14 DAY TRIAL // As I have previously told you, ASUS was cooking up a new version of its Fonepad 7 tablet. Today at MWC, the Taiwanese manufacturer unveiled a new model of the device, which now come boasting 4G (ME372CL) and 3G (ME175CG) capabilities.
The original ASUS Fonepad 7 (ME372CG) was introduced last year and was a 7-inch tablet from which you could place phone calls. Now sticking to this year’s MWC theme, ASUS brings us LTE/3G enhanced model of the tablet (via TabletsMagazine).
The LTE version comes with an IPC LCD display and boasts a resolution of 1280 x 800 pixels and draws power from an Intel Atom Z2560 processor clocked at 1.6GHz combined with 1GB of RAM.
Other highlights of the tablet include dual cameras (5MP on the back and 1.2MP in front), 16GB of internal storage, microSD card reader, stereo speakers with SonicMaster audio and a decent 3500 mAh battery.
The 3G model is pretty similar, except it’s powered by an Intel Atom Z2520 processor, has only 8GB of internal storage, dual-SIM support and a slightly larger 3910 mAh battery.
You’ll be finding Android 4.3 as the default operating system here, but it’s quite disappointing to see ASUS hasn't pushed forward and implemented the Android 4.4 KitKat update.
Compared to the previous version of the Asus FonePad 7, not much has changed in terms of specs, so the only extra feature will be the addition of 3G/4G functions.
The tablet has been well received, but ASUS could have done better with this upgrade. Lenovo, for example, updated its Lenovo Yoga 10 tablet with a beautiful HD display, better processor and improved battery.
The 3G Fonepad 7 will arrive on the market sporting an affordable €149 / €204 price tag, while its LTE brother will probably ship for €249 / $342.