The Asus Transformer Pad line of tablets are some of the most popular Android tablets on the market, thanks in part to the optional keyboard dock that Asus offers for those that want to turn their tablets into laptops. Now Asus is getting ready to launch a line of Windows tablets with a similar option.
One of the first is the Asus Tablet 600 — which is also one of the first tablets we’ve seen designed to run
Windows RT . That’s Microsoft’s new version of the Windows operating system designed to run on devices with low power ARM-based processors.
The Asus Tablet 600 features an NVIDIA Tegra 3 quad-core processor and a 10.1 inch, 1366 x 768 pixel Super IPS display. It has 2GB of RAM, a 32GB solid state disk, and a 2MP front-facing camera and 8MP rear camera.
If it weren’t for 1366 x 768 pixel display and Windows 8/Windows RT software, it would be easy to confuse the tablet with the Asus Eee Pad Transformer Prime, which has awfully similar specs, but a 1280 x 800 pixel screen. Aww, who am I kidding? There’s really not much difference at all between those screen sizes, other than the fact that Microsoft insists on at least a 1366 x 768 pixel display for Metro-style apps.
Since the tablet has an ARM-based processor, it won’t be able to run millions of legacy apps designed for Windows computers with x86 chips. But there are a few hundred Windows 8 Metro apps available from the Windows Store for Windows 8 and Windows RT — and the operating systems aren’t even set to launch for a few more months. It’s too early to say whether Windows 8 will have an app store that can compete with those for iOS, Android, or even Windows Phone. But at least there will be some third party software available when the Asus Tablet 600 hits the street.
The tablet also features WiFi, Bluetooth, GPS, and NFC.
I haven’t seen any word on how much the tablet will cost.
The folks at The Verge and Netbook News have shared a few videos of the new 10.1 inch tablet.
VIDEO
VIDEO
