This is the ASUS PadFone

http://www.engadget.com/2011/05/29/this-is-the-asus-padfone/

by BvS • 15 years ago

10 3 15 years ago

My ASUS Transformer is probably my all time favorite gadget ever.

I wouldn't really be interested in this tab/phone thing unless they worked a Transformer-style keyboard dock into the mix. After using the Transformer I've realized I want a netbook 80% of the time and tablet 20% of the time and I won't go back to using a pad/tablet device that isn't both (I know other tablets can be used with bluetooth and/or USB keyboards, but it just isn't the same as having it in an all-in-one device).

If they really want me to buy an ASUS phone too what they should do is have a variant of the Transformer which takes a docked phone into the keyboard dock while leaving the phone's display visible and usable. When the phone is docked into the keyboard dock, have it dedicate its display to being the laptop's multitouch touchpad.

Add in an API where apps could detect being in this docking mode and modify the phone's display based on context (somewhat like Windows SideShow, but as a multitouch input panel).

That would be a worthy followup for my Transformer and also convince me to buy an ASUS phone.

evangineer• 15 years ago

What you're proposing improves on the hardware design for the Motorola Atrix + its LapDock. My own hardware tweak would be to use Project Kal-El (Tegra 3) when it comes out.

EDIT: Looks like ASUS are already at work on incorporating Tegra 3 into their designs: http://www.engadget.com/2011/05/04/asus-planning-quad-core-t...

foob• 15 years ago

I'm always happy to see new devices like this because I think that having a single phone act as the central computing device for all of our electronics is a good direction to move in. That said, if I can plug my phone into a television and watch tv over Netflix, plug my phone into a tablet and surf the net, or plug my phone into my laptop and access the internet then I'm only paying for one internet connection. The alternative is to be paying for a cable package, home internet access, and then two 3g plans. I don't think that I'm being cynical when I say that there are major corporate interests against making this possible and we'll have to see how they play out. In my opinion the increasing move towards lower 3g caps isn't about current network usage but is actually about setting a precedent for the future which is incompatible with paying for only one data connection.

This is the ASUS PadFone

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