Portable computing devices became a staple in the daily life routine of millions of people around the globe. Cell phones, tablets, laptops, and lately smart bracelets and watches are everywhere. If you have any doubts, just hop in a bus for a couple of stops! Not so long ago however, the performance of smaller devices was barely cutting it for basic tasks, usually limited to emails, browsing and "primitive" gaming. Today, portable devices are improving in raw power, battery life, and accessibility. As a result, we witnessed a spectacular shift in the portable gaming industry, partially caused by the Android OS popularity among users and manufacturers.

NVIDIA, known mostly for its graphics cards, did jump in the portable computing bandwagon with the Tegra SOC lineup. Back in 2009, the Microsoft Zune HD was the first Tegra based product. Five years later, Tegra based modules can be even found in the sexy Tesla Model S cars. Another notorious product is NVIDIA's own SHIELD, an Android gaming device built around the Tegra 4 SOC featuring a clam-shell design that integrates a console-grade controller. With the SHIELD, NVIDIA proved that not only can it put together a solid product, but also cleverly integrate it in a gaming ecosystem.

Today I will be looking at two tablets devices that are also powered by the NVIDIA Tegra 4 SOC. The first unit is a 7" device designed by NVIDIA and manufactured by EVGA, hence the EVGA Tegra NOTE 7 name. Marketed mostly to gamers, this tablet comes with an impressive feature set for the $199 MSRP asking price. The second tablet is the latest member of the Transformer Pad lineup from ASUS. It's a high end tablet that comes with a hefty $449.99 price tag, but sports one of the most beautiful displays I've ever seen in a portable device.