Asus yesterday announced the PadFone. Which is the tablet with a phone inside it. We have previously seen various demos at CES a few months ago. Well now it turns out that it works with the keyboard dock as seen on the Transformer range. This really could be the answer to a LOT of peoples needs for a phone and a tablet. The proof will be on the performance and the battery life. With this you get THREE batteries, the phone, the tablet and the keyboard dock. You certainly wouldn’t run short with this device.
Asus have posted a video of a bunch of friends who all seem to have PadFones. It is good though as it shows you some of the potential that the PadFone has.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rrh_EwFaZ7I
The spec for the Padfone is pretty decent as well. After the spec you are treated to a few little teaser videos showcasing various features of the Padfone. I really like where they are going with this.
Specifications
Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich)
128 x 65.4 x 9.2 mm (LxWxH)
CPU Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 8260A Dual-Core 1.5 GHz
Memory 16/32/64 GB eMMc Flash
Micro-SD card
WLAN 802.11 b/g/n
HSPA+ UL:5.76 Mbps/DL:21 Mbps
Display 4.3inches, qHD 960×540, Super AMOLED with Capacitive Multi touch panel
Battery 1520 mAh Lithium
Front Mega-Pixel VGA Camera
Rear 8 Mega-Pixel Auto Focus Flash F2.2 Aperture
Accessories Stylus Headset ???
Station Dock
Stylus headset? I saw that in the video. Nice idea. Now below we have a few short videos showing various features of the device.
Seamless transition between devices
Works both ways!
DynamicDisplay – this ASUS exclusive technology automatically adjusts the PadFone’s display layout when it is placed into the PadFone Station to enable you to view and enjoy more.
[yframe url=’http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PDLBQvrqWtc’]
9X the battery life. It’s possible
Extend the PadFone’s battery life by up to 5X with the PadFone Station’s built-in battery. Need even more power? Simply dock the PadFone into the bigger battery of the Station Dock to increase battery life by an amazing 9X!
[yframe url=’http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EaO-BK6aw_U’]
Innovative accessories that transform lives
Here’s something new: a stylus doubling as a headset. Use it to scribble, draw, write, and pick up calls with absolute ease. The PadFone Stylus Headset even comes with its own alert system, where the PadFone and PadFone Station vibrate and beep to let you know when the Stylus Headset has been left behind!
[yframe url=’http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xggZF1Yisbc’]
Entertainment at your fingertips with preloaded apps
Get an amazing lifetime 8GB online storage with every PadFone! The best part is, there is no cap on file transfers or data download capacity, so you can send huge files with no annoying limitations. The PadFone also comes preloaded with ASUS apps such as ASUS@vibe and Mylibrary , providing you with a plethora of free books and other media.
No more lengthy syncing with one stop storage!
Say goodbye to constant syncs! The PadFone provides all of the PadFone Station’s processing power and storage when the two are docked. So no matter which device you used last, all your photos, documents, and games are kept up to date and available whenever you need them. Now you can continue right where you left off in that new game when moving from pad to phone without having to start all over!
Always the best performance
The PadFone features Qualcomm’s 4th generation 1.5GHz Snapdragon S4 dual-core processor for super fast performance even on the PadFone Station. The brilliant Adreno 225 GPU joins a Super AMOLED panel to ensure quality graphics for gaming, movies, photos, and all other applications
Because design matters and we care
The Zen design philosophy ASUS first employed in the ZENBOOK ™ continues with the PadFone. The concentric circle finish found on the back of the PadFone and the PadFone Station provides a comfortable grip while accentuating elegant style.
So this is going to be a great device. Hopefully one of the team out at MWC will get some hands on time with this.
Source – Asus
Well, can I get in early and say to all those “I don’t see the point in this” posters who’ll be along in a mo – “If you don’t see the point, don’t buy it”.
Personally, I can see a niche, but still large, market for this kind of form factor.
Consider me “in”
Yes and me
I’m in. With a company supplied phone I haven’t had a reason to own a personal phone. I’ve been wanting to build a DDR3 desktop to replace my OC’d DDR2 machine but have been waiting for a quad channel to debut. Well it debuted and it is a peice of junk, merely a Xeon that failed QA/QC. I prefer too just migrate to this Asus Padfone form factor. With a USB connected external HD or the cloud for permanent storage via the keypad dockstation what else to you need. Only concern is burn out of eMMc memory from incorrectly programmed NAND not providing even wear of all flash memory and prematurely clipping maximum lifetime expectancy. Unlike desktops, smart phone specs are quite thin.
Will be interesting to see if extended warranty or trade up options are offered.