ASUS ViVoTab ME400c 10.1-inch Tablet (Black) - (Intel Atom Z2760 1.6GHz Processor, 2GB RAM, 64GB eMMC, WLAN, BT, Webcam, Windows 8 Home)

I have learnt a lot in the time that I have been almost addicted to gadgets and tech. The most important things I have learnt is,read a lot of reviews, do your homework and ultimately ask yourself "what do I want to use the device/gadget for".I wanted a full Win8 tablet that was light and would take the place of my first generation ipad which I had had enough of because of its reliance on iTunes. I wanted to be able to add media to the device easily, surf the web, read books, listen to music and something I hadn't thought about but I believe is an absolute killer feature, access my pc via the Homegroup facility.I didn't want an rt version of win8 as I believe that rt is a bit of a faux par on behalf of Microsoft.The Vivotab Smart is a superb device. Light and well built. The screen is bright and the resolution, for me, is spot on. I had read a review that said that there was flex in the chassis, well I don't know about anyone else but I don't make a habit of twisting tablet devices! The back has a smooth very tactile surface and I like the gloss rim around the screen.The operating system is handled very well by the processor and ram, I haven't noticed any lag when switching between apps on the tile interface. Talking of the tile interface you either like it or hate it but get used to it because its here to stay.The apps available in the store may be limited if you compare them to the Apple and Android versions. All I can say about that is I use a few standard apps across all of my devices and the Microsoft store provides for me, however I do use the full websites for a couple of apps that aren't available such as the awful but sadly necessary Facebook.This brings me on to the great thing about this full Win 8 tablet. The full desktop. I can access files, move media, access full web sites using any browser I want to install such as Chrome and Firefox, and as I mentioned access and stream content from my homegroup pc's. Excellent.I have installed a 64gb SanDisk microSDXC card and it works faultlessly, movies run smoothly.A couple of things I don't really like now. There is a delay of about 6 seconds when you click on a link within the social hub in the tile interface. The link is opened by the touch version of Explorer 10 which frankly takes just too long. The browser is quick but the delay is so long you tap the link again to spur it along only to find that you have now opened two browser pages. Also there is no screen re action when you tap the link, something like the link changing colour so that you can see the link has in fact been correctly "tapped" would be nice. Maybe I am being picky but it mars an otherwise smooth and fluid interface. The keyboard is excellent with suggestions appearing on the screen with an "insert" tab appearing onscreen, which is nice. But if you want to edit a line of text, placing the curser where you want is tricky, I found this with the iPad and Playbook as well though so again maybe I am being picky.Overall, if you, like me, were looking for a media consumption device akin to an iPad but with an easier method of control over that media and also with a full win8 OS on board you cannot go far wrong with this tablet. I have a Galaxy Tab 7+ and I have owned an iPad, so I am not a fanboy of any particular OS or manufacturer, this tablet is nicely built, light, powerful enough, and does not cost the Earth. Mine was £399.00 which is excellent value for a 10" screened tablet any way you look at it and even better when you take in the "almost full pc in the palm of your hand" form factor. Not wishing to bang on but this is a sitting on your lap, entertaining yourself device, if you want to be "productive" it can do it, I wrote this review on it and it was fine, but, its far more tuned to consuming media with the added benefit of the proper desktop interface.

Before I get into this I should point out that Amazon have been fantastic in helping me return it, and get a refund.This is clearly a product built to the lowest possible cost. The tablet is so fragile that despite it being encased in a protective cover, the screen shattered despite being dropping from less than 50cm. Once the screen has cracked, that is it, the touch screen no longer works and given the absence of full sized USB ports, that means no keyboard and no mouse. I know you can have a bluetooth keyboard, but good luck turning on bluetooth with no touchscreen.Yes this is cheap, especially for something with full Windows 8, but it shows.

I so looked forward to getting this Windows 8 tablet, but it has not come close to living up to my expectations (based on owning an old iPad).Just to be clear, I have no big issues with Windows 8. This is a review of the hardware.The design is very minimalist, which means I often find it difficult to locate the various buttons whenever I pick it up because you just don't know which way round it is.The narrow on-switch has to be pressed firmly to the point of discomfort for around seven seconds before the unit switches on. If you don't press fairly close to the centre then it sometimes doesn't know it is being pressed. Irritating.The 'close' button at the bottom of the screen (in the picture) is not a button at all but a touch-sensitive bit of the surrounding bevel. This means that it is very easy to press accidentally with your wrist. I would dearly love to disable it because I haven't found it of any use - but it has been a pain several times.Whilst talking about the surround - there is a huge area of plastic around the screen. It means the unit is much bigger than the screen it contains. This isn't elegant at all.The micro HDMI output is buried in an angled part of the unit and I have tried several times to get an HDMI cable into it without any success. Much easier to email a presentation to a colleague and get them to show it on a monitor screen.The unit is not particularly heavy, but it is not that light either. It is always uncomfortable to hold - I think because of its elongated proportions compared with an iPad. This isn't Asus's fault because all Windows tablets seem designed primarily for widescreen films rather than practical daily use.I didn't want a tablet with a noisy fan, but the downside of that choice is that you get an underpowered CPU. It isn't dire, but it isn't sprightly either. At its best it is just about acceptable for light office work, I think.There isn't anything actually wrong with it, so I cannot send it back. But it is underwhelming, awkward and uncomfortable to use and I wish I hadn't bought it.

As a tablet, the device is fine for every day tasks such as browsing. For the price, it is actually quite perfect. I purchased mine from TESCO in white and immediately found a flaw - the tablet does not work with the OFFICIAL ASUS VivoTab Transleeve! I asked TESCO about this, looked online and found that ASUS have distributed a batch of these tablets with the magnets inside reversed.I had to send it away to be fixed. This took place in a timely fashion, but the tablet was returned with the camera bezel missing and the Transleeve damaged. They refused to replace the sleeve as I was not meant to send it away (despite my email from the tech support saying otherwise).I have since returned the tablet as I found that TESCO, PC World, and Currys all had the faulty batch and I could not purchase one that I wouldn't have to send away for repair after purchase.Don't let this put you off ASUS as they are normally a brilliant company, just this time, they seemed to have sipped on the quality control.