ASUS has released a slew of products at IFA Berlin, including Ultrabooks, hybrid devices and tablets. Headline announcements focussed upon two new Zenbooks, a new Transformer Book, new Fonepad devices and a 10.1-inch AMD APU powered touch-screen ultraportable.
There’s a lot to plough through so let’s get on with it, starting at the high end with...
These two ultrabooks were first seen at Computex featuring a gleaming spun aluminium under Gorilla Glass 3 finish. This latest version of Corning’s tough glass concentrates on delivering the ultimate scratch resistance and offers three times the resistance to such abrasions as its predecessor. Also any such scratches are 40 per cent less visible. Colour choices include Moonstone White and Sapphire Blue.
As with all the latest ultrabook updates ASUS has migrated to Intel’s latest Haswell processors. Processors can be specced up to a high-end 28W Core i7-4558U dual-core. Storage options include a 512GB RAID0 SSD configuration. Also buyers can choose from models featuring either Intel Iris graphics, or NVIDIA GeForce GT 730M graphics with Optimus technology.
ASUS has equipped these Zenbooks with 13.3-inch IPS displays with 10-point multi-touch sensitivity. Buyers can choose from a 1920 x 1080 Full HD and 2560 x 1440 WQHD resolution display.
All the modern interfaces you expect are present such as 802.11ac Wi-Fi, USB 3.0, Mini DisplayPort and HDMI 1.4 video outputs and Bluetooth 4.0. The ultrabooks also have backlit keyboards with automatic light level control and large gesture supporting touch pads. The audio-visual delights on offer are rounded off by ASUS SonicMaster audio technology.
ASUS Transformer Book T300 with Detachable Tablet Display
Here we have a Windows 8 ultraportable convertible with a Haswell processor. Its quick-release 13.3-inch Full HD display detaches to make it into a Windows 8 tablet. ASUS says that the multi-touch display installed in the T300 is more accurate and precise than many rival displays as it exceeds Microsoft’s Windows 8 recommended contact point resolution specs.
In tablet mode you have a portable device which is just 11.5mm thick. Essential modern connectivity options such as USB 3.0 and micro-HDMI ports are built-in. The keyboard dock is also thin at just 11mm and magnetically docks to the display. This slim keyboard has backlit keys and a large Windows 8 compatible multi-touch gesture pad. The T300 is equipped with both a front 720p HD camera and a rear 1080p Full HD camera. Rounding off the multimedia capabilities are built-in stereo speakers powered by ASUS SonicMaster audio technology.
ASUS X102BA Ultraportable with 10.1-inch Multi-Touch Display and Office 2013
Here we have a new AMD APU powered ‘netbook’. This will be aimed at the budget end of the market and could be a good rival to the growing number of Google Chromebooks which are crowding the low-end portable laptop market. ASUS describe the X102BA as a compact and lightweight ultraportable laptop, actually never mentioning the word ‘netbook’. The X102BA runs Windows 8 and comes bundled with Microsoft Office Home & Student 2013 with full versions of Word, Excel, PowerPoint and OneNote.
In terms of hardware the X102BA features a 10.1-inch 1366 x 768 display with 10-point multi-touch sensitivity. Complementing the touch screen is a large multi-touch touchpad with gesture support and ASUS says the keyboard has “keys perfectly calibrated for comfortable typing”.
An AMD A4-1200 1GHz dual-core APU, including Radeon HD 8180 graphics, powers this ultraportable laptop. ASUS says this AMD APU “balances multi-tasking performance with energy efficiency”. On the subject of energy efficiency ASUS inform us that while the X102BA provides the smartphone-like experience of ‘Instant on’, resuming from sleep in two seconds, it offers over two weeks of standby time and will auto-backup your data when the battery hits 5 per cent, even if in sleep mode.
The ASUS X102BA features modern connectivity and I/O including USB 3.0, 802.11n Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 4.0. For enjoying your media on the go the ASUS Splendid display technology provides profiles to match your activity and again ASUS SonicMaster audio technology is here to please your ears. This is intended to be a budget device, we can see that from the 2GB of RAM and 320GB HDD specifications; however ASUS is yet to reveal recommended retail pricing for the X102BA.
Other ASUS devices at IFA
Also unveiled, at a busy IFA event, were the ASUS MeMO Pad 8 and MeMO Pad 10 tablets, the ASUS Fonepad Note 6 and the ASUS Fonepad 7.
