Sliding Into the Tablet Market

I’m a big fan of Wired Magazine, and recently enjoyed their article on the annual coffee bean competition in Columbia to decide the winner of the awesomely named Cup of Excellence. Each of the judges approaches their task with a mixture of clinical, calculated scoring and a needle-sharp reliance on their finely-tuned nostrils and tastebuds to choose the year’s champion coffee bean grower.

What makes a good coffee bean? I'm not sure, but I do take a closer look at the ASUS EeePad Slider, click on the link at the bottom to see a review I did for CarryPad.

When my new friends at Carrypad asked me to compose a detailed review on the yet-to-be-released Asus Eee Pad Slider, I thought about the judges in Columbia and their fastidiousness… would I be required to display the same resolve and cast a cold, critical eye over design elements, functionality and performance?

As it turned out, the best way to review the Slider was to look at it from a user’s perspective – the tactile feel of the case and keyboard, the responsiveness of the touch screen, the sound piping out of the speaker slots, and the quality of the images on the Gorilla Glass screen.

Once I began my journey looking at details that might normally be glossed over, I gained a real appreciation for the engineers and designers who had to work together to come up with a product that stood out in both form and function. Being one of the few tablets with actual moving parts, I spent an inordinate amount of time opening, sliding and closing the keyboard component, almost to the point of obsessive compulsion.

The end result was a 2,500 word exploration of the Asus Slider that was worth every moment spent on it. It’s exciting to see innovation right before your eyes, and having the platform to share my thoughts and photos (captured on my trusty DSLR) is a real privilege.

So if you are interested in what makes the Asus Slider a worthy entrant to the competitive tablet market, here’s the article along with images and performance benchmarking. Feel free to leave your thoughts on the Slider below.

For the full article displayed on one page, please click here.

Thanks again to Ben from Carrypad for the opportunity to contribute.