like these to overshadow the ones trying to make it seem like all primes are broken or faulty. some people here believe if your device is working properly, you must be lying, or don't know any better, or ignoring the issues, or even not running the trouble shooting tests correctly. those people that assume that have no clue and try to impose and influence their negative way of thinking on other members and new people coming on to the scene. very glad that more n more people realizing the real truth.
Like I said before, if I wouldn't listened to all the negative comments and let it influence me, I would've never got this tablet. Since 12/22, I've been note than satisfied with it and easily exceeded all my expectations. only slight issue is GPS. which I'm not pressed about anyways. that's why I never bothered to give it a real test yet. once the time comes, I will.
Always happy to hear when more n more people happy with device. It is truly the best out right now and I think some people hate that that's Fact
Kobald said:
Uneducated people using HC think this tablet should not stutter at all navigating UI. Guess what? HC is not optimized for quad core. ICS will be out soon and will fix this.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Can you educate me and link to a source for your claim that ICS will somehow be more optimized for quad core processors and will reduce stuttering?
Thanks.
mongocain said:
You had me inspired...right up until the super glue finger prints. Yike! What where you thinking?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
the super glue part does have me scratching head also..lol. I would've sent it in n let Asus send me another one or fix it. that's a lil extreme though, super glue.
Kobald said:
After reading all the negative posts made by a tiny few people, I registered just to set the record straight.
As for loose LCD screen, again first release. You knew there will be some minor issues so why complain about minor things. I am almost finished with my "Superglue Mod" which completely and easilly fixes this issue. I will post instructions after I figure out how to remove glue fingerprints from under screen.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
As a punter who has the prime on pre-order at two separate retailers in good old blighty, and who is looking forwards to delivery and appreciate the positive comments that you have made; I do wonder about the "superglue mod" as to be honest I will be returning mine for a new model if Asus bundle some superglue with mine!
When I have paid £500 for my toy I am afraid I do want it to be stuck together before I get it (I can remember how messy I was with airfix models 40 years ago ) and teh thought of a screen with superglued fingerprints on the inside of the screen makes me want to scream and also wonder what you have done for your warranty!!
Let's hope you have no major future problems with the little beast.
Andy
Kobald said:
Prime is the best tablet out there, period.
- Also factory resetting easilly returns the Prime to responsiveness when needed.
- Even Asus Sweeden says GPS is just extra feature, not even a primary sensor. You should be happy it has EXTRA FEATURE
- As for loose LCD screen, again first release.
- Light bleed can only be seen in dark room, or during startup, but I believe my superglue mod will also fix screen bleed.
- Many people wear yellow glasses for driving or shooting to ENHANCE what they see. I for one am glad for some very slight yellow tint, because now display is enhanced.
- WiFi is more than acceptable. Although not as good as my phone's
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So if the Acer and Lenovo have these issues when they first come out, are you going to cut them the same amount of slack you're cutting Asus? Because what you're basically saying is that any initial issues don't count on new devices and when judging what's "best" people should ignore its faults and view it based on what it "can" be not what it "is."
Sorry, couldn't help myself. Saying "best ever" in your thread title and then spending 1/2 of your post talking about issues and attacking people that have them just seems paradoxical.
best tablet so far? yes
good enough for me to buy? not with a locked bootloader.
If Asus doesn't unlock it I won't get one, and I'll check out what other companies are showing off at CES.
I am having real problem to remove superglue thumbprint and dont think I will release that mod. Too much potential for mistake plus screen is now lose again. Think I am try to return it for replacement.
Kobald said:
I am having real problem to remove superglue thumbprint and dont think I will release that mod. Too much potential for mistake plus screen is now lose again. Think I am try to return it for replacement.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Somuch for being highly educated, hmm?
Sokonomi said:
Somuch for being highly educated, hmm?
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Click to collapse
I'd like to see the explantion to the store associate for the super glue fingerprint when he returns it.
Its not very bad, I doubt they will notice.
Dude, I want to love this tablet as much as you do, but you sound like an uneducated fan boy in denial.
Sent from my Transformer Prime TF201 using Tapatalk
Kobald said:
Its not very bad, I doubt they will notice.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Wow... I think they will.
Theres a fingerprint, splattering and what seems to be a gash or a bit of glue that ran down the screen.
What did you do to that poor thing?
Kobald said:
Its not very bad, I doubt they will notice.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
holy ****, wth did you do?
Just got my TF201 last night and I tried out some capacitive pens on it. One thing I noticed, even with my finger, is that a straight line does not come out straight. Using Supernote, i drew lines, curves, circles, letters, and they are all bumpy, as though the digitizer is not making a straight line. This can also be seen from the Developer Options in settings when using Show Pointer Location. On my GNex, it looks perfectly straight. But on the Prime, it's very wavy. Is this just inherent to tablets (maybe the bigger screen means a lower res digitizer) or just to the Prime or just to MY Prime?
I'd post examples but I don't have it with me at the moment.
No one... 22 views and no one has bothered to try it on their tablet?
Confirmed. More noticeable with diagonal lines. I wonder if it is down to the number of digitizer pixels just generating quantisation noise.
got it a bit on mine as well. Also pretty well only on the diagonal lines.
They are not big jumps, but big enough especially if you are planning on doing any precise small lines/writing
EXACTLY!!!! THANK YOu!!!!!!
it must be Prime's digitizer. seems lo res. and yea i notice it most on diagonal lines.
i went to Best Buy and did the same test on the xoom, thrive, and tf101. The digitizer on the TF101 and 201 are much much more responsive, BUT they are bumpy on the diagonal lines, the TF101 did better if i drew faster. But the xoom and thrive were super smooth no matter how slow i went.
very disappointing.
anyone else please?
PS I'll post comparative photos when i can
Have you been able to do hand write any small text? I find its almost impossible to do. It doesn't always like to register the lines when they are small movements. e seems to be one that really doesnt work well, I think because you never move very far from where you start. Not sure if this "threshold" of movement before it decides to draw a line is software based or somehow built into the hardware.
writing small doesn't work well. even on my nexus which has a very nice response. if you use the Supernote, which is a great app (asus stock app), there is a button on the top that you can turn on the writing guide and it's like you are writing on a big piece of lined paper, makes it way easier to just how big to write.
but the diagonal paths still suck.
My old Nexus One has the same problem. Strange why Asus would bundle note-taking apps with a touch panel that clearly isn't designed for it. Hopefully that Atmel maxstylus thing will come to fruition.
on the xoom and thrive, they were perfect.
but the first asus tablet was slight better but still had the same bumpyness.
the prime's is very bumpy.
makes one wonder, who the hell designs and tests (or not tests) these things that cost half a grand. it would seem someone who shouldn't be designing and no one testing designs.
My Thoughts EXACTLY
gaetawoo said:
on the xoom and thrive, they were perfect.
but the first asus tablet was slight better but still had the same bumpyness.
the prime's is very bumpy.
makes one wonder, who the hell designs and tests (or not tests) these things that cost half a grand. it would seem someone who shouldn't be designing and no one testing designs.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Where does Asus get off putting the Prime out there as a "Premium" Tablet, with so many obvious R&D issues. I understand cost cutting, and while I am upset by that type of approach, the realities of a low margin business like hardware are understandable.
What I do NOT understand is how Asus, a company that traditionally has been know for HARDWARE, and for providing lot's of cutting edge technologies on their motherboards, ended up letting AsusDesign run the show on the Prime. Yes, the "Spun Metal" design was very attractive, and got the attention Techies and Non-Techies alike.
But even if their testing and research were SO POOR as to miss the GPS issue entirely (which I find amazing. If they missed it, they are lame. If they KNEW, they are dishonest. Either way it destroys any respect I had for the company, which they put the final touch on by showing a fixed product, dressed as a NEW product, while people were already fuming over being sold a defective design. I am not trying to dredge up that whole mess again, just saying that they show VERY bad judgement on stuff like this, time after time. Asus would like to be competitive in the Consumer PRODUCT marketplace, but they are still acting like a small HARDWARE Supplier.
Ahh well, I will stop mybellyaching, as it's not productive. But this digitizer performance, once again having the OG Transformer come out working better that the Prime is REALLY starting to Piss ME OFF!!!
I would HOPE, that after Asus gets done wiping the egg off their face (again) that the lesson learned is: 1. Design and TEST, then redesign and Test, etc... a "premium" or superior or bleeding edge device, and when it it truly ready for Prime Time (pun intended) THEN.... 2. Let AsusDesign have their way with it, and then TEST AGAIN, to validate the design does not compromise the function.
I knew Asus was young, but had I known the level of immaturity, and poor judgement when under pressure, I would probably have steered clear of the Prime... I HOPE I would have been that smart, and not let my desire get in the way of common sense.
There is a fairly high percentage of folks who will defend this tablet against ANY argument. I a sick to death of "I use my phone for GPS, why would I need it in a tablet... blah blah blah.
As an engineer, I have the deepest respect for elegant, and innovative design. That what drew me to the Prime, as the OG was quite good, but this promised to up the ante significantly. I also demand, as much as possible that all of my hardware, from my Tablet to my Leaf Blower work AS DESIGNED.
I see exactly what you are referring to un
you might have a problem with your digitizer indeed. try performing this test?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6AmWOTcR7Qg
I have same issue on galaxy tab 10.1.
Drawing diagonals really slowly makes them wavy.
Tested the stylus on htc desire - same thing...
Using finger - waves are smaller, almost unnoticeable.
regards,
arizal
If it's being proven by numerous owners and Asus's own claims that the aluminum backing is interfering with the signals of wifi and gps, what realistically should be a proper response to the customers?
We bought the devices and can't return them to the stores because of return time running out and firmware updates are not fixing the issue. Being that they are aware the aluminum is the problem how feasible would it be for them to recall them and change the back out for a different material? We still enjoy this device greatly and I can deal with waiting to have my back swapped out knowing when I get it back there won't be an issue with it.
Sure it's going to be expensive but so are class action suits by pissed off customers. Example is Apple settling their class action suit over the death grip problem. Why not nip it now instead of shipping more units out that will require RMA numbers and ruin the reputation of the company? I also understand the company bottom line is the defining factor but is it really worth the frustration of employee's and customers who are going to be left sour feeling with Asus products?
This is bringing back bad memories of when I owned an Asus Z71v laptop. Beautiful machine but getting them to replace my battery after they got a bad batch of cells from the oem was a pain until enough people complained.
ASUS has removed GPS from product specifications. For unsatisfied customers outside the return window, they have started to offer refunds. See my post: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1509819
call me crazy but i love the aluminum back looks amazing and feels very high quality. As long as my wifi is as good as it is atm i wouldnt want it any other way^^ I mean who cares about AGPS on a wifi only device anyway? Its nice that they put it in the prime, but you cant except good performance from it without network.
Gary keys already said itss not the aluminum backing thatss causing the issue
It's Not The Aluminum Back Cover
Most of us do not have issues with WiFi, Bluetooth, or GPS and we have the same aluminum cover as those with issues. I've seen my GPS go from great to nil as I "upgraded" from .11 to .14. To solve it I rooted it, went back to .11 and now I get 11-12 satellites indoors.
AMoosa said:
Gary keys already said itss not the aluminum backing thatss causing the issue
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I thought it was just the opposite. I thought I read in an interveiw by Engadet with Gary, and he said the aluminum back plate was the cause...
****ing_lukin said:
ASUS has removed GPS from product specifications. For unsatisfied customers outside the return window, they have started to offer refunds. See my post: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1509819
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, this. Since ASUS is now offering refunds, nobody has anything to complain about. If your Prime doesn't work for you, return it. Nothing could be simpler.
I have aluminium backing and it's works and looks great. No solution needed.
Mcoupe said:
I thought it was just the opposite. I thought I read in an interveiw by Engadet with Gary, and he said the aluminum back plate was the cause...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I got the impression it was both. The aluminum backplate does cause signal attenuation, and is without a doubt a factor with the GPS and WiFi problems the TP experiences, regardless of whether or not Gary and Asus wants to admit it.
However, I get the impression the backplate isn't the whole story for a few reasons. First, we've seen a great deal of variability in signal strength and performance. Considering everybody (presumably) has the exact same backplate, the wide range of signal performance has to be affected by other factors as well.
Additionally, Asus may have made some mistakes, but they aren't stupid. They know full well that aluminum blocks signal strength, and I very much doubt they engineered, tested, built and shipped a flagship product without ever taking the time to see if the back might be prohibitively blocking signals.
Finally, we've seen that software can and does affect everyone differently.
My personal theory is that we are seeing two sets of hardware- an initial rollout, and a slightly tweaked second batch. The variation between the two would explain why some people without problems started seeing problems with the .13 and .14 patches, and vice versa.
Hi,
this morning someone sent me a link from Tom's Hardware about this tablet. The articles mentions that some people have modded their case to improve GPS signals.
I wonder why Asus don't revise this product to address this issue.
Sent from my HTC Desire using xda premium
You DONT even have to do all that anymore. Asus is offering free GPS dongles to people who purchase a prime. Offer ends in July. Just take a look in my GPS dongle test thread. Then take a look at the link in my signature THST says positive transformer thread.
Prime is a great device. Get one asap
Well first of all, I find it hard to believe that the aluminum case is causing 100% of the problem. Because, if it were then like you said, why not just change the design of the backplate? My guess is that simply adding a plastic strip to the top of the backplate would not improve GPS performance that much. And personally I think the plastic strip look is ugly as hell. What they could have done is kept the all aluminum finish and just relocated the antenna to behind a speaker grill, which is similar to what other devices with metal casings have done. I am sure the GPS still wouldn't be 'professional grade' but it would at least be better than what we currently have.
Either way, the whole GPS problem was something that was obviously not 'caught' until really late in the production process. If it were caught earlier, I am sure something more pro-active would have been done about it. But by the time they found out, they were in too deep to make a hardware change as they were most likely already in mass production. The early regions of where the device was released they had already advertised the thing as having GPS, both on the box and on the official spec sheets. Then when it was released these people found out that GPS was virtually non-functional and ASUS had to quickly back track and pull GPS as a feature from the spec list. My guess is their lawyers told them they need to do something to avoid a class action law suit and any further bad press around this whole situation. So their options were:
1) Recall the device and then modify the hardware in some way to fix the GPS problem (whether that be done via a newly designed back pate or whatever). And then any new ones produced would obviously have this hardware change incorporated as well.
2) Offer a free addon that improves GPS performance.
As we now know, they went with option 2, which I am sure was also the cheaper route. Also, option 1 would imply an admission of guilt in that they messed up. The GPS dongle option allows them to say: "Although the TF201 is not a professional GPS device, as part of our unwavering commitment to our customers we are offering all customers who purchased a TF201 system a free external GPS extension kit, called a dongle, which may help improve signal reception and optimize the user experience".
Honestly I do not care about GPS in a tablet and I will probably only ever use my dongle a select few times in the entire span that I own and use the Prime. I do think it is good that ASUS is doing something about it though. Other companies may very well have just brushed this thing under the rug and moved on with life (which is what I assumed ASUS has been doing until we found out about the GPS dongle).
jordache16 said:
Well first of all, I find it hard to believe that the aluminum case is causing 100% of the problem. Because, if it were then like you said, why not just change the design of the backplate? My guess is that simply adding a plastic strip to the top of the backplate would not improve GPS performance that much. And personally I think the plastic strip look is ugly as hell. What they could have done is kept the all aluminum finish and just relocated the antenna to behind a speaker grill, which is similar to what other devices with metal casings have done. I am sure the GPS still wouldn't be 'professional grade' but it would at least be better than what we currently have.
Either way, the whole GPS problem was something that was obviously not 'caught' until really late in the production process. If it were caught earlier, I am sure something more pro-active would have been done about it. But by the time they found out, they were in too deep to make a hardware change as they were most likely already in mass production. The early regions of where the device was released they had already advertised the thing as having GPS, both on the box and on the official spec sheets. Then when it was released these people found out that GPS was virtually non-functional and ASUS had to quickly back track and pull GPS as a feature from the spec list. My guess is their lawyers told them they need to do something to avoid a class action law suit and any further bad press around this whole situation. So their options were:
1) Recall the device and then modify the hardware in some way to fix the GPS problem (whether that be done via a newly designed back pate or whatever). And then any new ones produced would obviously have this hardware change incorporated as well.
2) Offer a free addon that improves GPS performance.
As we now know, they went with option 2, which I am sure was also the cheaper route. Also, option 1 would imply an admission of guilt in that they messed up. The GPS dongle option allows them to say: "Although the TF201 is not a professional GPS device, as part of our unwavering commitment to our customers we are offering all customers who purchased a TF201 system a free external GPS extension kit, called a dongle, which may help improve signal reception and optimize the user experience".
Honestly I do not care about GPS in a tablet and I will probably only ever use my dongle a select few times in the entire span that I own and use the Prime. I do think it is good that ASUS is doing something about it though. Other companies may very well have just brushed this thing under the rug and moved on with life (which is what I assumed ASUS has been doing until we found out about the GPS dongle).
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Click to collapse
+1...although the solution of a GPS dongle really kills the idea of a TRANSFORMER prime...cant use it with the keyboard dock, and its not as flush and they said it is..you wont be able to use majority of the leather cases and etc when you are using the dongle
I have owned the prime for months. My wifi strength is fine and I dont use GPS enough to justify the problem.
proxus01 said:
I have owned the prime for months. My wifi strength is fine and I dont use GPS enough to justify the problem.
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Same here.
Sent from my Transformer Prime TF201 using Tapatalk 2
kwazytazz said:
+1...although the solution of a GPS dongle really kills the idea of a TRANSFORMER prime...
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Click to collapse
Not really - now it can TRANSFORM into a 'professional grade' GPS device! ;-)
Regards,
Dave
Sent from my GT-N7000 using Tapatalk 2
jordache16 said:
why not just change the design of the backplate?
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Click to collapse
They are, for the 300 and 700 series, back to plastic where the radios are going. iPad tried behind the speaker grille and it still has issues. Its better than nothing but def not perfect.
Yes, the black strip doesnt always look as appealing, however you could cover it with a case or carbon fiber sticker or whatever, i'd much rather go for plastic strip over no radio reception.
And also yes, the interference can definately be 10000% caused by the metalic back plate. Both by blocking the signal and RF noise. Everything pretty much is grounded to the metal back and it, in turn, has a lot of RF noise associated with it. If i attach a lead to the gps or wifi contact inside the tablet and have the wire run outside the tab i get excellent reception. Once that wire goes within about an inch of the tablet the signal drops dramatically. Even if the access point is on the proper side of the tablet so its not blocking the signal.
Asus knows how to make killer electronics. they did an amazing job on the prime, however the demand caught them off guard. They tried to do something different with the metalic design and got caught with their pants down. They will get it right eventually and in the mean time we are at least getting SOMETHING (free dongle for gps, why not?)
The prime is a great tablet, awesome for watching movies, playing games, browsing the internet. ya, the wifi is not that great, i look forward to mods for using the dongle for wifi instead of GPS, but in the mean time this is the best we got, and its good enough. When the 700 comes out i may sell my prime for that but i got money in my pocket. if your on a budget, buy the TF101, its still better than any other tablet (aside from the 201 IMO), or wait for the 300 series which will still be a cost efficent tablet.
Asus is doing their best to remedy this situation. They are a big company and big machines move slow. Considering their track record i will still continue buying their products. I have been impressed overall by the prime, and the 101 before it, and look forward to the 700 when it comes out. Continue doing your research and determine what is going to be important for you (and if you do go Prime make damn sure to test it every way you can before accepting it).
proxus01 said:
I have owned the prime for months. My wifi strength is fine and I dont use GPS enough to justify the problem.
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Click to collapse
Same for me.
proxus01 said:
I have owned the prime for months. My wifi strength is fine and I dont use GPS enough to justify the problem.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
SoTacMatt said:
Same here.
Sent from my Transformer Prime TF201 using Tapatalk 2
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texstar said:
Same for me.
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same here..lmao
my wifi been been performing great where ever i go. whether at home, traveling and tethering, or some where else and hooking up to another public or private network.
The worst problem with the prime is the constant freezes it has...
It`s frustrating.
Tried all the browsers people recommend and the problem persists.
Sent from my GT-I9100 using XDA
Pretty good review of the Asus TF300...I didn't expect Engadget to give it such praise.
http://www.engadget.com/2012/04/22/asus-transformer-pad-tf300-review/
I had no idea this was already a finished product
d1ez3 said:
I had no idea this was already a finished product
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Yea, releases today. It seems like everyone has only heard of the 700, but not this, so I posted it.
I'd love to sell my fiances Galaxy Tab to get her this,but she needs a 7". Can't wait to see the 7 incher from ASUS or ASUS/Google...
this was already posted in the 300 thread earlier today
A cheaper version of the Prime. The only difference really is not a sharp looking (cheaper materials) and no Super IPS+ display making it easy.
Sent from my Transformer Prime TF201 using Tapatalk 2
Aside from the fact that the battery life isn't quite as epic as the Prime's, our most serious complaint has little to do with ASUS, and more with Android: even with a state-of-the-art chip running the latest version of the OS, the tablet occasionally hiccups when launching apps and resizing web pages.
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Love my prime for this
legendary1022 said:
A cheaper version of the Prime. The only difference really is not a sharp looking (cheaper materials) and no Super IPS+ display making it easy.
Sent from my Transformer Prime TF201 using Tapatalk 2
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Click to collapse
It's also a bit thicker
Sent from my HTC Vision using xda premium
I was hoping they would be more comprehensive about the wi-fi. All they said was "we didn't encounter any problems." I'd really like some comparative analysis between the 300 and the Prime, particularly since the 300 has a plastic back plate.
jkvato said:
I was hoping they would be more comprehensive about the wi-fi. All they said was "we didn't encounter any problems." I'd really like some comparative analysis between the 300 and the Prime, particularly since the 300 has a plastic back plate.
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to be honest, I've seen breakdowns on wifi performance comparisons. the 300, according to those charts, does perform better on wifi across various distances from router. It can also be said alot of prime owners don't have an issue with their wifi. I think it may have been Anandtech review where i saw the comparison charts. I cant remember. Either them or Android Central. If i come across it again ill link you to it.
edit: i found it. it was Anandtech. he has a very thorough review of the 3oo. ill link you to the wifi comparison chart.
http://www.anandtech.com/show/5756/asus-transformer-pad-300-review/5
jaycustom said:
Pretty good review of the Asus TF300...I didn't expect Engadget to give it such praise.
http://www.engadget.com/2012/04/22/asus-transformer-pad-tf300-review/
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You call that praise? I was thinking engadget's just like NO ME GUSTA to this...
Probably sent through one of those little windows in AOKP cornerstone for my tf9001.
demandarin said:
to be honest, I've seen breakdowns on wifi performance comparisons. the 300, according to those charts, does perform better on wifi across various distances from router. It can also be said alot of prime owners don't have an issue with their wifi. I think it may have been Anandtech review where i saw the comparison charts. I cant remember. Either them or Android Central. If i come across it again ill link you to it.
edit: i found it. it was Anandtech. he has a very thorough review of the 3oo. ill link you to the wifi comparison chart.
http://www.anandtech.com/show/5756/asus-transformer-pad-300-review/5
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Click to collapse
I'm confused... Are you saying that if our Prime performs similar to that chart then we don't have a problem?
Looking at that chart, I see that the Prime is obviously the worst performer and it seems to be a pretty big issue compared to the other tablets.
>http://www.anandtech.com/show/5756/asus-transformer-pad-300-review/5
I wouldn't draw any conclusion from this chart. It's not representative. The numbers are distorted, likely from variations from a single test.
Per the chart, the Prime would have better wifi at 50' + multiple obstructions than at 20' + single obstruction, which obviously is false. Ditto for TF300, which from this would have same wifi performance at 20' as at 80'.
When a single set of numbers is known to be wrong, then the whole work is suspect. I would look askance at the entire review. This is shoddy work. I expect better from Anandtech, especially when Anand dude himself put his own name on the article.
MK17 said:
I'm confused... Are you saying that if our Prime performs similar to that chart then we don't have a problem?
Looking at that chart, I see that the Prime is obviously the worst performer and it seems to be a pretty big issue compared to the other tablets.
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Click to collapse
you confusing me..lmao did you see the post i quoted? the original question was asked how does the 300 wifi performance compare to the prime. i gave the Anandtech comparison he did in his in depth review. Anandtech did a prime wifi tests early when prime first came out. his tests didn't fare well with the prime. my prime gets results more similar to the other devices listed. not all primes have wifi that perform bad, especially newer units.
Either way i just linked the person asking the question to a comparison chart showing how well 300 wifi performs. this has nothing to do with the prime by itself. this is just a recorded proof of comparison. that's all really. Since no other tech site has done what the person asked about so far.
what e.mote said is true also.
e.mote said:
>http://www.anandtech.com/show/5756/asus-transformer-pad-300-review/5
I wouldn't draw any conclusion from this chart. It's not representative. The numbers are distorted, likely from variations from a single test.
Per the chart, the Prime would have better wifi at 50' + multiple obstructions than at 20' + single obstruction, which obviously is false. Ditto for TF300, which from this would have same wifi performance at 20' as at 80'.
When a single set of numbers is known to be wrong, then the whole work is suspect. I would look askance at the entire review. This is shoddy work. I expect better from Anandtech, especially when Anand dude himself put his own name on the article.
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Click to collapse
That chart tracks with my experience and likely the experience of most other Prime owners. The TF300 has slight dropoff, but consistently strong reception out to a much farther distance. The Prime has significant dropoff quickly, and almost total dropoff at the longer distance.
Both Primes I have owned were exactly the same as the one tested. Within 20 feet of the router, some dropoff. Outside of 20 feet, at least half, and at 60+ feet almost total dropoff. Also, it's reasonable that the 50 foot test was a little stronger than the 20 foot test because of the randomness of the signal dropoff. Sitting 50 feet from my router, I could run the speed test five consecutive times and get five different numbers. That doesn't make the numbers suspect, it makes the Prime's reception suspect because you get such random results.
You can make excuses and call the numbers "suspect" all day long, but I think a lot of Prime owners find those numbers very believable based on actual experience. I just think it's tragic that Asus CONTINUES to pretend that WiFi isn't a real issue, and continues to sell the Prime as the premium product even though it suffers from such a tragic flaw that doesn't seem to plague the "lower" model with the plastic back. Shipping an external GPS antenna to the obvious GPS problem was a nice step, but they still haven't done anything to make WiFi better. IMHO, a new caseback was the only viable solution and they have steadfastly refused to do it.
Asus should offer a trade-in program and see how many people would trade them their current Prime straight-up for a new TF300. That'll be a good indication of which one people think is actually the better product.
>it's reasonable that the 50 foot test was a little stronger than the 20 foot test because of the randomness of the signal dropoff.
OK, removed the "extra-curricular" commentary. Here's the sanitized version:
There are only 4 wifi numbers given for the Prime, one of which (50') is clearly wrong. If you accept that the 50' number is wrong due to "randomness", then the rest of the numbers have no credibility, because they can also be affected by the same "randomness." Hence, the need to minimize testing variability and to publish your testing method.
Wifi tests are highly variable, and you would want to minimize variability by taking some steps, the first of which is to test multiple times, remove the outliers, then normalize the result. The second of which is to publish your methodology so the test can be replicated. The Anandtech piece did neither.
dcAndroidFan said:
That chart tracks with my experience and likely the experience of most other Prime owners. The TF300 has slight dropoff, but consistently strong reception out to a much farther distance. The Prime has significant dropoff quickly, and almost total dropoff at the longer distance.
Both Primes I have owned were exactly the same as the one tested. Within 20 feet of the router, some dropoff. Outside of 20 feet, at least half, and at 60+ feet almost total dropoff. Also, it's reasonable that the 50 foot test was a little stronger than the 20 foot test because of the randomness of the signal dropoff. Sitting 50 feet from my router, I could run the speed test five consecutive times and get five different numbers. That doesn't make the numbers suspect, it makes the Prime's reception suspect because you get such random results.
You can make excuses and call the numbers "suspect" all day long, but I think a lot of Prime owners find those numbers very believable based on actual experience. I just think it's tragic that Asus CONTINUES to pretend that WiFi isn't a real issue, and continues to sell the Prime as the premium product even though it suffers from such a tragic flaw that doesn't seem to plague the "lower" model with the plastic back. Shipping an external GPS antenna to the obvious GPS problem was a nice step, but they still haven't done anything to make WiFi better. IMHO, a new caseback was the only viable solution and they have steadfastly refused to do it.
Asus should offer a trade-in program and see how many people would trade them their current Prime straight-up for a new TF300. That'll be a good indication of which one people think is actually the better product.
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Click to collapse
Totally agree with you.
Does anyone know the reason why Asus decided not to change the back cover of his Prime?
Because if it's just only for aesthetics, it would be stupidiest reason ever held.
I would like to buy a Prime right now, the best of all Android devices, even with another backcover not-so-cool.
But seeing that problems I prefer buying the TF300 or go to another brand.
What a pity!
daioros said:
Totally agree with you.
Does anyone know the reason why Asus decided not to change the back cover of his Prime?
Because if it's just only for aesthetics, it would be stupidiest reason ever held.
I would like to buy a Prime right now, the best of all Android devices, even with another backcover not-so-cool.
But seeing that problems I prefer buying the TF300 or go to another brand.
What a pity!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If I had to guess, I'd say it's the obvious answer -- money. If they replace the back cover, then they have to do it to every unit, at a support center, by trained technicians. They're already struggling to keep up with basic repair and support -- a total retrofit would be an insurmountable task for their current infrastructure.
If they ignore the WiFi problem completely and just "fix" the GPS, then they can manufacture an external part, mass-produce and package it, and mail it out to some percentage of their registered owners with no other cost to them.
daioros said:
Totally agree with you.
Does anyone know the reason why Asus decided not to change the back cover of his Prime?
Because if it's just only for aesthetics, it would be stupidiest reason ever held.
I would like to buy a Prime right now, the best of all Android devices, even with another backcover not-so-cool.
But seeing that problems I prefer buying the TF300 or go to another brand.
What a pity!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I continue to find these posts humoring. Have you looked at a dissected Prime, either here on XDA or at Anandtech? Everything but the glass and LCD is attached to the backplate. That means either several hours labor swapping all the parts from one back to another or just trashing the entire back assembly and replacing all internal components.
So, in short and as mentioned, money. Either of those circumstances is no bueno for ASUS's bottom line, and therefore neither one is happening.
buxtahuda said:
I continue to find these posts humoring. Have you looked at a dissected Prime, either here on XDA or at Anandtech? Everything but the glass and LCD is attached to the backplate. That means either several hours labor swapping all the parts from one back to another or just trashing the entire back assembly and replacing all internal components.
So, in short and as mentioned, money. Either of those circumstances is no bueno for ASUS's bottom line, and therefore neither one is happening.
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Click to collapse
Which also explains why not much availability. The 300 will be their mass production device.
This is SPARTA!!
e.mote said:
>it's reasonable that the 50 foot test was a little stronger than the 20 foot test because of the randomness of the signal dropoff.
OK, removed the "extra-curricular" commentary. Here's the sanitized version:
There are only 4 wifi numbers given for the Prime, one of which (50') is clearly wrong. If you accept that the 50' number is wrong due to "randomness", then the rest of the numbers have no credibility, because they can also be affected by the same "randomness." Hence, the need to minimize testing variability and to publish your testing method.
Wifi tests are highly variable, and you would want to minimize variability by taking some steps, the first of which is to test multiple times, remove the outliers, then normalize the result. The second of which is to publish your methodology so the test can be replicated. The Anandtech piece did neither.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Practical tests are best. Take two devices and compare when each becomes unstable and then stops working with wifi. For me, the Prime was about half as functional for signal compared to the Thrive, View and iPad.
Though good enough for some, not for others. Seems logical to fix the back panel on new production runs and maybe they would have, if the 300 and 700 were not releasing now/soon.