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ASUS Eee Pad Transformer: all 150 pre-order units snapped up. All important keyboard dock coming in June
Posted:
May 20, 2011
By: ccsoya
7 comments
ASUS Malaysia has updated their Facebook page to confirm that all 150 pre-order units have been pre-ordered. This of course doesn’t mean that the pre-orders will translate to actual sales because those who have pre-ordered still have the option to opt out of the purchase.
Also ASUS Malaysia has updated via Facebook that the all important keyboard dock is coming “early June” though details are still scarce. The update mentioned that stock of the dock will be sold together with the Eee Pad Transformer. There’s no mention of early-adopters being able to purchase the dock saperately and how much is it going to cost.
So if you’ve pre-ordered and you know that you can only collect your pre-order Eee Pad on May 28, would you still make the purchase now that you know that the Pad and dock is coming “early June”? Or would you wait just a couple of weeks more for the pad+dock to arrive?
The price of the standalone dock is an unknown but we know the price of the dock+pad. For RM1,799, you get the dock and the Eee Pad. That’s RM301 additional if you were to buy the Pad by itself. Question is, would the standalone dock be cheaper or more expensive than RM301?
We might just forgo the Eee Pad pre-order purchase and wait for the dock+pad to arrive instead.
With everyone update, ASUS Malaysia makes if even more difficult for consumers to decide. It’s like they are deliberately sabotaging themselves.
And so our opinion remains. ASUS Malaysia could’ve done a better job with the whole thing. Though interest for the Eee Pad Transformer is still strong despite the many faux pas the marketing team has committed. Let’s hope they’ve gathered a lot of learning from this and make other launches awesome.
7 Comments for ASUS Eee Pad Transformer: all 150 pre-order units snapped up. All important keyboard dock coming in June
Foo
Malaysia needs to convince companies that we're worth bringing devices to. Lots of Android newcomers are still cautious of Malaysia's acceptance of the Android platform. Maxis Celcom Digi still actively promoting the iPhone 4, which was launched close to one year ago. The exposure Android gets as a platform is still very low.
Gan
For me, IMHO, with all this fuss, and I am staying outside mid valley but dunno where I can get 1, I might instead get the Acer new android tablet cause can get it at many places at north malaysia lorrr…..
Ascuk
well, asus did not deal with this kind of situation before, last time they were just selling normal laptop, which no one would even call/queue up for it.
things are changing now, and they are not adapted to it yet. so, i guess its a good product in the wrong hand. well, just get an ipad 2 then, lol
KC Cheah
These bunch of Asus geezers ought to retire and let more dynamic youngsters run their marketing and planning. Hopelessly incompetent.
I'm beginning to have 2nd thoughts with all these hassles about get the Transformer. Already I was dead set against embedded battery devices. Comes 3 or 4 yrs down the road, there'll be a tsunami of Transformers rushing in to get their embedded batteries replaced, just like it's about time now for the early iPhones very soon.
And at this price, I suspect the quality of the Transformer, esp. the display. If not for its slimness beauty (which over time will become another has been), it's just another messy tablet. NVidia boss has commented that there'll faster and slimmer tablets with HoneyComb 3.1 to come, so even if we misses this Transformer, it's no loss to us, only to those incompetent Asus geezers.
mSbery
I do not think for once that this Asus fumble was due to a marketing failure, it was more of a product availability failure. Probably they had serious problems with the android 3.1 installation
soyacincau
ASUS Malaysia should have made sure that they have everything ready before launching the product.
The device works fine with 3.0. If ASUS wanted users to have the device with 3.1 — though we don't think that this is the case — then make sure that 3.1 is ready on their device.
Perhaps its unfair to say that the ASUS Malaysia marketing failed but we strongly feel that the whole organisationed could have handled the launch better.
Imho, Asus Malaysia should get rid of their current marketing team. They need some people who can come out with better ideas to sell their products.
Some key flaws of the pre-order and the countdown towards the launch was that the tablet wasn't available for retail as soon as it was launched (they could have stuck while the iron was still hot and make more sales) but now the hype generated is slowly fading with people getting a bit disgruntled (myself included). Now they make this pre-order promo for only the tablet itself plus a free leather sleeve for the first 150 people. That's fine. What is not fine is that they only allocate ONE hour to collect it. 150 people cleared in an hour? Strictly speaking, unless they got a sizeable workforce on that day, nigh impossible to do it.
I would still buy the Transformer but not without the dock and I don't think I would want wait in line next Saturday if I cannot guarantee myself getting the pre-order deal. As a huge Asus fan, I find it very disappointing that Asus Malaysia is royally screwing with us.
/endrant