Asus PadFone 2 Will Be a Smartphone and a Tablet

Asus has taken the wraps off the second-generation PadFone, an Android smartphone that can be combined with a 10.1-inch accessory to make a tablet.

The PadFone 2 will have a 4.7-inch, 1280 x 720 (720P) touchscreen that has scratch-resistant Corning Fit Glass. It will weigh 135g and be 9mm at its thickest point.

The handset is going to run Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich) at launch on a 1.5GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 quad-core processor, with 2GB of RAM. There will be versions with up to 64GB of storage.

Asus says the 2140mAh battery will provide up to 16 hours of 3G talk-time or 13 hours Wi-Fi web browsing. The device will sport a 13-megapixel rear-facing camera.

Tablet Mode

Devices like the Samsung Galaxy Note II have screens large enough to skirt the line between smartphone and tablet. The PadFone 2 is going a different route. This handset can be plugged into an accessory that gives it a 10.1-inch touchscreen.

Thanks to its 5000 mAh battery, this extra, dubbed the PadFone 2 Station, can also recharge the handset multiple times. 

In Europe, the smartphone and accessory will cost 900€ for the 64GB version, while the 32GB one will be 800€. It will be introduced some time before the end of the year in Europe and Asia. There has been no mention of a U.S. release.