Asus unveils Transformer Book Trio, an Android and Windows running hybrid

As part of its Computex 2013 announcements, Asus has just unveiled the Transformer Book Trio that can run both Windows and Android. The Transformer Book Trio comes in sporting an 11.6-inch 1080p screen.

The switch between the operating systems is done with a physical hotkey, which is similar to the Transformer AiO, which was launched by the company last year. Thus, users are spoilt for choice, with the Transformer Book Trio providing an option of either becoming an Andoid Tablet, a Windows 8 notebook or a Windows 8 desktop PC.

Power-wise, the ability to switch between OSes is supplemented with multiple batteries, according to a report by Engadget. The Book Trio is seen sporting a 33Wh cell as well as a 19Wh one. Storage-wise, the Book Trio offers 750GB HDD, which is placed inside the dock as well as 64GB of flash storage, which is found inside the tablet itself.

Asus unveils the Transformer Book Trio, a hybrid Windows/Android running laptop

The dual OS feature is especially useful because users not only get different interfaces, but also have access to different apps and app stores. And with the Google Play Store providing more than 7, 00,000 apps, this is a definitely a plus point.

The PC station dock comes in with its own 4th generation Intel Core i7 processor and keypad, and allows users to use an external display when the tablet display is detached to function as a standalone desktop PC. The dock also serves as a charging base for the tablet, which has a 2GHz Intel Atom Z2580 chip inside to run Android Jelly Bean. This brings out one crucial point – you cannot switch between the two OS when on the move. Once detached, the tablet will only be able to run Anroid Jelly Bean.

According to the company, the Book Trio has been designed to allow users to sync data or continue to surf the webpage that they are on while switching from notebook to tablet mode. The price of the Book Trio has still not been announced, but it has been reported that the Book Trio will be launched in the third quarter of this year.

From the images that we have seen so far, it looks like the Book Trio will have the same metallic finish which is seen in the rest of the Transformer range. If users want to know more about this particular model though, they will have to wait a bit longer for the company to release more details on the same.