Two screens are better than one, making ASUS TAICHI king of the world when it comes to flexibility.
This slim, sleek Ultrabook has 1080p high-definition 11.6-inch screens on both sides of its lid, giving the user a wide variety of options of how to use it in different circumstances.
The first is as a traditional ultraportable laptop, with full keyboard and an 11.6-inch display running at full HD resolution. In this mode, you’d never know that it wasn’t a normal ultrabook — the display on the lid can be switched off so that it has a glossy, piano black appearance.
When you’re ready to activate it, however, the screen on the lid can be set to mirror mode, doubling the display exactly so that an audience can see what the user is doing. Alternatively, it can act as a second screen, showing a presentation while the main screen shows speaker notes, for example.
The second way to use TAICHI is with the lid closed. With its slim profile, which tapers from 17.4mm to a tiny 3mm, it can be used as a powerful tablet computer running Microsoft’s latest Windows 8 operating system its tile-based interface designed for touchscreens.
The third way of using TAICHI is with the lid open again, but this time with two people operating the device at the same time. By sitting face-to-face with TAICHI in between them, powerful collaboration options are enabled. One person can use the keyboard and trackpad while the other uses the touchscreen, either with their hands or using an included stylus for pinpoint accuracy.
In every case, the powerful Intel Core quad-core i7 or dual-core i5 processor makes light work of whatever you ask it to do, and up to 256 gigabytes of solid state storage means that you’ll never run out of space. Five hours of battery life and a 1.25kg weight profile makes it the ideal option for working on the go.
Packing multiple devices for different tasks is no longer necessary. Instead, slip the lightweight TAICHI into your bag and you’ll be ready for anything.
James Kidder