Fonepads, MeMoPads, and Transformers, oh my! ASUS announces tons of new Android products
If ASUS has seemed a bit quiet to you over the past few months, it’s because the company’s been hard at work on the six — yes, six — Android devices they have announced at IFA Berlin today. We’ve got a little bit of everything here, including a couple of Fonepad hybrids, some new MeMo Pads, a new Transformer Pad, and a Transformer Book that dual-boots Android and Windows.
Fonepad 6 and Fonepad 7
Starting with the Fonepads, we’ve got a 6-inch Fonepad Note, a tablet with Intel’s Atom Z2580 dual-core processor, 2GB of RAM, 1080p resolution, an 8 megapixel rear camera with a 1.2 megapixel front sensor, and Android 4.2. This thing will come in 16GB or 32GB flavors, and has GPS, Bluetooth 3.0 and WiFi for connectivity options. The “Note” in its name alludes to the included stylus, something we imagine will be useful for the various note-taking applications ASUS has loaded onto it.
There’s also a Fonepad 7, which is slightly weaker with 1280 x 800 resolution, 1GB of RAM and Intel’s Atom Z2560 dual-core processor. This one doesn’t have a stylus coupled with it, though we imagine any old capacitive stylus will work just as well. Both of these devices also feature the ability to make phone call. It might look a bit ridiculous to make calls on what’s essentially a 7-inch tablet, but someone out there will like it.
MeMoPad 8 and MeMoPad 10
Next up, the MeMoPad line will continue to round out the affordable tablet side of ASUS’ portfolio. The new MeMoPad 8 and 10 (with the numbers dictating their sizes in inches) are both 1.6GHz quad-core devices with 1280 x 800 resolution, 1GB of RAM, a 5 megapixel rear camera, a 1.2 megapixel front camera, WiFi,GPS, Bluetooth 3.0 and more. They differ a bit in storage, with the MeMoPad 10 being offered in 8GB and 16GB offerings, while the MeMoPad 8 can only be had in 16GB. Both do offer external storage via a microSD card slot, though.
Transformer Pad TF701 and Transformer Book Trio
Finally, we’ve got a couple of high-end tablets to satisfy those who need a portable powerhouse. The Transformer Pad TF701 has a 10.1-inch 2560 x 1600 display and will have NVIDIA’s quad-core Tegra 4 chipset inside. The device is compatible with a USB 3.0-enabled dock that gives the tablet a total of 17 hours of battery life. Also on-board are a 5 megapixel rear camera, a 1.2 megapixel front camera, HDMI-out and more.
And the Transformer Book Trio is the most interesting of them all. This is a tablet/netbook hybrid that dual-booths both Windows and Android. For the Android portion, you’ll have access of up to 2GB of RAM, an Intel Atom dual-core processor, up to 64GB of solid-state storage, and more. In PC mode, you’ll be switched over to 4GB of RAM and a 4th generation Intel Core processor. All of this is being displayed on an 11.6-inch display with full HD resolution.
We’ll have to wait on word from ASUS in regards to pricing and availability for all these, but you can bet we’ll be looking to bring that info to you as we get it.