Toshiba Encore vs ASUS T100: Battle of Cheap Windows 8.1 Tablets

If you are looking to buy some cheap and decent Windows 8.1 tablets, then you’ve probably shortlisted the Toshiba Encore and the Asus T100 in the finalists. Let’s have a look at how this Toshiba Encore vs Asus T100 fight looks like and who will win

Yesterday, we shared with you the news that Windows 8.1 eight incher tablets Toshiba Encore and Lenovo Miix 2 have finally went on sale, with pre-orders starting. Now, it’s time to start a specs fight between the Toshiba Encore and the Asus T100, as you’re probably not sure if you’re look at both of them right now.

Stay tuned and subscribe to Wind8apps to get more fights like this delivered to your inbox. The best way to play Windows 8 apps is on tablets like these, so that’s why we’re trying to see which of them is better suited for your needs. Without further ado, let’s put these two cheap, yet great Windows 8.1 to the specs comparison battle!

Toshiba Encore vs Asus Transformer Book T100

First of all, a few things need to be said about these two devices: the Toshiba Encore comes with a 8-inch size while the Asus T100 is a 10.1-inch convertible 2-in-1 touchscreen laptop. So, they are from two different leagues, so we can’t really compare this, as it depends on your tastes and needs. Therefore, before jumping to the specs comparison from below, decided whether you need a convertible 10 inch laptop or a smaller tablet that is also more portable.

• Price and capacity: the 32-GB Toshiba Encore model is $330 while Asus T100 is more expensive, but comes with an impressive 64 GB Solid-State Drive for the price of $400
• Processor and RAM: Toshiba Encore has a 1.8 GHz Atom Z3740 processor and Asus T100 comes with the same 1.86 GHz Intel Atom kernel and they also have the same 2 GB DDR3 RAM
• Battery life: Toshiba said that a final estimate for Encore’s battery life hasn’t been yet released, but we’ve seen in many places 7 hours being listed. Compare that to the 11 hours that Asus claims for its T100 Windows 8.1 notebook.
• Camera: the Asus T100 comes with a mediocre 1.2 front camera, because it’s a notebook while Toshiba Encore has a 8MP back sensor with a 2MP one in the front

So, as you can see for yourself, the Asus T100 has much more strong points than the Toshiba Encore and is currently cheaper only by $70. But if you’re looking for a cheap Windows 8.1 convertible laptop, then this is it. Let’s not forget that you also get the keyboard dock included in the price, which is a very, very sweet deal. Here’s what Anand from AnadTech had to say about the Asus T100

The T100 truly lives up to the Transformer brand. The combination of Intel’s Bay Trail silicon and ASUS‘ mechanicals gives the device a dual personality. In tablet mode it’s just as portable as any other 10-inch tablet, while in clamshell mode it can be a netbook-style ultraportable PC. I’d love to see ASUS continue down this path and truly try to perfect the device. I look at the work that ASUS and Google do together and can’t help but wonder what the T100 would look like if it had the same sort of pressure/influence. Perhaps that’s a bigger criticism of how Microsoft works with its partners, but I look at the comparison of ASUS tablets with and without Google’s influence and try to imagine a further polished Transformer Book. That’s something I’d really like to see.

To be fair, we don’t have yet too many reviews of the Toshiba Encore, so we will wait for an updated on that, as well. But, in my opinion, you should go for the Asus T100, as it seems to be the best choice. You can always leave the keyboard dock home if you don’t want to carry it around.