Jan. 9, 2012 at 6:03 PM ET
The folks at Asus broke my heart when they told me that the Padfone and Padstation devices will only be available in Europe for now.
Don't get me wrong, I can't really imagine using a dock that turns a special phone into a tablet — but that doesn't mean I couldn't have some fun with it.
The Padfone is basically a simple Android-based smartphone which is designed to slip inside something called the Padstation. The Padstation is a dock which functions as a tablet after it devours a Padfone.
While the Padfone is inside a Padstation, the smaller device's display is switched over to the dock's screen (and things are adjusted for optimal viewing on the larger display). As a bonus, the phone's batteries are simultaneously charged while it is in the Padstation.
There are no details on pricing for the Padfone just yet, nor any whispers about U.S. availability.
Related stories:
- Toshiba's Excite X10 tablet is as thin as it is tall
- Acer Aspire S5: One incredibly ultra-thin ultrabook
- Acer teases us with a 1080p, quad-core tablet
- Padfone: Asus’ new smartphone/tablet hybrid
Want more tech news, silly puns, or amusing links? You'll get plenty of all three if you keep up with Rosa Golijan, the writer of this post, by following her on Twitter, subscribing to her Facebook posts, or circling her on Google+.