Look and Feel

Once you've carefully taken the Transformer Pad Infinity out of the box, you can feel it has been crafted with some passion, love and care. It definitely looks great, and the front of it looks virtually no different to that of the original Transformer. The Transformer Pad Infinity is crafted out of aluminum, with the front sporting its gorgeous 10.1-inch SuperIPS+ display, oh and we should mention it's a Gorilla Glass display - safe from most general scratches and bumps.

ASUS have opted to use Corning's second-generation Gorilla Glass 2 technology, which has improved damage resistance. Corning's Gorilla Glass 2 technology is 20% thinner which allows devices to sport the scratch-resistant tech, but be even slimmer, feature better touch responsiveness, and brighter images - something that the Infinity has in spaces.

Squeezing all of this hardware into an 8.5mm-thin unit is an achievement that pays off. The Transformer Pad Infinity is one slim, slick looking unit. It definitely feels physically thinner than the third-gen iPad when holding it, albeit a bit weird to get used to after holding the 9.7-inch iPad for so long. ASUS have designed the Transformer Pad Infinity with landscape and their Mobile Dock in mind, and it shows. The Infinity looks odd holding it in landscape with its 10.1-inch screen, but it's doable - this is purely a user choice and user preference.

Some shots of the Transformer Pad Infinity using Google Chrome in both landscape, and portrait.

When holding the device, it may feel thin, but the material ASUS have decided to use on the rear of the Transformer Pad Infinity can get slippery in the right (or wrong?) conditions. ASUS have opted for an uninterrupted aluminum panel, which is machined perfectly - but while it may look good, is it as good as the rubberized texture that the original Transformer featured? That will be up to you. I think the finished back is beautiful, and feels great in my hand.

The Transformer Pad Infinity also feels quite light, given its large 10.1-inch screen. Weighing in at 598 grams, it is 62 grams lighter (or just over 10%) than the third-gen iPad. 10% lighter may not sound like a lot, but it really is quite noticeable, and I love it. I thought it would feel heavier, but it doesn't.

The Infinity's screen is pretty much a fingerprint magnet, period. Having the company's Nexus 7, as well as the iPad sitting next to it, the Infinity stands out of the bunch with fingerprint smudges galore. But as soon as you press that button to unlock the Infinity, and that gorgeous 1920x1200 SuperIPS+ display turns on, you melt away and flop into a land of display goodness. The screen really is gorgeous, and I cannot stress this enough - even against the "ermergersh Retina"� display on the third-generation iPad, the Transformer Pad Infinity's screen is glorious.

Typing on the Infinity's screen is about what you'd expect from a tablet - okay. It's not amazing, but it's not cumbersome. ASUS' Transformer Pad Infinity's software keyboard takes up half the screen, whether it's in landscape or portrait mode.