Hasta La Gadget!

ASUS has launched another ATX motherboard namely the F2A85-V. Based on AMD A85X FCH chipset, the board supports for FM2 processors and features four DDR3 DIMM memory slots (up to 64GB RAM), two PCI Express 2.0 x16 slots, two PCI Express 2.0 x1 slots and three PCI slots. Connectivity-wise, it has seven SATA 6.0 Gbps, one eSATA 6.0 Gbps, four USB 3.0, ten USB 2.0 and Gigabit Ethernet. The F2A85-V retails for 14,000 Yen (about $151). [ASUS]

Yes, the Asus Fonepad has gotten under the limelight in recent memory, first being called the K004, followed by the possibility of it being announced at the upcoming Mobile World Congress event that is set to happen at the end of this month in Barcelona, Spain. Rumors of an Intel processor powering the Asus Fonepad has been confirmed with new information from, of all places, Bulgaria, as full specifications of the Fonepad was released, with a shot that you see on the right depicting the lower segment of its back. You will be able to see the all too familiar ‘Intel Inside’ logo.

As for the rest of its hardware specifications, we are looking at a 7-inch 1,280×800 IPS touchscreen display, a 1.2GHz Intel Z2420 processor with PowerVR SGX540 graphics, a 3-megapixel shooter at the back, a front-facing 1.2-megapixel camera, 1GB RAM, a choice of 8GB, 16GB or 32GB internal memory, a microSD memory card slot, and a beefy 4,270mAh battery to kep it going, with Android 4.1 Jelly Bean as the operating system of choice. Expect the Asus Fonepad to go on sale sometime in the second quarter of this year.

By Ubergizmo. Related articles: Surface Pro Photoshop Support: Status Update, Microsoft Surface Pro Is Sold Out,

Google’s Nexus 7 tablet will soon be freed from the tyranny of WiFi range in Japan, as the 32GB WiFi + 3G model (supporting W-CDMA and HSPA+ networks) is finally launching there this Saturday, aka February 9th. Nothing’s changed from the WiFi-only version apart from the additional micro-SIM slot, of course, and although there’s no confirmed pricing, it’s expected to cost 29,800 yen (around $318, a little more than in the US) when it pops up online. Given the rate at which new Nexus devices disappear from the Play store, those eager for one from the first batch should think about clearing their diaries, and adding “click refresh” to their weekend to-do list, a thousand times over.

Filed under: Tablets, Google

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Source: Impress Watch (Japanese)

It’s tough to forget the ASUS TAICHI: out of all the Windows 8 convertibles we’ve seen (and we’ve seen a lot) this is the only one with two screens on board. In particular, it’s got one on the inside, which you’d use in regular notebook mode, along with a touchscreen on the outside that allows you to use the PC as a tablet. If you like, you can shut the lid completely and turn the machine into a slate-type of device, but you can also leave the lid open so that you’re mirroring your desktop, or displaying something different on each one (imagine the possibilities for presenters!). As an added trick, that outer screen also accepts pen input, though you’ll have to splurge on the highest-end configuration to get it with a stylus.

For now, ASUS is selling the 11.6-inch TAICHI 21 ($1,299 and up), though a 13-inch version is going to start shipping later this month. Hopefully, though, our review after the break answers questions you’d have about either model. Namely, what’s it like to use a machine with two screens, anyway?

Filed under: Laptops, ASUS

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Here’s a fun fact: in the three months since Windows 8 went on sale, Engadget has reviewed 16 laptops, including a few hybrid form factors. Yep, that’s right: more than one a week for the past 12 weeks, and that’s not even counting a couple tablets running Windows RT. So, now that we’ve given over our collective social lives to writing about Win 8, we finally feel qualified to make a few recommendations. Here, in our first-ever laptop buyer’s guide, we’ll walk you through the most promising of the bunch — everything from convertibles to laptop / tablet mashups. Indeed, we’ve got lots of touch-enabled systems ahead (including nods to models that didn’t make the cut), but if you’re simply in the market for a good, old-fashioned notebook, we have a few of those to recommend, too. So without further ado, join us.

Note: With regard to the Windows PCs we highlight here, we’ll be focusing on machines that run full Windows 8, specifically. For recommendations of ARM-based tablets running Windows RT you can look to our tablet buyer’s guide.

Filed under: Laptops, Apple, Samsung, Sony, Microsoft, ASUS, Dell, Acer, Lenovo

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