JOUR 3010 Article 7

Shadow competitor to rival Apple's 'new iPad' – or not?

by Morgan Scroggs

With the recent release of the new iPad, consumer rumors have cropped up regarding the only comparable competition on Apple's plate – the Asus TF700.

Luckily for Apple, it hasn't arrived in stores yet.

Named the “Best Tablet of CES 2012” by PCMag.com. Asus' upgraded version of the Transformer Prime Eee Pad (or T201) sports the same 'key changes' categories as Apple's new iPad: an improved display and front-facing camera.

The new iPad high-resolution Retina displays at 2048 x 1536 pixels, and the iSight camera has been improved to five mega pixels. It also houses the faster A5x processor chip – supposedly faster than the well-praised quad-core Tegra 3 chip that the Transformer series touts. TF700, on the other hand, is rumored to feature a 1920 x 1200 HD display and an improved 2MP front-facing camera.

But what really has throngs of consumers standing in line for the new product?

The T201 – which was in consumer hands for Christmas last year after severe delays in distribution – had a number of problems with its WiFi and GPS connectivity, a problem noted by an associate at BestBuy as an extra $70 expense for owners of the newest Eee Pad to fix.

Apple's new iPad will connect to 4G networks, while no reports have surfaced regarding whether or not the TF700 will sport a 3G/4G connectivity option.

So will Asus' re-branded Transformer Eee Pad really challenge Apple's third incarnation of the iPad series?

Essentially, both Apple and Asus have recycled the previous versions of their tablets with improved displays and connectivity; however, the Asus TF700's release date is still unconfirmed (although rumored for June 2012). Its price is also a matter of speculation.

Masato Kan, a design engineer for an agricultural equipment company in Georgia, who has dealt with production issues says that “the next release of Asus tablet would have comparable product specifications to the new iPad … the 3G/4G connectivity would not be the only feature customers are looking for – depending on how much it costs.”

However, he doesn't think Asus' new tablet will overturn Apple's domination in the tablet market.

All specs (and speculation) aside, consumer decision may very well rest with personal loyalty to Apple or Android-based products.