Images of a new, more compact, Asus Padfone have leaked online prior to an expected launch later this week.
We’re expecting to see the Asus Padfone Mini 4.3 launched in Taiwan on December 11, which is this Wednesday, but we already know what it will look like.
That’s thanks to the ever-reliable tipster @evleaks, who posted the above press render over the weekend.
As you can see, the Asus Padfone Mini 4.3 is considerably smaller than the Asus Padfone 2, launched earlier this year. Not only is the tablet section expected to be a 7-inch model (as opposed to its 10.1-inch predecessors), but the phone hub is more compact too.
The clue is in the name - the Asus Padfone Mini 4.3 will run off a 4.3-inch smartphone rather than the 5-inch handset of the Padfone 2.
As with previous Padfone devices, the idea with the Padfone Mini 4.3 will be that you can have the best of both worlds by slotting a capable Android smartphone into a tablet dock, effectively expanding the screen to tablet proportions (but with the continued benefits of a network connection).
Those familiar with the Padfone 2 will notice that the smartphone portion of the Padfone Mini 4.3 slots in slightly differently. Here, it mimics the portrait orientation of the tablet dock rather than slotting in along the longer landscape edge.
The last Padfone was a neat concept with flawed execution, so here’s hoping its more compact follow-up can realise its undoubted potential.
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