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| Asus PadFone |
Since Asus went public with their lasted tablet concept, the PadFone, I have been thinking a lot about it. It was very hard to figure out that Asus wanted it to be, a phone or a tablet, since it had to run either Android 2.x or 3.x. The launch of Android 4 gives new life to the idea, since it is supposed to build the bridge between phone and tablet. We had a chance to get a good look at the mobile part of Android 4 when Samsung and Google launched the Galaxy Nexus, a little under a month ago. It will still be some weeks before we get the chance to see Android 4 running on a tablet, but I believe that it is possible to make a fairly good guess at how it will look.
What has been shown of the hardware so far, tells us that the design and weight of the PadFone is a good deal off the current standard. The iPad 2, Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 and even Asus own Transformer Prime is sleeker and a lot more exciting to look at. This is something Asus has to be aware of and need to change before the launch sometime next year. The PadFone concept is even more apropirate today, than it was back when it was launched. Smartphones have evolved into super Smartphones with screen sizes that just get bigger. This is mostly for the better, but it does make is harder and harder to make simple phone calls. You could use a headset, but it is impractical and most people don’t want to. This is where the modular design of the PadFone fits perfectly.
I would suggest that Asus took the PadFone even further. Asus has to make sure that the PadFone docks in the Transformer Prime keyboard dock. This way The PadFone is not just at phone and a tablet, it would be a phone, tablet and a notebook. Android 4 makes this transformation possible. I expect that a device running Android 4 will be able to detect if an external screen is connected, no matter if it is a dock or through a cable. This detect will make it possible to change font size and icons to fit the screen being used. All newer super Smartphones will at a minimum have a HD displays, and all these pixels have to be used differently on a 5”, 10” or a 22” screen.
If this scaling of the user interface becomes possible with Android 4 I’m sure that new and exciting apps that take advantage of this will emerge. They will be able to transform them self’s from mobile apps, to tablet apps, to full blown programs that utilize connected keyboard and mouse. If Android 4 makes this possible and the Asus PadFone gets access to the Transformer Prime dock, then Asus will have the first device, In a, what I would expect to be, long row of devices, to offer this unique modular platform. This could be a 3 in one device that would offer the full benefit of all 3 product types without any compromise.
What has been shown of the hardware so far, tells us that the design and weight of the PadFone is a good deal off the current standard. The iPad 2, Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 and even Asus own Transformer Prime is sleeker and a lot more exciting to look at. This is something Asus has to be aware of and need to change before the launch sometime next year. The PadFone concept is even more apropirate today, than it was back when it was launched. Smartphones have evolved into super Smartphones with screen sizes that just get bigger. This is mostly for the better, but it does make is harder and harder to make simple phone calls. You could use a headset, but it is impractical and most people don’t want to. This is where the modular design of the PadFone fits perfectly.
I would suggest that Asus took the PadFone even further. Asus has to make sure that the PadFone docks in the Transformer Prime keyboard dock. This way The PadFone is not just at phone and a tablet, it would be a phone, tablet and a notebook. Android 4 makes this transformation possible. I expect that a device running Android 4 will be able to detect if an external screen is connected, no matter if it is a dock or through a cable. This detect will make it possible to change font size and icons to fit the screen being used. All newer super Smartphones will at a minimum have a HD displays, and all these pixels have to be used differently on a 5”, 10” or a 22” screen.
If this scaling of the user interface becomes possible with Android 4 I’m sure that new and exciting apps that take advantage of this will emerge. They will be able to transform them self’s from mobile apps, to tablet apps, to full blown programs that utilize connected keyboard and mouse. If Android 4 makes this possible and the Asus PadFone gets access to the Transformer Prime dock, then Asus will have the first device, In a, what I would expect to be, long row of devices, to offer this unique modular platform. This could be a 3 in one device that would offer the full benefit of all 3 product types without any compromise.
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