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Asus Unveils New VivoTab, PadFone Mini, and ZenFones

Swinging for the fences at 2014 International CES

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Amid a flurry of mobile announcements at the 2014 International CES, Asus ups their game with a new PadFone, three ZenFones, and a new tablet. If you're a fan of convertible phones, pay attention.

Taking center stage is the PadFone mini, ZenFone (in 4-inch, 5-inch, 6-inch varieties), and VivoTab Note 8. Each phone will run on Android 4.3 Jelly Bean at launch, but Asus plans to get an update to the delicious Android 4.4 KitKat soon.

Spec list: Processor: Intel Atom Z2560 (1.6GHz) Memory: 8GB / Micro SD Card Support / LPDDR2 1GB RAM Cellular bands: GSM/GPRS/EDGE; WCDMA/HSPA+/DC-HSPA+ DC-HSPA+ (DL/UL): 42/5.76 Mbps GSM 850/900/1800/1900; UMTS 850/900/1900/2100; Wireless: Integrated 802.11 b/g/n; WiFi-Direct Bluetooth: V 4.0 ( EDR + A2DP ) Screen: 4-inch TFT LED Backlight / 800 x 480 WVGA IPS+ Battery: 4.5Wh, 1170mAh, non-removable polymer battery, Station: 8.3Wh, 2100mAh, non-removable polymer battery

Enthusiast darling PadFone now comes in mini. The dual-sim smartphone can slide into a larger dock with additional battery, larger 7-inch screen, and larger gripping area. The phone itself may have specs to match the name, but you can expand the storage of the unit by up to 64 gigabytes with the microSD card slot. For the photographers, this PadFone comes with an 8 megapixel f/2.0 camera. It'll be available in blue, yellow, red, black, and white—though no release window or pricing is set.

Shared spec list: Available bands: GSM/GPRS/EDGE; WCDMA/HSPA+, DC-HSPA+ (DL/UL): 42/5.76 Mbps Wireless: Integrated 802.11b/g/n; Wi-Fi Direct Memory: 1GB RAM Expandable memory: Up to 64GB micro SD card

What a happy family the ZenFone is—coming in 4, 5, and 6-inch flavor. The ZenFone 4 has a somewhat subdued list of specs, with a4” WVGA 800 x 480-pixel TFT display, 1.2GHz Intel Atom Z2520 CPU, and 1170mAh battery. In contrast, the ZenFone 5 has the highest pixel density with a 5” HD 1280 x 720-pixel IPS display, 2GHz Intel Atom Z2580 CPU, and 2050mAh battery.

The ZenFone 6 has the beefiest specs, boasting a larger 6 inch (but same resolution as the 5) IPS display, 3230mAh battery, and the same processor as the 5. If you're looking for the best camera of the bunch, this model has the most megapixels, measuring in at 13 big ones.

Spec list: Screen: 8-inch HD (1280 x 800) IPS display Processor: Intel Atom Z3740 Stylus: Integrated Professional Wacom Digitizer Memory: 2GB LPDDR3, 64GB internal storage, up to 64GB microSD card slot Wireless: 802.11 ABGN, Bluetooth 4.0+HS, Miracast

Rounding out the list is the new VivoTab Note 8: An 8-inch Windows 8.1 tablet with Wacom digitizer stylus. Bundled with Microsoft Office software—including Word, Powerpoint, and Excel—this tablet is designed with productivity in mind. Like the rest of the items here, pricing and availability isn't set quite yet.

To keep tabs (haw) on tablet and mobile news as it breaks, mash that refresh button on our coverage of 2014 International CES, or follow us on twitter: @reviewedelec.

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