Andre Yoskowitz
2 Jan 2012 20:11
Asus' new quad-core tablet appears to have a locked bootloader, much to the ire of developers.
Members of the XDA forums have posted that the Prime has a 128-bit encrypted bootloader, making it a lot tougher for interested devs to create and run custom ROMs on the tablet.
Motorola has had locked bootloaders for some time now, and HTC recently switched their stance and released software to unlock the bootloader on phones like the HTC Sensation. All future models will not be locked, said HTC CEO Peter Chou. The company's decision came directly after angry devs posted their disdain on sites like XDA.
The Transformer Prime, arguably the best tablet ever built, has the following specs:
Nvidia Quad-Core Tegra 3 Processor
Additional 5th core to reduce power consumption when 2 or 4 cores are not needed
10.1″ IPS+ display with Corning Gorilla Glass and 178 degree viewing angle
1 GB RAM (LP DDR2)
8 megapixel auto-focus rear camera with 1080P video capture and large F2.4 aperature
1.2 megapixel front-facing camera for video conferencing
12 hours of battery life, up to 18 hours when paired with the keyboard dock
2 color schemes: Amethyst Gray and Champagne Gold
2 storage options: 32GB and 64GB ($499 and $599 price points) with expandable storage via microSD
8.3 millimeters thick, weighs in at 1.29 lbs.