ASUS Transformer Prime Pre-Orders Delayed: What you Need to Know

The ASUS Eee Pad Transformer Prime is finally open for pre-orders in the U.S, but Best Buy and Amazon have already announced delays for the highly anticipated tablet, amid the holiday season.

Both Best Buy and Amazon have been sending out emails to their customers reporting a back-log that could potentially delay deliveries for up to two weeks, Engadget reported. The news has wreaked havoc among ASUS forums as many customers had ordered the new tablet as Christmas gifts.

Best Buy customers were given the option to cancel their orders completely, or to replace it with a similar device, according to Engadget. Amazon customers had it worse, with some customers reporting that their orders were cancelled automatically and an email attached with a $10 gift card gave them the option to re-order.

Here's ASUS's official statement about the delay:

ASUS started filling the inventory pipelines this past week for our new Eee Pad Transformer Prime and will continue to do so on an expedited basis for the foreseeable future. We will reach normal inventory levels in January for the North American market based on current orders and forecasts. Based on forecasted supply schedules to our valued partners we expect pre-order allocation fulfillment to occur shortly and online or in-store availability in the very near future. We will continue to work closely with our partners to fill customer orders as quickly as possible.

The launch was originally delayed after the company recalled 300 of its Eee Pad Transformer Prime Tablets due to Wi-Fi Connectivity issues. The problem was only found in the first batch of tablets sold in Taiwan, according to the company.

Pre-orders for the tablet also opened in the U.K last week priced at £449, but there have been no reports of further delays since the pre-orders went live.

Pricing in the U.S will range from $499 (32GB) to $599** (64GB), with the optional mobile dock accessory priced at $149.

The Eee Pad Transformer Prime is the first tablet to herald the NVIDIA Tegra 3 quad-core processor. It is ultra-thin at 8.3mm and weighs only 586g and comes with state-of-the-art SonicMaster Audio technology, an HD 8MP rear auto-focus camera with LED flash. And all with an 18-hour battery-left when combined with the mobile dock.