Asus ZenPad 10 Z300C: Cheap tab, dock combo you can turn up to 11

Sounds spectacular

The ZenPad tablet and dock connect in exactly the same way as they do in the Sony package. The tablet slots into a hinged, magnetic channel and communication takes place over Bluetooth. This means there’s no power transfer between dock and tablet. You need to charge each separately using a microUSB cable.

MicroSD card slot not obscured by hinge when docked. Dock and tablet use Bluetooth. That connector you can see is for another Asus charging stand

The two parts of the package were paired out of the box and I never experienced any connectivity problems. The dock’s Bluetooth control switch and status lights are handily placed in plain sight on the top of the keyboard deck.

The dock has been conceived as much as an audio enhancer as a typing aid. The 2W stereo speakers built into the top of the unit produce an impressively bassy, solid and composed sound. There's plenty of volume on tap as well.

Thanks in some part to the built-in DTS-HD Premium sound processing, as well as the two large speakers, the ZenPad sounds better than many laptops costing four times as much.

Stereo speakers boast 2W of power and pump out a very impressive sound

The speakers built into the tablet above the screen aren’t too shabby either. Obviously there is less bass in evidence but you’ll not want for volume, detail or structure. In purely sonic terms, the ZenPad is a very impressive package.

It’s as a keyboard that the dock is a little less successful, due to some flex in the deck and some looseness in the keys. Even at this price I expected better from Asus. It feels like a component built down to a price. Which, of course, it is.

The keyboard is a bit flexible and loose to the touch but well laid out. Tablet and dock connect over Bluetooth

The keyboard layout is harder to criticise, though. Everything is where it should be and there is a handy one-touch screenshot button above the number 5 and a direct link to the system settings menu next to the delete key.

Fold the tablet and dock shut and you’ll end up with a 17mm thick package. The tablet and dock each take up about half that. The tablet weighs a pretty hefty 510g and the dock adds almost as much again at 415g.

A chrome band around the screen is the only bit of metal here, apparently. ZenPad 10 is neither overly thin or light

The whole enchilada is made of plastic apart from a thin band around the screen (and I’m taking Asus' word that this part really is metal) but it still feels pretty solid. I like the leather-effect patterning on the back of the tablet and underside of the dock, though the pale gold and white colour scheme (actually called Aurora Metallic) of my review device wouldn’t be my preferred choice.