Asus Transformer Book T100HA review: Small and imperfectly formed

Asus Transformer Book T100HA review: What to buy instead?

Back in 2013, the Transformer Book T100 was a revelation – it’s a shame the T100HA hasn’t rekindled its 2-in-1 magic in 2015. Now, it finds itself up against an increasing number of cheaper, and equally competent rivals. 

Here are the low-cost Windows alternatives that are well worth considering:

HP Stream 11

Price: £180 Rating: 5/5 Key specs: 11.6in 1,366 x 768 display | Intel Celeron N2840 | 32GB eMMC | 1.29kg

HP’s budget laptop comes in a choice of vibrant colours, and it’s slim and light enough to carry about all-day. Windows 8.1 means that it’s that bit more versatile than a Chromebook, and while the 32GB of storage fills up pretty quickly, it’s easy (and cheap enough) to pair it with an external USB 3 hard disk. Importantly, the keyboard and screen don’t get in the way of getting work done – it’s far more capable than the price would suggest. 

Toshiba Chromebook 2

Price: £280 Rating: 4/5 Key specs: 13.3in 1,920 x 1,080 display | Intel Celeron N2840 | 32GB SSD | 1.35kg

The fact that this laptop doesn’t run Windows will leave some people running for the hills, but the Chromebook 2 is a delight. The top-quality Full HD screen is the highlight, and is better than you could expect to find on much pricier laptops. Right now, this is the Chromebook we’d buy – it is a worthy adversary to the HP Stream 11.

Microsoft Surface 3

Price: £419 Rating: 4/5 Key specs: 10.8in 1,920 x 1,280 display | Intel Atom x7 | 64/128GB SSD | 622g (tablet only)

At £419, the Surface 3 is as gorgeous as sub-£500 Windows tablets get. The price jumps up steeply, however: the Type keyboard inflates the price by £119, and the Surface Pen adds another £45. The Atom x7 processor is a tad underpowered, but if you don’t push it too hard, it’s a capable little hybrid – and it’s bloody lovely to look at, too.

Toshiba Satellite C40-C 

Price: £200 Rating: 4/5 Key specs: 13.3in 3,200 x 1,800 display | Intel Core i5/i7 | 128-512GB SSD | 1.27kg

The Satellite C40-C brings Windows 10 to the table for only £200. The 14in display strikes a good balance between portability and all-day usability, and though the Celeron CPU is pretty slow, it’s good enough for basic use. Battery life is good, too – over 7 hours of video playback is good going.

Toshiba Satellite CL10-B

Price: £180 Rating: 4/5 Key specs: 11.6in 1,366 x 768 display | Intel Celeron N2840 | 32GB eMMC | 1.1kg

Toshiba’s Windows 8.1 laptop is no powerhouse, and it’s equipped with a mere 32GB of storage, but it also comes bundled with a two-year subscription to 100GB of OneDrive cloud storage. As a basic laptop for everyday use, it’ll do a sterling job. The all-plastic chassis is sturdy, and while the display is hardly the last word in quality, it’s bright, and battery life is decent.

Still in need of some help selecting the right Windows tablet or laptop? Click here to bounce on over to Alphr’s guide to the Best Laptops (and tablets) of 2015.