Despite Branding, ASUS Eee Slate a Better Business Device

The ASUS Eee Slate has been getting some face time on television through an onslaught of commercials designed to show the usefulness of a Windows 7 tablet. I’m impressed that ASUS likely will be the first vendor to market with a commercially viable Windows 7 slate, but I’m not impressed with the uses shown in the commercials. Before buying a Windows 7 tablet, keep in mind there are much more viable and friendly alternatives running Android and iOS …

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: The biggest problem with Windows 7 tablets is they are running Windows 7. With it comes all the inherent issues of a desktop or laptop computer. Lagging antivirus software? Check. Blue screens? Check. Driver issues? Yup. Spyware? You got it. Windows updates? You’ll never escape them.

So, if in spite of all those reasons you’re still committed to the Windows 7 tablet, then congratulations. These commercials must speak to you in volumes. A tip of the hat goes to Windows7News.com, which rounded up all the commercials that were on YouTube. Each commercial features a use case: blogger, businessman, artist and mom. It’s difficult to watch the way the users interact with the device. At 12 inches, the device looks a bit unwieldy, and the commercials show the users taking advantage of the so-called “features” such as calling up the on-screen keyboard manually, pulling out the stylus randomly and watching the lag while scrolling through a web page. The commercial featuring a blogger actually shows the user with a Bluetooth keyboard. I’m not saying people don’t use a bluetooth keyboard with their iPad, but if the price tag for the device is nearly $1,000, why not just invest in a better laptop?

Better yet, get yourself an iPad or Android tablet. Blogging is easy on an iPad; Excel files can be viewed on the go, sharing photos is simple on current tablet solutions; and there are so many robust stylus and art applications on the iPad that users can’t’ lose. All that, starting in the ballpark of $499.

You can check out the Eee Slate on Amazon.com. The Core i5 CPU, 2GB RAM and 32GB SSD (and the keyboard) version is priced at $963. It’s also temporarily out of stock. But do people like it? User feedback is mostly positive — many are happy the device does all their Windows stuff and then some. But the complaints are interesting: There are scattered issues with touchscreen interfaces, low battery life, and — this one is my favorite — recommendations to “make sure to install the optional firmware update to the digitizer from Windows Update.” Translation? Make sure to update Windows so the touch-part of the tablet works like it’s supposed to.

I’m not sure 48 reviews are indicative of the marketplace, but the most critical reviews stress prospective buyers think about how they’re going to use the device before buying one. Most describe it as a hybrid laptop, not exactly a tablet computer. And at $1,000 it’s not an impulse buy.

And that’s exactly my point, too. The devices are being aimed at the wrong demographic. Despite ASUS and Microsoft positioning these tablets to be the care-free blend of productivity and fun that the iPad is, the devices are actually quite the opposite, and quite expensive. If this is Microsoft’s consumer tablet strategy, it’s the wrong one.

These tablets seem a better fit for the enterprise, where users and IT admins can get a no-compromise solution between platform compatibility and the convenience of the tablet form factor. The Windows 7 tablet market for professionals, when marketed correctly, can do well. We’ve covered examples including Motion Computing’s rugged, vertical-oriented Windows tablets. A simple re-labeling of the device as a “business tablet” would do a lot of good since it would also set Microsoft apart amid the competition and congestion of the consumer tablet space. Of course, that could enable VARs to get in on the action. (Try this slogan on for size: “It’s not an iPad, it’s a Business Pad.”)

We know in the past Microsoft has made moves to displace iPads currently used in businesses, but all it needs to do is brand its device correctly and cut the gimmicks so it — and the channel — can get in on the action.

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