Say you want a Windows 2-in-1 tablet with a keyboard dock, but the Asus Transformer Book Chi T100 is too small or too slow for you. Asus also has a 12.5 inch model with a faster processor.

The Asus Transformer Book Chi T300 features an Intel Core M Broadwell processor, a high-resolution display, and a starting price of $699.

t300

The entry-level model features an 800 MHz Core M-5Y10 processor and a 12.5 inch, 1920 x 1080 pixel IPS display.

Asus will also offer a $799 model with a 2560 x 1440 pixel screen, and if you’re looking for a bit more speed, there will be models with 1.2 GHz Core M-5Y71 chips as well.

The systems feature 4GB to 8GB of RAM and 64GB to 128GB of solid state storage, 802.11n WiFi Bluetooth 4.0, and 2MP webcams.

A tablet with a 12.5 inch screen can be kind of big to hold in your hands, but the Transformer Book Chi T300 weighs just about 1.6 pounds, which makes it no heavier than a 1st-generation iPad. Add the keyboard dock and you have an ultrabook which weighs about 3.1 pounds.

The tablet is also pretty thin, at 0.3 inches. In notebook mode, the system measures about 0.64 inches thick.

The keyboard connects to the tablet via Bluetooth, so you can type even if the keyboard isn’t physically attached. But you can snap the tablet into the keyboard dock for a pretty secure connection that really makes the system feel like a notebook rather than a tablet.

t300_08

Asus also offers an optional TriCover which offers some protection (and colorful decoration) when you slap one portion on the back of the tablet and the other on the bottom of the keyboard dock. The TriCover is so thin that it barely adds any noticeable thickness to the Transformer Book CHi T300.

While you can pick up a 10 inch or smaller Transformer Book Chi for about half the price of this 12.5 inch model, the larger version has a faster CPU, more memory, more storage, and an optional higher-resolution display. $699 seems like a reasonably good price for this convertible ultrabook which you can also use as a tablet.

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8 replies on “Hands-on: Asus Transformer Book Chi T300 2-in-1 with Core M”

  1. Does this model not have an SD card slot like the others appear to have? That’s kind of strange to leave it out even though this one does have a larger SSD. Is this model thinner than the others or something?

  2. What made the T100 so great was it’s portability and affordability.This is the opposite of that. For $699 I can just buy a Surface Pro and call it a day.

    1. Also charge via USB… portability to the max. No mention of the charger on this one.

    2. The only reason why I’d buy this over the surface its the aluminum keyboard, other than that the surface pro 3 has all the bases covered. I hope that Microsoft is taking note and makes a keyboard like this (as an accessory)

  3. Trackpad looks small…
    What happen to there premium products? They never made a second taichi.

  4. Thanks Brad. By any chance, did you have the opportunity to try the active stylus? The only information I’ve read on it so far was from the press release. I did spot what appeared to be the stylus in a video from another media outlet. It looked like it might be N-trig, but I couldn’t confirm.

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