Those similar processing specs--the Transformer Pad has a slightly slower clock speed, 1.2GHz to the Prime's 1.3GHz--powered the Transformer Pad to comparable performance results to the Transformer Prime. This means the Transformer Pad ranks among our top-performing tablets. We saw a few minor differences between the two in our testing, but nothing that should impact a buying decision. In a preliminary battery test, the Transformer Pad's battery lasted 7 hours 7 minutes, same as on the the Transformer Prime.

The displays are different, too. Both are 1280 by 800 resolution IPS panels, but the Prime has a Super IPS+ display with 600 nits brightness, while the Transformer Pad maxes out at 350 nits. That brightness edge makes the Prime better suited to those who need to use the tablet outside in sunlight.

I also noticed some other, subtle differences between the two tablets' displays. Neither tablet did better than average in our image testing suite, and the Transformer Pad actually bested the Prime at displaying an image of a Web site, and of an athlete's hand grips. Of the two, the Transformer Pad has a slightly larger air gap between the touchscreen glass and the LCD beneath; this created a slight bit more glare, but it wasn't as distracting as on some competing tablet models. Images overall didn't have as much contrast and detail as on the Prime, though the Prime's display also seemed to be too bright overall.

The Transformer Pad comes with stereo speakers (side-by-side in a single speaker outlet at the speaker back right of the tablet). I found the audio output passable, but unimpressive. Although both models have Asus' SonicMaster audio technology, the Transformer Pad lacks the Prime's sub-woofer--which would explain why I preferred the audio output by the Transformer Prime. I found audio on the Transformer Pad sounds thin and echoey by comparison.