Dell is seriously giving us a really good real on the Venue 8 Pro, because that tablet feels so much more premium than this. The Dell feels like you are holding a $400 high end tablet. This Vivotab definitely feels like a $200 device (despite being discounted from $300). The back is smoother, but doesn't seem slippery, so don't mind that. The ASUS has a odd raised edge around the sides of the tablet that feels weird, but it's not so sharp that it feels uncomfortable. And the tablet is a few millimeters taller and wider. And significantly thicker, about 25-30% more. And compared to Android tablets the Dell was already kinda chunky. However none of this is really much of a negative, size and weight still seem acceptable for an 8 inch Windows tablet.
When the screen is off, the Dell screen is completely black, blends in with the bezel and has no visible gap between the glass. The ASUS display is dark grey looking when off and definitely has a gap between the display and glass. Also the contrast is quite a bit worse on the ASUS. The Dell definitely has a much superior display.
Also there appears to be absolutely no oleophobic coating on the glass! It just sucks in fingerprints and it's much more difficult to clean the glass. And swipe gestures feel rough because the finger doesn't glide. I hadn't realized ASUS went this cheap to not even include this (and this is a new unopened tablet).
I also picked up one of these after trying out several 8" Windows tablets at Micro Center. Unfortunately, the Dell Venue 8 just wouldn't turn on, so I couldn't compare screens. I think the screen on the Asus looks pretty good, though I do agree that it could be closer to the glass. Not the best ever, but still seems to be fairly good. I thought the Asus had pretty good contrast and colors, though I've grown up with some pretty bad TN panels.
I thought they both had a good form factor. The Lenovo Miix 8 was the thinnest and lightest of the bunch I tried, but it felt more like a toy and seemed to develop blemishes easily. The Asus and Dell both felt very solid, and I wasn't able to pick up many size and shape differences between the two just by short-term memory usage. I'd probably need to do a direct comparison to appreciate any differences, so I thought they both hit a good spot (they all seem relatively small and thin to me, besides that Toshiba one...). Both felt very solid, without being too chunky, either way, which I couldn't say about the other few tablets.
Totally agree on the screen coating. It picks up fingerprints like crazy (could probably look at it and put a fingerprint on it), though I don't notice it much with the screen on. As a plus, the fingerprints make it easier and smoother to slide your fingers around, as the screen does have an ever-so-slightly rough feeling to it otherwise...very hard to explain. LOL (Using the pen a lot can help and be a good workaround, if you don't mind it.)
In the end, it really came down to me wanting the Wacom pen. With the pen and the tablet's price point, I really feel like this is a great deal despite a couple (acceptable, IMO) compromises. And the pen works very well, though something like the Surface does tend to feel and work better.
All things said, I'm willing to sacrifice when it comes to fingerprints, total thinness, and the best-ever screen quality for everything you get in this package. Highly recommended if your needs and interests line up with mine. Don't need the pen? Probably go with the Dell. Want the thinnest and lightest and aren't worried about much else? Probably go for the Miix 8, if you can find one.
Oh, and so far, Asus seems to have really stepped up their driver and software support. I had a previous 10" tablet from them (previous gen Atom), and the experience so far has been much better.