ASUS Transformer Pad Infinity 700 - Full HD tablet - Hands on

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Posted on 29 Feb 2012 at 16:37

The new top-end model in the Asus Transformer range is the Transformer Pad Infinity 700. The main upgrade of this model over the still-in-production Asus Transformer Prime is a Full HD display.

At present it's the highest-detailed tablet display available. With an incredible 1,920x1,200 resolution packed into just 10.1in. That's a resolution higher than any HD TV in a space around a 16th of the size of an average 40in set. It may seem incredible but with Apple rumoured to be packing even more pixels (2048×1536) into the iPad 3 when it launches next week - the Infinity will soon have some stiff competition.

Looking at the display, we couldn't make out individual pixels, much like using a giant iPhone 4. Asus makes a case for it being used for a very personal home cinema experience, and has even upgraded the speakers to help with this. It's true that the image quality would be superb - it's not only an ultra-high resolution panel, but also a Super IPS+ one with a retina-burning maximum of 600nits brightness - but it would lack the sense of scale a big screen brings. Still for watching HD content on the go, it can't be beaten, for now.

No prices have yet been announced, but Asus say it will come in at a higher price than the 500GBP Prime - including the bundled keyboard dock. Thankfully, that expensive display is protected by a Gorilla Glass 2 top layer. The new revision is apparently as tough as the original, but thinner and more sensitive to touch inputs.

There will be three variants of the Infinity, but as the UK doesn't have a super-fast LTE network yet we can discard that one. As with the more-budget Asus Transformer Pad 300, Wi-Fi only units will be sold through retailers, while 3G-enabled devices will be sold via mobile networks. We'd prefer to have 3G options available widely at retail too, so we an choose to future-proof ourselves even if we don't want 3G today.

Both the Wi-Fi and 3G models use the same Tegra 3 chipset running at a rapid 1.6GHz. Storage options are currently a roomy 64GB or 32GB - for holding all that HD video we guess - plus a 16GB option may be available for 3G devices.

It feels very slender, at only 8.5mm thick, and will be available in the traditional purplish grey and champagne gold of previous devices. We look forwrd to taking this rolls-royce of tablets out for a movie when its launched in a few months.

Author: Seth Barton at MWC in Barcelona