Posts Tagged ‘ZenUI’

Review: ASUS PadFone S Android smartphone cum tablet combo

Saturday, November 1st, 2014

As a pioneer of 2-in-1 mobile devices, ASUS offers with the PadFone S the portability of the smartphone and the larger screen of a tablet by selling both at the price of one device.

Two colours are available for the ASUS PadFone S - Dark Ruby (shown above) and Pure White.

Two colours are available for the ASUS PadFone S – Dark Ruby (shown above) and Pure White. Photo: ASUS Singapore.

The PadFone S was launched in Singapore on 14 October, 2014 together with 11 other new mobile and computing products.

The PadFone S is a 5-inch Android smartphone that comes with a PadFone S Station.

The PadFone S I reviewed was the Pure White version. Normal retail price: S$449.

The PadFone S I reviewed was the Pure White version. Normal retail price: S$449.

You can use the PadFone S on its own like any smartphone or you can slot it into the back of the PadFone S Station and use the combination as an 8.9-inch tablet, leveraging the larger backlit Super IPS display of the Station.

You can’t use the PadFone S Station on its own though, because it is simply a dumb display with no computer processors within.

Actually, the Station has more – it also includes a 4990mAh Li-Polymer (non-removable) battery to provide the larger energy demands of powering a larger display.

The larger battery can also be used to charge the PadFone S to extend its battery life from 22 hours talk-time (3G) to 64 hours.

The combined PadFone S in the Station felt a little bit hefty though, at a combined weight of 664g.

My view:
I found the ASUS PadFone S provided me with the portability of a smartphone and – only when I need it – a truely larger display and usability of a tablet –> all at the price of a single device (or less).

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New arrivals: ASUS MeMo Pad 8 and Fonepad 8 Android tablets

Wednesday, September 24th, 2014

The new ASUS MeMo Pad 8 (S$499) and Fonepad 8 (S$299) tablets feature the next generation 64-bit Intel Atom ‘Moorefield’ quad-core processor and ASUS ZenUI interface. Avaialble in Singapore from 10 October, 2014.

Both the ASUS MeMo Pad 8 (S$499) and Fonepad 8 (S$299) run Android 4.4 KitKat operating system and ASUS ZenUI interface, which features more than 200 software tweaks over previous ASUS interfaces.

Both the ASUS MeMo Pad 8 (Left, S$499) and Fonepad 8 (Right, S$299) run Android 4.4 KitKat operating system and ASUS ZenUI interface, which features more than 200 software tweaks over previous ASUS interfaces.

The interface sports a new visual design with modern ‘flat’ icons, customisable vivid colour themes that match the tablets’ colour, as well as a cleaner layout that clearly presents all necessary information at one glance.

Despite its larger display, the ASUS Fonepad 8 has almost the same width as the previous generation 7-inch Fonepad.

Despite its larger display, the ASUS Fonepad 8 has almost the same width as the previous generation 7-inch Fonepad.

Weighing at just 299g, ASUS boasts that the 8-inch MeMO Pad 8 (ME581CL) is the world’s lightest 8-inch tablet with Long-Term Evolution (LTE).

It features the next generation 64-bit Intel Atom Z3560 1.8GHz quad-core processor, and ultra-fast connectivity with 802.11ac Wi-Fi and wireless Near-Field Communications (NFC).

The ASUS Fonepad 8 (FE380CG) delivers powerful mobility with the next generation 64-bit Intel Atom Z3530 1.3GHz quad-core processor and 3G phone functions.

With its narrow bezel measuring just 5.06mm and a 72.2% screen-to-body ratio, ASUS claims that the 8-inch ASUS Fonepad 8 has the largest viewing area for any 8-inch phablet in the market.

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