No, the "Eee" doesn't mean it's from Yorkshire!
I'm currently sat in the pub waiting for some old work colleagues from my last job in the UK to show up, so thought I'd use the wait as an excuse to churn out a new blog entry.
It's also an excuse to try out the Android Wordpress app on my new toy! Released only about a month ago, the Asus Eee Transformer is a 10.1" tablet running Google's Android OS (currently version 3.0.1). Size-wise, it's a nicer shape than the Crapple iPods. The Transformer's screen is, I think a 16:9 widescreen as opposed to the iPod's 4:3 screen. This means that the Transformer is a narrower device and so just about fits into the palm of the hand. One of the (many) issues I had with the iPod was that it was too big to fit into the palm of the hand. I was originally tempted by the 7" Samsung Galaxy Tab, but that is currently running Android 2.3, and there were questions over if it would support version 3 beyond the initial release. The main advantage of the Galaxy Tab is that it really does fit nicely in the palm of the hand.
However, the real winner for me on the Transformer is the optional keyboard. Whilst the iPod and, I think, the Galaxy Tab do have keyboard available, the design of the devices mean that it sits in the keyboard in portrait mode. There also appears to be a very limited range of angle between the keyboard and the screen. The Transformer's keyboard, however, slots into the long edge of the tablet meaning that the sceen is in landscape mode as you'd have on a traditional PC or notebook. It is also a full hinge so the angle between screen and keyboard can be beter adjusted to suit the user and their position. This also has the added advantage that the keyboard can be used to protect the screen whilst travelling.
As well as making the Transformer more user-friendly from a human-computer interation viewpoint, the keyboard includes 2 USB ports and an SD card slot. Adding to the micro-SD, mini-HDMI, and earphone/microphone socket on the tablet itself, this gives a much wider range of storage and expandability options, especially when compared to an iPod. The keyboard also contains a 2nd battery which is first used to charge the tablet's battery and provide runtime power (the keyboard battery is drained in preference to the tablet's own battery, thus extending runtime when the keyboard is disconencted).
Some might argue why you would want a keyboard with a tablet and why not just get a netbook. My main reasoning behind it is travel. Working overseas I spend a fair amount of time travelling and away from a computer. In the past I have stumbled by using an iPod Touch (2nd Gen). As my main use of the device when travelling is for email and IMs, the small keyboard eventually becomes tiresome to use. Anyone who's chatted with me when I'm on the iTouch will know that my answers tend to be very short! As anyone who read the blog while I was in Australia may have noticed, my spelling on the iTouch isn't wonderful, and editing existing text is not easy due to the touchscreen-only interface. With the Transformer's keyboard I have cursor keys to make navigating text easier.
As this is an Android device, the usual advantages over a crApple device still apply... I can use Flash on the internet, I can install apps from any source
And at that point I got distracted by people arriving at the pub! Can't really remember what else I was going to say, so I think I shall just leave it there!