While ICS addressed some of the Transformer's problems, it introduced issues that were arguably worse.
When I saw that Android 4.x (Ice Cream Sandwich - ICS) was hitting the U.K., I promised myself that I wouldn't update right away, so other people could work out the bugs. It doesn't provide the "days-between-charges" experience of an iPad, but it works. Now, if I use it all day, I have to charge it at night. Through a combination of the repair and manually managing my Wi-Fi connection (switching it off), I was able to get a suitable level of battery performance from the device. It still didn't meet my expectations, but there was certainly an improvement in the battery run and standby time. I sent the device in, and it came back better. Those keyboard docks required a RMA back to the factory to actually add (fix) a component.
According to these apps, my tablet wasn't going into deep sleep (no single application was responsible) and Wi-Fi was always on.Īlso on XDA-Developers, I found that there were several different revisions of the ASUS keyboard and tablet, distinguished by the device serial numbers. Thanks to the assistance of the XDA-Developers community, I discovered several tools ( Wheres My Droid Power, CPU Spy, and Dual Battery Widget) to isolate my battery problems. Once the battery in the dock is depleted, the tablet battery runs out faster than it would if it wasn't docked, because it has to carry its own load and supply power to the dock. When docked, the tablet thinks it's plugged into an external power source, and it constantly recharges as the external battery runs down. I'm not the only person who's complained about the Transformer's battery, but it mostly seems to affect users who have the optional keyboard dock. The machine reboots frequently and for no apparent reason.It also used to backspace twice for each single backspace I entered. When I go to TechRepublic discussions, Facebook, or Google+ in various browsers (including the default, Dolphin HD, and Firefox), the keyboard is unusable because it can't keep up with my typing and it misses keystrokes. Text input via keyboard in web-based forums.When I pick up the device after two days - unused, undocked, and off the charger - it's completely dead. I've never received the 300 hours of standby time that ASUS originally claimed (coincidentally, that spec no longer appears on the ASUS web site). Here are some areas where I've been disappointed: Don't get me wrong, I love the Transformer - but it's tough love. This decision is also partly based on my experience with the ASUS Eee Pad Transformer TF101. As a result, I don't think I'd purchase either the TF201 or the upcoming TF700T at the moment. The industry buzz is that ASUS may discontinue the TF201 for the upcoming (and more expensive) TF700T. I considered upgrading to the ASUS TF201 Transformer Prime when it was released, but I was concerned when I heard early reports of trouble with Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and GPS - plus all the retail vendors in my area seemed to be completely out of stock.