More on the ASUS Padfone 2
The ASUS Padfone 2 is finally official. So now we can provide you with a detailed description of the device plus information on its pricing and availability.
As we already told you, the smartphone is initially going to be available in 32GB and 64GB variations, with a 16GB coming out a bit later (Christmas, perhaps?).
ASUS will launch the Padfone 2 smartphone+tablet station first in Europe (Bulgaria, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Spain, and Sweden). It has been however also introduced officially in Asia, so Hong Kong, India, Japan, Malaysia, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand, and U.A.E. are getting it, too. The smartphone/tablet is expected there in the beginning of December. According to an ASUS manager, the Padfone 2 will debut in the US by the end of the year as well.
The Padfone 2 is powered by a 1.5GHz quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 Pro (APQ8064) chipset with Adreno 320 GPU and 2GB of RAM. This amazing chip helps the Padfone 2 run Ice Cream Sandwich with absolute ease. Naturally, an update to Android 4.1 Jelly Bean is planned, too.
As for pricing:
In Europe:
– the 32GB variant (including the 10.1″ tablet station) will retail for €799,
– the 64GB model will be offered for €899.
– the 16GB version is still to come around, and we expect it’ll cost around the €699.
In Asia:
– Padfone 2 tablet station will be sold separately for NT$8,990 ($310).
– unsubsidized Padfone 2 smartphone will retail for NT$17,990 ($620) NT$21,901 ($750) for the 16GB and 32GB models, respectively.
– if you buy however the Padfone 2 + tablet station set, the latter will be sold at NT$6,000 (around $210).
Information on subsizided US versions or on the possible US carriers isn’t yet available. We are also yet to see how the Padfone 2 will compete with the upcoming LG Optimus G in Europe too.
