Are you in the awkward position of needing both a phone and a tablet, but you can't face wandering around with the comically large Samsung Galaxy Note strapped to your face? Asus may have the perfect gadget for you.
The PadFone is a 4.3-inch phone that sits inside the body of a tablet, giving you the freedom of a 10-inch screen when you're in need of a more substantial surface area to poke and prod.
It's an intriguing device, and unlike many kooky hybrid concepts that turn up at tech shows around the world, the PadFone has actually made it to market. My lucky colleagues over at CNET Asia have got their hands on this curious gadget and given it a thorough review.
Sleek and solidly built, the PadFone is pleasing to the eye, and also to the hand due to its
grippy, textured back. The front of the phone is clad entirely in Gorilla
Glass, and a glossy Super AMOLED display made colours look vibrant, even in bright sunlight.
The PadFone ships running the latest version of Android, and as Asus has refrained from excessively customising or adding bloatware to the software, it provides a pretty pure Ice Cream Sandwich experience.
Performance was nippy in both phone and tablet mode thanks to a 1.5GHz dual-core processor, and there are a multitude of connectivity options for you to take advantage of. The devices share an 8-megapixel camera, which is set into the phone, but can also operate through a hole in the tablet's body. Clever -- but the results were disappointingly lacklustre.
Much like for the Transformer Prime and the Transformer Pad TF300, Asus has also created a PadFone Station dock, to turn your tablet into a laptop, should you need a proper keyboard. Using the combination of the tablet and dock extends the PadFone's battery so that it can last for a whole weekend -- almost unheard of for a smart phone. Unfortunately the combination also makes for an incredibly bulky gadget that weighs in around 1.5kg -- about the same weight as a regular laptop.
For more on the PadFone, head over to CNET Asia for the full review, or hit play on the video above to see CNET UK editor Jason Jenkins go hands-on with the PadFone at Mobile World Congress 2012 in Barcelona.
What do you make of hybrid devices? Does the PadFone appeal to you, or would you prefer to keep your gadgets separate? Let me know in the comments below or over on our Facebook page.
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tbag 27 April, 2012 14:10
This is the kind of thing Apple should in theory be coming up with but they seem to just complain these days!
I love the idea! It would be great to just pop my S2 into a tab and then take full control on a bigger screen, this could be a perfect solution to buying loads of different gadgets.
Fantom 27 April, 2012 15:15
How many chargers do you need......not bad idea but will it work in real life????
anonymous 27 April, 2012 15:20
I own a gaming PC and no laptop.
Its time for a new phone as sofa surfing with a 3.7inch Desire MK1 gets a bit trying (Best phone I've ever owned I hasten to add)
So the most cost effective way to get a sofa surfing gadget with the best product longevity (best CPU) is this padfone.
Not too bothered about the keyboard as I wont be typing essays on it, I have a real computer for that. (very cheeky and will lose them sales)
Gaming? Got a real computer for that.
Perfect solution to my particular situation.
Its not a common situation to be in so i don't think they will be popular but that's a plus in my eyes.
anonymous 27 April, 2012 16:28
Isn't 1.5kg closer to the weight of a ultrabook? And in a way, this tablet is somewhat able to compete with laptops in the ultrabook category.
anonymous 5 May, 2012 14:25
My Samsung NC10 weighs over 1300g. So as a netbook replacement, which this is when the keyboard is attached, it's not too bad. Slim and light devices like the Padfone are great, but we can probably afford some bulk if it brings other benefits. Once CPU for three form factors: no syncing, only one gadget to manage, switch form factor half-way through a task -- seems like a good benefit.