[Asus Transformer TF700] BarryH_GEG:
You've made some great points too. ;) Keep in mind a tablet, primarily a consumption device, is a luxury purchase; especially in a down economy. So people trying to rationalize a purchase can do so easier at $199 than $399+. Personally I believe if someone's committed to pay $399 a $499 tablet is still in their consideration set. Status and how a purchase reflects on them is another consideration. An iPad is a status symbol. It's easily recognizable and says something about its owner. I've seen strangers with iPads strike up conversations in airport clubs over their iPads. It's almost like being part of a clique or club which is part of Apple's Orwellian marketing strategy. In research I've seen Android users consider themselves non-conformists, individualists, and contrarians. Based on sales percentages (of tablets) there are far more people that like what an iPad says about them than us - the contrarians. And the more Android becomes known as the $199 "poor mans" tablet the more attractive iPads become to those concerned about status. And that's why the iPad Mini is priced at $349 vs. $249. If people looking at $35K+ cars were only concerned about value, performance, and features Acura/Infiniti (Samsung/Asus tablets) would be far outselling BMW/M-B (Apple tablets). We know that's not the case.

I feel the same way you do about Apple products. I'm more middle of the road about W8 tablets. But, like I said above, the shift in power between Apple and Android (who knows about W8) won't be determined by us "contrarians." The thing missing from Android tablets is that "killer thing" that separates them from an iPad. They've beaten the iPad in specs since the Zoom and OG G-Tab 10.1 were launched and yet high-end Android tablets languished and iPads have developed a cult following. Say what you want about W8 tablets but they do have a "killer thing;" MS Office access and interoperability with Windows files and content. As for the impact of the N10 that remains to be seen. The GN has a cult following here on XDA. But in the Apple trial it came out that Samsung's only sold 750K GN's. In two months Samsungs's sold 3MM Note II's. Samsung sold 4MM (2MM of which were the Note 10.1) Android tablets last quarter. They expect to sell 6MM in Q4 (they don't consider the N10 in their branded tablet sales like Asus does the N7). If over the holiday shopping season the N10 sells 1MM a month like the N7 is currently running it'll be a fail as it won't even make a dent market share wise for Android tablets based on the total number of tablets expected to be sold. And you're right; analysts are looking at the N10 as Google's "Hail Mary." If with those features, especially the better-than-retina display, and a $399 price point people don't embrace it the high-end tablet war will have been considered lost.

This argument makes total sense if the Internet didn't exist and people bought $399+ electronic devices spontaneously without researching them. It's not like Asus' "transforming" tablets aren't widely known. You guys are all going nuts over the "Tablet Wars" contest that Laptop Mag is running and the TF700 is winning. The TF700 is also ranked "five stars" by many of the leading technical and non-technical online and print publications and deemed the "best alternative to an IPad." If Asus tablets aren't selling in greater volume there's more to it than people not being aware of them. And Jerry Chen, Asus' CEO, is on record last year saying he wants to be "the biggest in the Android tablet space" so it's not like he's happy being outpaced by Samsung or can't build enough Asus tablets. And even with their marketing muscle, Samsung's tablet sales have been pitiful compared to their other product lines and against the iPad. And it's not like people don't know Android tablets exist.

A lot of Transformer owners bought them because of the keyboard which is Asus’ “killer thing.” If the keyboard was really important to tablet shoppers and was allowing Asus to steal Android tablet market share from other manufacturers they would have offered tablets with keyboards too. They haven't which relegates the need for a keyboard-equipped Android tablet to niche status. Samsung’s killer thing is the S-Pen. With 2MM Note 10.1’s sold in August and September compared to a couple of hundred thousand TF’s that says something about which feature the general public thinks is more important in a tablet. They're certainly not buying the Note for its “killer” display. ;) And tablets with keyboards are now everywhere and offered by almost every manufacturer. They're just not Android tablets.