14 DAY TRIAL // We’ve just said goodbye to Computex, one of the biggest tech fairs of the year, where one device manufacturer was particularly busy.
We’re talking about ASUS and its roller-coaster of tablets and 2-in-1 devices which were unveiled in Taiwan a few weeks ago.
But it appears ASUS has more products in the pipeline awaiting us. The folks over at Tablet Guide have stumbled upon a mysterious tablet going by the name ASUS K014, in the lofty database that is GFXBench.
Quite interesting is the fact we are dealing with an 8.9-inch slate running on an Intel Atom Z3745 processor, something ASUS is quite keen on using these days.
The tablet offers full HD resolution (1920 x 1200 pixels), while the CPU is clocked at 1.8GHz and fitted with 2GB of RAM and 32GB of internal storage.
As you would expect, the tablet has two cameras (5MP on the back and 1.2MP up in front). But given that ASUS has just unveiled a bunch of tablets, it is pretty puzzling.
For example, it’s odd how an 8.9-inch device would surface like this just before the Google I/O, where we expect to see the Nexus 8 be unveiled, a tablet with the same form-factor.
But the rumor mill has reached a consensus when it comes to the next Google tablet – it will most certainly be built by HTC and not by ASUS as the previous two Nexus 7 were. Or will it?
There has been a little confusion as to what the tablet might pack underneath, also. So far, reports coming in have said that the Nexus 8 will be taking advantage of either a Moorefield 64-bit processor or a Qualcomm 64-bit one.
But until now, we’ve seen no mention of a Nexus 8 with a Bay Trail processor. Could it be that Google plans to offer more models or ASUS is just prepping to provide an alternative to the upcoming Nexus 8?
On the other hand, it might be that we’re just getting all worked up over nothing and ASUS is just planning a new MeMO Pad model, not that it lacks new products from that family.
This is as good a moment as any to remind you that ASUS has recently rolled out the 8-inch MeMO Pad, a tablet arriving with an Intel Atom Z3580 Moorefield processor and full HD display (1920 x 1200 resolution).
The chip is a 64-bit quad-core one and is based on Intel’s architecture for mobile devices with mobile data support, which translates into the MeMO Pad also being equipped with 4G LTE function and 802.11 ac Wi-Fi.
And to be fair, this model sounds a little more exciting than our mystery tablet.