Asus Eee Pad tablet-cum-netbook ship date slips
Pre-order punters advised of long delay
The Eee Pad Transformer, which maker Asus is pushing hard as a netbook-tablet combo - with the appropriate optional extras, natch - has slipped, at least according to Amazon.
Originally due for release this month, the gadget is now being reported as due to ship almost two months from now, on 1 June.
Says Amazon in a note emailed to pre-order punters: "The release date for the item(s) listed below was changed by the supplier."
Other online retailers are still listing April or May as shipment dates.
You can read Reg Hardware's initial, hands-on thoughts about the device here.
Amazon wants £430 for the Eee Pad plus clip-on Qwerty keyboard, or just £380 for the 10in tablet, which will run Android 3.0 Honeycomb on its 1GHz dual-core Nvidia Tegra 2 processor - alone.
Can't wait? Acer's 10in Iconia A500, which has essentially the same spec as the Eee Pad, can be had from the same supplier for just under £450 - £530 if you take the version with 3G on board. Both are due on 1 May.
The real winner is Apple. How many buyers, seeing the wait, will opt instead for an iPad 2 they can have now? On in, ahem, 2-3 weeks if they order online... ®
Thanks to Reg Hardware reader Adam for the tip
COMMENTS
Oh dear!
Just because Amazon doesn't have stock, doesn't mean that the device hasn't shipped!
Comet delivered my Transformer on Monday morning of this week, after I ordered on Saturday morning.
True, it doesn't have the keyboard dock yet, but I consider that an accessory, which I've already ordered direct from Asus with expected delivery in the 2nd half of May.
Stop, don't listen to this Apple fanboy writer!!!!
That is one store that has posted a different date. Plus that isnt even for US, that is a UK push back. Comet.uk.co still selling the item, also there have been confirmed reports of April 30 release for US. The reason Amazon.uk shows June is because there is a delay from Asus for UK production so they can start shipping to US and other countries. So again dont listen to this loser writer.
Can buy it just not from amazon
As far as I know Comet are still selling them. I think its just amazons availability that has been delayed.
Shipping from comet when I ordered it yesterday was at 7 days though where before it had next day delivery available. I think Asus may just have prioritized stock for companies that currently sell it.
Disappointed
Any idea when/if this one will be available in the US? Absolutely nothing on Amazon.com for it.
Anyone getting weird screen issues?
Forgot to ask -does anyone who has one of these get a weird mesh effect on the screen? It's really hard to describe, but there is a mesh type pattern on the glass itself. It must be the glass, as it's most visible when the screen is off, and it extends all the way past the screen itself and into the black surround. I would say the squares are about 5mm across, and also are slightly rotated and not aligned with the screen, so I don't think it's the panel. It's really bizarre and am very interested to see if anyone else has this?
A colleague of mine thinks it's some sort of mark from production (like when on conveyor belt or something), but I'm just spun out by the fact the meshing effect isn't even on 'straight', and have no idea. The visibility goes up and down depending on how clean the screen is, and can only be seen from certain angles, but I can't feel any rises in the screen itself, so maybe it's in the inside...
