have to return rented ipad to school and considering buying this- but have questions

Hey Guys! so heres my situation: my high school wanted to go digital so added wifi to the entire school and made us all rent ipads from them (private school). I graduate next month and will have to give my ipad back. There is supposed to be an option to be able to buy it, but I have always been an android and open source person who liked to tinker so I am looking to get a new tablet. This tablet was on Amazon for $367 for a little while, but is back up to $400. My 18th birthday is next month and should get more than enough money to buy this tablet and accessories. I want to know if there are any major issues hardware, software, or something slowing down development since I most likely will root it. I am going to college next year and am considering the much cheaper older models with the keyboard dock since people keep complaining about issues with this versions keyboard dock. anyone want to clarify on that? I do have a wireless full sized keyboard that folds in half from my ipad will work, but the USB 3 and extra battery and potential to not need a case is tempting. The other thing is if I root and run the 4.4 rom builds (Am I correct it is only 4.3 that is officially supported, and boot loader unlocking tool is officially available from Asus?) will the official accesories still work without issue? I am considering buying this adapter and a micro HDMI to HDMI cable or this miracast dongle to access my movies on my 2TB seagate external hard drive (with its own power source) to watch movies instead of using an xbox 360 or my laptop around home and when I travel (which is at least once a month). I am also thinking of connecting a ps3 controlled with sixaxis app then to a TV for a more portable console for gaming. I have already done this with my LG Optimus G. Also how far along is development? I see hardly any roms. two CM11 rom and a few 4.3 roms but seems only one is heavily customized. I have experience with adding some tweaks, themes, debloating, and compiling (official) nightlies of CM for other devices and was wondering if there is enough for me to be satisfied with a hopefully not overly customized official 4.3 build and might be able to take my knowledge to help contribute to the community if I buy this. if anyone can answer a single question of this long post it would be awesome.

edit: I was thinking since I am just asking a laundry list of questions, can a mod please move this to Q&A? sorry about this

berndblb said:

If you like the functionality of this tablet + dock it would be a grave mistake to buy the older versions of the Transformer series. I have owned the 700 for more than a year now and flashed most CM based roms as well as all CROMi based roms to it. The improvement compared to stock is amazing, but none of the best custom roms are as good as the TF701 on stock. The TF701 is gorgeous out of the box and that is also the reason you probably won't see the level of development the TF700 received.
Why?
Because there is way less user demand. This tablet is so good on stock, that only the serious flashoholics crave a custom rom.
The CM based KK roms all have minor issues with implementing the full functionality of the keyboard. It's only special function keys like wifi toggle, trackpad, auto brightness etc that don't work (and maybe never will) and at this point there seems to be an issue with the USB 3.0 functionality of the USB port, but if those are important to you, just flash CROMi-X 6.1 which is based on the official Asus firmware where everything works.
That is my preferred rom for this tablet. It's based on the latest 4.3 JB and it beats me why people HAVE TO HAVE the KitKat rom - I don't see much of an improvement in 4.4 compared to 4.3....
Can't help you with Miracast and the other game stuff - I don't use any of it.

The dock can be an issue. My second one works fine, but it's still something you have to pay attention to and possibly exchange/replace if the known issues show up. I have read about one user now receiving a 2014 keyborad without issues. So there is the chance that they finally fixed the disaster the dock has been in 2013. But I would be watching this...

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Okay. So if I get enough money for my bday then I'll get this. Considering the dock price, issues, and I need some stuff for my raspberry pi, I'll get the tablet now and get the dock later. But other than that this tablet has everything I need, and appears to be the best hardware out there and has an even better price comparatively. I'll be watching for the docks too.

sbdags said:

If you like to tinker I think you'll like this device. As Bernd says it is very good out of the box and my CROMi-X build is what I run as a daily. I'm more than satisfied and my keyboard works fine. I love it.

You could join the CROMBi-kk team if you want to learn more about building a solid rom. I'm on holiday at the moment (typing this in a coffee shop in Japan) but when I get back there will be more improvements made to kitkat as well as the kernels we are using

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Okay. So I can have stability and features when I want it, and have a lot of tinkering when to also. That's exactly what I need. Nandroid and tinker on weekends, stable when I have classes. And if I get it I'll definitely join. Maybe I can join now though and start learning more. And until I get the tablet (maybe next week) I can use what I learn on my og Evo 4g, LG Optimus G, and nook tablet. I'll message you later most likely, but the main things I believe I need to move forward are the updates script and such and how to fix syntax errors so I don't need dsixdas kitchen to recompile everytime I make make a change even if it's just updated gapps, new ringtone, etc. the other thing I really want to figure out is how to setup aroma installer which I believe ties into the other thing. Them learn java with the coursera class I put my name down for and I could start to do a lot. Thanks for the help guys! This pretty much answers everything I need except for one thing. The ps3 controller I'm sure will work, but with the miracast dongle I'm not sure if I would be able to use midi direct straight to the dongle, and connect to local wifi in case I want to stream or play online games like clash of clans or war of nations (seriously check out the second one, it's new to android but amazing on ios). If that works and doesn't have miracast/DLNA bugs like some devices then I'll have everything I need or want. If not I can get a 15 ft micro hdmi to hdmi cable for like $10 on amazon (I have prime)

YayYouFixedIt said:

I like this tablet. I think its great for what you get. Higher resolution, pushes the limits etc. Just dont drop it. Doesnt look pretty if you plan on rooting which is a must if you want to actually use it. Get some depth of knowledge. Seems people cant repair it in some places without paying a lot of money especially after the warranty is voided. They need to offer better service in that area. I guess if you want to void your warranty and root it. Dont buy an extended one. That would not make sense. Correct me if Im wrong. Aside from shipping costs ASUS should be giving lifetime warranties only because they cut and past peoples software which is fine. Just give us what we're owed. :cyclops: LOL i dont know.

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What do you mean doesn't look pretty if I root it? Rooting doesn't affect how it looks. Unless you mean if you damage it and can't get it fixed because of warranty? And my trick is if it's damaged enough I need it fixed I plug it into my laptop and hard brick it's I'm on my 5th Optimus G already and only paid $150 once. Only once was a shattering screen,

berndblb said:

Because you have to unlock the bootloader to get root on the TF701.
@evodev I think you would make a great addition to the team. Get the tablet!
One condition though: Start to use paragraphs [emoji12] [emoji56] [emoji23]

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Sorry, I literally wrote every reply right before the bell for my next class rang so I had to be quicked. Interestingly enough clash of clans and some tech sites and all are blocked, but xda I can access without having to use my phone for a hotspot connected to my 22,000 mAh battery. And I'll know be the end of next week if I'm getting it or not, I'm going to see if there might be a price drop in the near future to save some money though.

pelago said:

If you're saying what I think you're saying, that won't work with the TF701T as when you unlock it (which is needed for rooting), it "phones home" to the Asus server to tell them that you've done it, which instantly voids your warranty. It doesn't matter how much your hard brick it after that - they just look at the serial/IMEI number and compare it to their list of unlocked devices, and won't touch it.

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Dang it. I need to do more research. Someone needs to make a modified version of the program that blocks that. Or if it doesn't require downloading the files during the process and can be unlocked offline, just create a firewall blocking all the addresses or disable wifi. Problem solved. Lol. I might look into it more when I get the tablet.

pelago said:

I don't believe its possible. Unlocking requires a unique per-device key, and there's no way to get that other than from Asus, so it cannot be done offline and without Asus knowing, at least not unless there's a flaw in their encryption etc.

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So firewall definitely won't work. And anything to get it working I don't think anyone will bother doing. Not worth the time. Just have to be as careful as I usually am for now. Might not even root it off the bat and see how stock suites me until I want to add a ps3 controller to it.

Just to give you guys an update I'll have the tablet tomorrow and the case on Saturday.