ASUS announces line of transformer books, laptops

In addition to various Windows 8 tablets and a dual-booting all-in-one, ASUS announced the Transformer Book, a line of notebooks with detachable touch screens that can function as tablets -- not ARM-based tablets, mind you, but full-blown x86 slates. So, if you were wondering which side of the laptop / tablet hybrid fence these fall onto, that should clear it up for you. Another sign these are notebooks first and tabs second? Look no further than the large screen sizes: 11.6, 13 and 14 inches. As mentioned, they pack laptop-grade chips to match, including a Core i7 Ivy Bridge processor, backed by discrete graphics. Storage options include SSDs and traditional hard drives, and we're told these lappies can accommodate up to 4GB of RAM. At the same time, you'll find some features designed to give users tablet functionality when they decide to un-dock from the keyboard. This includes not just your standard webcam on the front, but a 5-megapixel shooter 'round back. Sadly, no word just yet on pricing or availability, though with a final version of Windows 8 a good four months off, we're not surprised that ASUS is keeping those details to itself. In the meantime, help yourself to some hands-on photos below, and a walk-through video after the break.