ASUS which has been better known for its motherboards and computers is off to a good start in the mobile business. Its affordable ZenFone series has been a tremendous success despite its limited stock availability earlier on. Since its debut in Malaysia, ASUS claims to have made it to the top 3 spot for smart phones with a 8.5% local market share. They added that they would sell a total of 400,000 units in Malaysia by end of this month.
For the 2nd half of this year, ASUS will be ramping up its tablet segment by announcing the FonePad 8 and the MeMO Pad 8. These two 8″ tablets are powered by Intel’s latest Moorefield Atom processors that are 64-bit ready.
ASUS FonePad 8 (FE380CG)
Addressing the demand for compact tablets that can make phone calls and SMS, the FonePad 8 is a step up from its FonePad 7 without the excess bulk. At 8.9mm thick and weighing 310 grams, this is one of the most compact 8″ tablets with phone capabilities in the market.
The 8″ IPS display does a modest 1280×800 pixels resolution and underneath it runs on an Intel Atom Z3530 1.33GHz Quad-Core processor with 1GB of RAM. At the moment, they are offering 8GB of storage that’s expandable up to 64GB microSD. Also provided is 5GB of Lifetime ASUS WebStorage space that comes with extra 11GB for the first year. There’s a 5MP camera at the rear along with a 2MP front shooter. For better audio playback, it also gets a pair of front stereo speakers which is decently loud.
Like other phone capable tablets in this category, the FonePad 8 supports dual-SIMs with 3G HSPA+ up to 42Mbps. It will be available this week for RM649 for the 8GB storage option and it comes in Black, White, Red and Gold. For more info, head over to ASUS’s FonePad 8 page.
ASUS MeMO Pad 8 (ME581CL)
If you don’t want to make phone calls on a tablet, the MeMO Pad 8 (ME581CL) offers a slimmer and lighter form factor that packs more punch with a 2.3GHz Quad-Core Intel Atom Z3580 processor that’s mated to 2GB of RAM. The front 8″ IPS display pushes a Full HD 1920×1200 pixels resolution that boast a brightness of 400 nits. In addition, the display is protected by Gorilla Glass 3 and it also allows you to use any pen as a stylus, like the Xperia Z Ultra. Dimension wise, it is respectably slim at 7.45mm and weighs just 299 grams.
Like the FonePad 8, it also has stereo speakers however they are located on the back. For imaging, it gets a 5MP main camera while the front features a 1.2MP shooter. The MeMO Pad 8 has 16GB of on-board storage that is also expandable via microSD up to 64GB. Connectivity wise, it gets 802.11ac WiFi, Cat4 4G LTE with speeds supporting up to 150Mbps download and there’s also NFC mounted at the back. Out of the box, the MeMO Pad 8 runs on the current Android 4.4 KitKat along with its ZenUI interface. It is priced at RM1,099 and comes with a variety of colours including Pearl White, Metallic Blue and Powder Pink. ASUS Malaysia targets to make this available at all local IT stores and authorised dealers by end of this month.
For more information, head over to ASUS MeMO Pad 8 product page.
ASUS FonePad 8 and MeMO Pad 8 Live Photos
ASUS FonePad 8 Hands-on Photos
