Long gone are the days of oversized desktop computers and floppy drives. We are now living in a digital age where mobile personal computers and cloud computing have become essential tools both in the workplace and in school. Tablets and netbooks are also becoming more commonplace in the home as well. In fact, we rarely use our desktop computer because we each have our own tablet that we can take with us from room to room or any time we leave the house. My newest tablet? The ASUS Transformer Book T100, a 2-in-1 laptop powered by an Intel Atom processor.

As one of a myriad of Intel Tablets on the market, the ASUS Transformer Book is an affordable option for students and for those looking to upgrade to a newer PC. The Intel Bay Trail Quad-Core processor, on which the Transformer is based, was designed with the multi-tasker in mind. I can have several apps open at once, easily switch between desktop and Windows 8 start screen, and quickly access apps by pinning them to the taskbar or by swiping in from the right edge of my touch screen.

For the tech savvy millennial, the 2-in-1 feature is certainly a practical one. There have been several instances when my children and my students want to show me something on my old laptop and instinctively interact with the screen thinking it is a touch screen, when it isn't. Having the option to touch an interactive surface makes learning more engaging and also makes the user experience more intuitive. The 10.1-inch capacitive multi-touch display of the Transformer Book T100 adds to the experience with Intel HD graphics that display vivid images.

The portability of the Transformer Book T100 is another key feature that I enjoy. It is small enough to fit in my purse but has a big enough keyboard that doesn't detract from the typing experience. The whole device weighs in at 1.07kg but to make it lighter, I can easily detach the tablet from the keyboard and use the on-screen keyboard for typing. I also use the digital keyboard even when the keyboard is attached because I use it to type accents, which comes in quite handy as a French teacher. All you need to is click on the keyboard icon to pull it up, press and hold a letter, then select the required accent. Voilà!

The Transformer Book T100 would make an especially great gift this holiday season for students. Since it includes a 1-year subscription to Office 365, students can take advantage of Excel, Word, Outlook, Powerpoint, Access, Publisher and OnePoint. Plus, they will get 1 TB of online cloud space, making it easy to complete and save assignments, avoiding potential dog-ate-homework catastrophes.