ASUS Transformer Prime vs Toshiba Thrive: Who will Win the Tablet War?

ASUS Eee Pad Transformer Prime, which is the world's first tablet to have NVIDIA Tegra 3 quad-core processor, will get Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich update from next week. However, the ASUS tablet has to deal with the Toshiba Thrive, which was launched July 10, 2011.

ASUS also announced the imminent release of a bootloader unlocking tool. The locked bootloader on the Transformer Prime has become a widespread concern for users of the tablet. ASUS said it opted to lock the bootloader because of the requirement of content providers for DRM client devices to be as secure as possible.

Transformer Prime is the first tablet to have the NVIDIA Tegra 3 quad-core processor. The Tegra 3 brings a number of significant advancements over the dual-core Tegra 2. Technically, it has five cores and it's the fifth core that really makes the difference. This is called the companion core.

ASUS uses IPS technology in the Prime and maximum brightness is at 584cd/m2. Its screen delivers excellent blacks and viewing angles because of the Super IPS+ Panel technology packed inside.

ASUS Eee Pad Transformer Prime features a 10.1-inch Super IPS + LCD Gorilla Glass display with 1280x800 screen resolution. It is powered by an NVIDIA Tegra 3 quad-core 1.3 GHz Cortex-A9 CPU, ULP GeForce GPU and offers 1GB RAM and 32/64 GB internal storage, which can be further expanded by another 32GB via microSD card.

It sports a rear-facing 8 megapixel Flash camera with 1080p video playback and a secondary 1.2 megapixel front-facing camera. Eee Pad Transformer Prime optimizes Google Inc.'s Android 3.2 Honeycomb OS, which could be upgraded to Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich.

Price-wise, ASUS Eee Pad Transformer Prime is likely to cost $499 for the 32GB version and $599 for the 64GB version. This is higher than the Thrive, which costs $379.99 for 8GB version, $399.99 for 16GB version and $479.99 for 32GB version.

Despite Thrive coming in NVIDIA Tegra 2 dual-core processor, it has additional features like 10.1-inch LED backlit multi-touch wide-screen display (1280x800 pixel resolution), Android Honeycomb 3.1 OS, virtual keyboard with Swype technology, console-quality gaming (thanks to ultra-low power NVIDIA GeForce GPU) and hardware-accelerated Flash.

Here is a look at how the ASUS Eee Pad Transformer Prime's features fare when compared to Toshiba Thrive:

Size: ASUS Eee Pad Transformer Prime has a dimension of 263 × 180.8 × 8.3mm, weighs 586 grams (pad only) / 263 × 180.8 × 17-19.4mm, weighs 1123 grams (pad with dock), while Toshiba Thrive has 272 x 175 x 15 mm and weighs 771 grams.

Display: Transformer Prime tablet has a 10.1-inch 1280 x 800 pixels Super IPS + LCD capacitive touch screen display with Corning's Gorilla glass whereas the Thrive features 10.1-inch 1280 x 800 pixels IPS LCD capacitive touch-screen display with Toshiba adaptive display technology, Toshiba resolution and video enhancement technology.

Input Features: The input features in Transformer Prime are accelerometer sensor for UI auto-rotate, ASUS Waveshare UI, multi-touch input method, touch-sensitive controls with rotating icons, G-Sensor, Light Sensor, Gyroscope, e-compass and GPS. However, Thrive has accelerometer sensor for UI auto-rotate, multi-touch input method, touch-sensitive controls with rotating icons, Gyroscope, ambient light sensor and compass.

Memory: The memory found in the ASUS tablet is 1GB RAM and 32/64 GB storage capacity with a microSD card slot giving an extra 32GB support, while Thrive has 1GB RAM and 8/16/32 GB internal storage support with a microSD card slot giving an extra 32GB support.

Operating system: Both tablets feature the Android 3.0 version Honeycomb OS with the promise of a upgrade to the Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich in the future. ASUS uses its latest Waveshare UI layer in Transformer Prime, while Toshiba uses its own user interface that is more or less similar to stock Honeycomb itself in Thrive.

Processor: The ASUS Eee Pad Transformer Prime tablet has Nvidia Tegra 3 quad-core 1.3 GHz Cortex-A9 CPU, ULP GeForce GPU, compared to Thrive's 1 GHz dual-core Cortex-A9 CPU ULP GeForce GPU Nvidia Tegra 2 T20 chipset processor.

WLAN/Bluetooth/USB: The ASUS tablet has Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, Wi-Fi hotspot, Bluetooth 2.1 version with EDR, and USB 2.0 version. On the other hand, the Toshiba tablet has Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, Bluetooth 3.0 version with HS, miniUSB 2.0 version and USB 2.0 version.

Camera: The camera in ASUS tablet is an 8 megapixel 3264x2448 pixels with LED flash and autofocus features while Thrive has only a 5 megapixel camera with autofocus feature. There is a secondary 2 megapixel camera in Thrive while ASUS tablet has 1.2 megapixel camera. Toshiba tablet is capable of video playback at 720p while Transformer Prime offers 1080p video playback capability.

Battery: When it comes to battery life, Eee Pad Transformer Prime pad (with dock) has a 22 Wh Li-polymer Battery that is expected to give 18 hours of battery life on video playback whereas Thrive features a 23 Wh Prismatic Lithium-ion battery which gives up to 11 hours.

Pricing: ASUS Eee Pad Transformer Prime is likely to cost $499 for the 32GB version and $599 for the 64GB version. This is higher than Thrive, which costs $379.99 for 8GB version, $399.99 for 16GB version and $479.99 for 32GB version.

Other Features: Toshiba Thrive has features like HTML, Adobe Flash, Email, Push Mail, IM, RSS, Assisted-GPS support, HDMI port, MP3/WAV/WMA/eAAC+ player, MP4/H.264/H.263/WMV player, SRS Premium Voice Suite, Toshiba Sound Enhancements, microSD Card slot, Toshiba Adaptive Display Technology, Toshiba Resolution and Video Enhancement Technology. It also comes preloaded with Toshiba App Place, BookPlace, Media Player, Service Station, File Manager, Kaspersky Tablet Security, LogMeIn Ignition, Hardwood Backgammon by SilverCreek Games, Hardwood Euchre by SilverCreek Games, Hardwood Solitaire IV by SilverCreek Games, Hardwood Hearts by Silvercreek Games, Hardwood Spades by Silvercreek Games, MOG Music, Printer Share, Quickoffice, and Need for Speed Shift by EA Mobile.

The Transformer Prime has features like HTML, Adobe Flash, Email, Push Email, IM, Assisted-GPS support, micro HDMI port, MP3/WAV/WMA/AAC player, MP4/H.264/H.263 player, microSD card reader, 2-in-1 audio jack and Polaris Office editor. It also has special applications such as ASUS launcher, @Vibe Music, ASUS WebStorage, MyLibrary, MyNet, MyCloud, File manager, ASUS sync, SuperNote, App Locker, App Backup, and TegraZone.