brief review of padfone 2
a brief review of padfone 2 (pf2) after a few days's worth of use:
overview: finally a truly portable and highly functional 2-in-1 device that fulfils the needs of consumers. Unless one is looking for a much larger screen on a phone without the need for tablet (ala galaxy note), there really isn't too much to discount pf2 as a viable phablet.
build quality
possibly the best build of any mobile phone i have used, surpassing even iphone especially when we consider the need to build the accompanying tablet. the volume and especially the power buttons have a very reassuring and satisfying travel yet slight resistance when pushed. It feels almost completely like pushing an iphone power button button except more reasonably sized. The front face looks almost like a rip off of the iphone but for the tapered bottom face edge.
similarly, the buttons on the tablet are pronounced with good travel to be easily located by touched and rarely would there be mispresses.
the slotting mechanism of the phone into the tablet is nothing short of amazing. it is simple to slot it, simple to take out but yet exceptionally securely fitted in the slot.
phone quality:
excellent quality. phone speaker function is surprisingly good for the diminutive back speaker.
of much improvement, one could transition from phone to tablet, vice versa. in pf2, a proper phone call can be maintained while the phone is in the housing, which is a surprise to me as i could not locate the mic hole on the tablet in a cursory search for one.
media
camera: the 13 mpx is top notch, definitely comparable to that of s3 (although s3 is merely a 8 mpx cam). there is a plethora of options on the cam interface. In fact, if there is an complaint, it is that the interface is too cluttered. Of course, i suspect most users would rather have too many options than a dearth of options ala iphone. to be fair, the options panel can be hidden with a swipe. the flash performance is superior to previous asus gadgets too, but still not as good as s3/iphone 5. all things considered, this cam is by far and away the best camera ever placed on a asus machine. well done!
speaker(s): a mono speaker each on the phone and the tablet. quality is excellent especially on the tablet. Treble is good but of course bass is much lacking. While the volume has gone up for the phone speaker, the size has decreased for the tablet speaker. Accordingly, the volume on the pf2 is now somewhat less booming than its predecessor. Strangely, the volume when playing video seems proportionally louder than other phones. the earphones (if memory serves) are the same has the pf1's, meaning of excellent quality. However, the earphones of pf1 did not have the best build quality. let's hope asus has rectified this problem.
complaints
i am a big fan of curved front faces e.g. S3, n9 (except for how it makes sp hard to be pasted onto the screen) but in true iphone imagery, the pf2 has an angular cut. it is nice but definitely less comfortable when pressed hard agst the ear for protracted periods of time unlike the s3.
speaker placement: excellent speakers, no doubt, but i think most users would prefer a different location especially for the tablet. for the phone, i belong to the group of users who prefer my speaker at the back bottom of the phone to allow my hand to cup over the speaker to amplify the volume. For the tablet, given the ample amount of space on the pf2, a monospeaker could easily have been placed at the top of the tablet (be it front or back) thus avoid being covered by the palms while the tablet is held. Hell, in fact, a pair of stereo speakers could have been fitted at the top. Minor as it is, samsung and apple has shown as via note 10.1, tab 2, ipad mini the joys of properly placed + stereo speakers while maintaining the aesthetics can be achieved quite easily.
screen resolution
the resolution of the tablet is not that bad but as you transition from the phone to the tablet, with the phone's amazing resolution, the stark difference between the phone and the tablet is just way too blatant.
issues with transition
not surprisingly, many programs still don't work well as one goes from tablet to phone, vice versa, except for asus' programs. As a result, there is a need to restart the programs of your preference, probably built up from years of using android. It is nonetheless just a small inconvenience...for me at least. So if a user sticks devotedly to asus' main programs, there probably wouldn't be much frustration.
the 'proprietary' micro-usb jacks
good old usb cables from usb ports do still work to charge the phone while for the tablet one needs charger to the mains. I can't fault asus for the unusual usb cable for it is probably needed to hold the phone in place in the tablet. However it is somewhat counter-intuitive that the orientation for slotting in usb cable is reverse for the phone compared to the tablet. Ordinary usb cables now are pretty loose when plugged into the phone, which is particular annoying for those who charge the phone via usb cables in the car, given the car's frequent movement. On the side note, it seems nokia microusb cables provide a 'less loose' fit than other brands.
asus settins menu (status bar)
convenient as it is, i do miss the samsung menu where you can press and hold a toggle to access fuller settings for that function e.g. from the status bar, press and hold bluetooth takes you to settins for bluetooth. And this is my major (but not particularly important) gripe with pf2: its software implementation is not as sound as its hardware implementation, especially when one considers how samsung as been pulling miles away from the competition in recent months with its innovations in software e.g. smart stay, smart rotation, direct call, smart pen functions. Of course, on the flip side, it means it is a lot easier for asus to update the device.
ps. one impt setting is to convert the 'multitask' right capacitive button into 'settings' button on longpress.
