ASUS Fonepad 7-inch tablet with Intel CPU rumored for MWC
Back in December of 2012, rumors started circulating about a 7-inch, Intel-based tablet made by Asus. The device, known only as the Asus ME371MG back then, was said to be an Android slate with a projected price tag of $200 to $250. An official announcement seemed likely to take place at CES, but the tablet was, unfortunately, nowhere to be found at the Asus booth.
That doesn't mean, however, that the 7-incher isn't going to come sooner or later. In fact, we now have evidence that seems to confirm the tablet's existence. The device is expected to be marketed as the Asus Fonepad (not to be confused with the Asus PadFone), as revealed by POSTEL, which is to Indonesia what the FCC is to the U.S.
Furthermore, the Asus Fonepad was discovered in the database of an online retailer, where it was priced at 7,900 Thai baht (about $265). The product page, which has since been taken down, revealed that the device will come in two variants, presumably of two different colors.
What is rumored about the Asus Fonepad is that it will sport a 7-inch, 1280 by 800 pixel IPS display, 1.2GHz Atom Z2420 processor and 1GB of RAM. There will also be 8 or 16 gigabytes of storage and a camera of some kind. As far as connectivity goes, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and GPS should be on board, in addition to a 3G module that might actually allow making voice calls, hence the name. Android 4.1 Jelly Bean should come out of the box.
Of course, those are just rumors so we can't confirm the specs' accuracy, but chances are that all details will be revealed later this month at MWC.
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