The Australian model of the Toshiba Tablet ships with Norton Mobile Security software, the ThinkFree office suite that enables the creation of Word, Excel and Powerpoint documents, and the Toshiba Media Player that handles a wide range of video, audio and image files, and can stream music and videos to a DLNA-enabled TV. Toshiba also includes a PrinterShare app that enables wireless printing, though oddly, the app appears to be designed for Android phones rather than tablets, and only fills about a quarter of the Tablet's screen. The best inclusion is Toshiba's File Manager app, which easily allows you to access the Tablet's internal memory, the SD card and the USB slot.

Both tablets offer a slick Web browser that is fast and displays Flash content, most of the time with minimal delay. They also support tabbed Web browsing, and the entire browsing experience is as close as you'll find to a full desktop or notebook computer. The on-screen keyboard on both tablets is spacious and comfortable to type on once you get used to its layout.

As a standalone device, the Eee Pad Transformer has textured plastic on the rear which makes it easy to grip. However, the plastic does exhibit a bit of flex when pressed, and the bezel surrounding the display seems a little large. At 271mm in length, the Eee Pad Transformer is a large device. Weighing 680g, it's heavier than the featherweight Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1v, but lighter than the Toshiba Tablet. The ASUS Eee Pad Transformer obviously gets its name from the optional keyboard dock, but the tablet can be purchased without the keyboard dock for $599 in Australia.

The Toshiba Tablet looks and feels much thicker than most other devices on the market, and at 15mm thick it's a significantly bulkier device than the Eee Pad Transformer. The back cover has a rubberised feel and its textured design makes the Tablet comfortable to hold. It also feels slip resistant and is not particularly prone to scratches.