The second Asus announcement we have for you today is the MeMo Pad HD 7. With this one Asus is taking things to a whole new competitive level with pricing. The device has decent specs and a killer price of just $129.99. There are some rumors floating that Asus designed this to replace the Nexus 7 in their lineup, but we will wait to see more info before passing judgement on that. Here's a breakdown of specs and press release,

• 7-inch 1,280 x 800 screen
• 5-megapixel and 1.2-megapixel cameras
• SonicMaster audio
• ARM Cortex A7 quad-core CPU
• A microSD slot and a micro-USB socket
• Android 4.0
• 8GB version for $129 & 16GB version for $149

ASUS didn't share a release date just yet. We will share more when we know more, but in the mean-time, here is that press release,

ASUS Announces MeMO Pad HD 7 and MeMO Pad FHD 10 Tablets

New 7-inch and 10-inch tablets with Android 4.2 Jelly Bean feature high-definition displays and incredible ASUS SonicMaster audio

Computex Taipei, Taiwan (3 June, 2013) - ASUS today announced the new MeMO PadTMTM HD 7 and MeMO PadTM FHD 10 Android tablets. With an MSRP of just US$ 129 for 8G and US$149 for 16G, the MeMO PadTM HD 7 is a 7-inch tablet that offers incredible value, with a quad-core processor, 1280 x 800 IPS display, and 1.2-megapixel front and optional 5-megapixel rear cameras. MeMO PadTM FHD 10 is a 10-inch tablet with the new Intel® Atom™ Z2560 processor, 1920 x 1200 Full HD IPS display and ASUS SonicMaster audio technology.

ASUS MeMO PadTM HD 7 - the value tablet for mobile entertainment
ASUS MeMO PadTM HD 7 has a quad-core processor and 1GB RAM for smooth and responsive performance with apps of all kinds. The 7-inch display has a 1280 x 800 native resolution for crisp text and images, and IPS technology for accurate, vibrant colors with 170-degree wide viewing angles. MeMO PadTM HD 7 also features high-quality stereo speakers with enhanced sound, courtesy of ASUS SonicMaster audio technology.
ASUS MeMO PadTM HD 7 has a 1.2-megapixel front-facing HD camera that can capture 720p HD videos and models are also available with a rear 5-megapixel camera. Just 10.8mm thick and 302g, the feature-packed MeMO PadTM HD 7 has a lithium polymer battery that lasts for up to 10 hours with 720p video playback. Models are available in four colors - black, white, pink and green.
MeMO PadTM HD 7 has 16GB of storage and a MicroSD card slot, plus 16GB ASUS WebStorage free for one year. Together with the ASUS WebStorage Office, users can view, create, edit and share Microsoft Office documents online.

ASUS MeMO PadTM FHD 10 - the multimedia tablet of choice
ASUS MeMO PadTM FHD 10 features the latest Intel® Atom™ Z2560 1.6GHz processor and a 1920 x 1200 Full HD IPS display for deliver vivid visuals with 178-degree wide viewing angles. MeMO PadTM FHD 10 has stereo speakers with SonicMaster audio technology and its 10-inch screen makes it ideal for entertainment, 1080p

... [Read More]

We have a large swath of new devices to announce from Asus today. Computex 2013 kicked off this morning and Asus came to the party intending to make an impact. The first here is the new MeMo Pad FHD 10. This one is unique for few reasons, but the primary one is that Asus decided to outfit this one with an Intel processor. Here's the rest of the specs:

• 10-inch full HD resolution display
• Intel’s dual-core 1.6GHz ATOM chipset from the Clover Trail+ family
• 2GB of RAM
• Android 4.2 to start
• Available in both 16GB and 32GB configurations
• Also will come in either black or white
• WiFi N, Bluetooth 3.0, and GPS
• 5 megapixel camera on the rear
• 1.2 megapixel camera on the front
• Stereo speakers and more

Asus didn't share details on pricing or availability just yet, but we will let you know when they do.

Video Source: MobileGeeks

For several months now we have heard repeated rumors regarding the next generation of Nexus 7 Android tablet. For the most part it has been unofficially confirmed to have a higher resolution display and some other enhanced features. It will also likely have a thinner bezel and keep the same aggressively low pricing. We have seen a few glimpses claiming to be partial pics of the device, but now we may have received a secret glimpse of the device directly from Google themselves.

Google recently released the above video to showcase some of the new features in Google Maps. At about the 53 second mark you can see what appears to be a Nexus 7 tablet being used; however, if you look closely, it's design is slightly different than the current Nexus 7, and it seems to show a thinner bezel. Could this be a teaser glimpse from Google of the new tab? Of course, it could simply be an optical illusion too, but maybe it's more fun to speculate...

Asus just offered up a brilliant teaser for their newest product which will probably see the light of day at Computex 2013. It's a tiny, plastic, assembly-required model Android, and it comes with a number of hints and clues literally built-in. First up we see the logo/motto "We Transform" on the faux box. Second, the little Android is called the N6-TE. Next, as you can see from his parts, he has both a phone and a pen to use as arms. Finally, he also has the number 6 on his body. Putting the pieces of this puzzle together it's not hard to think we could be seeing a new transformer phone or phablet which also includes a stylus and will likely sized at 6 inches.

This suggests a product designed to compete with the Samsung Galaxy Note series, and probably will be launched to compete with Samsung's very next GNote3. The online teaser even has a live count-down timer showing when we will know more. The timing of this suggests it will be Computex. Isn't that clever how Asus put all of that together. What wonderful synergy!

Thanks for the tip, zeo!

Source: Asus

Just yesterday we shared an editorial suggesting the idea that Google might be considering dropping their Nexus lineup of smartphones soon. It was obviously just speculation based upon culling some of the logical evidence that has presented itself. Apparently, we weren't the only ones wondering about this and Google has indirectly responded to the industry speculations.

Google's head of Android and Chrome, Sundar Pichai, said at today's AllThingsD conference that Google has no plans to stop building the Nexus line of phones. Pichai specifically said,

"The goal with Nexus was to push forward hardware with partners. That will continue as well."

It appears that Google was simply being honest when they said they didn't want Google I/O 2013 to be about big device announcements and instead wanted to focus on developers. They chose to focus on the Nexus user experience with the Samsung Galaxy S4 rather than announce a new Nexus smartphone. Perhaps a new Nexus device will come later on in the year and might include Android 5.0/Key Lime Pie, or at the very least Android 4.3.

Thanks for the tip, cereal killer!

Source: MobileBurn

Signs within the mobile industry seem to be pointing toward the distinct possibility that Google may abandon their Nexus lineup of smartphones. Here's a quick breakdown of these signs so we can analyze them:

1. Last year we heard repeated rumors that Google was trying to encourage the various OEMs to all offer Nexus devices.
2. Google and Samsung announced a new Google Edition pure Android Samsung Galaxy S4 flagship device at Google I/O 2013.
3. Google did NOT announce a new Nexus phone at Google I/O this 2013.
4. There have been repeated rumors of a Google Edition pure Android HTC One coming to market very soon.
5. LG indicated they will not be building a Nexus 5 device, and there has been no indication that anyone else is either.

Obviously, we can't immediately jump to the conclusion that this means Google will drop the Nexus line. This could mean several things. Perhaps they simply haven't yet decided which OEM to go with for the next Nexus phone. Or, maybe they plan on bringing out a Motorola Nexus device.

Still, deductive reasoning suggests the possibility is there for Google to begin phasing out the Nexus smartphone. If they can convince the OEMs to produce their own Nexus-style phones, then why would Google even need the Nexus lineup at all? Android has already been jump-started to such a massive degree that it now has 75% of the world mobile market. Perhaps this was Google's plan from the beginning, and they are simply nearing the point in which they phase out the Nexus example. What do you guys think? If true, is this a good thing or a disappointing thing?

In case you were wondering why I included this editorial on a tablet focused site... it's because if Google plans to phase out Nexus phones, they will probably eventually phase out Nexus tablets as well...

Things are moving a bit in the Android world. A tablet which is likely the new Nexus 7 just made an appearance at the Bluetooth SIG with Android 4.3 on-board. The tablet in Asus' filing isn't specifically called the Nexus 7, but it is referred to as Tablet 7 and carries the same ME370T model number as the Nexus 7, so it seems pretty obvious. The software version number JWR11 is what was running on the device which is likely an Android 4.3 build.

Previous rumors suggest the next Nexus 7 will also come with an LTPS panel with 1920 x 1200 resolution, and a Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 CPU. The timing of this info suggests we will likely see something officially announced in June. We will keep an eye out and share it with you ASAP!

Source: AndroidAuthority