ASUS Fonepad Pro Reviews

So, can you live with a 7-inch, 340g smartphone? Yes. Naturally there are compromises to be made. I wouldn't want to take a FonePad with me to my local pub for the evening or to a gig, and the absence of a suitable camera is going to become an issue at some point down the line. But the cash savings and the sheer convenience of having one device rather than two to carry and charge does have its attractions. Considered simply as a 3G tablet, the FonePad is an even more impressive bit of kit. For the price, the excellent screen and reasonable battery life are very welcome and while it’s not the most powerful tablet around, 3D gaming aside it did all the things I asked of it quite as comfortably as my Nexus 7. I’m all for affordability and versatility, and the FonePad delivers both in spades. Which makes it the one of the very few budget tablets - the other being the Nexus 7 - I’d recommend to a friend.

Even though the Fonepad is able to support 3G calls and data, I only found myself briefly using the feature since I knew I could do so with this Android tablet. I think it’s safe to say a large majority of people will feel more comfortable making calls on their cell phone rather than having to fumble with throwing a SIM card into the Fonepad, and then holding a 7-inch tablet up to their ear for as long as they need for their call. Putting this gimmick aside, the Fonepad is certainly a capable budget-friendly Android tablet as it performs adequately across all of our tests, and even exceeding our expectations in its battery and entertainment performance as well as the ASUS-specific applications thrown into the mix. Unfortunately, there are better 7-inch tablets on the market and for cheaper, such as the Nexus 7. If you for some reason need a tablet that can double as a phone, then your only choice right now is the ASUS Fonepad. But if you’re just looking for an Android tablet that costs below $300, we think you should take a look at the Nexus 7, Galaxy Note 8 and the Amazon Kindle Fire HD as they can offer you a much better experience than the Fonepad can.

If you are not in the target audience for the Fonepad (namely those who don’t want to carry a phone for calls alongside a tablet for work) then the ASUS tablet will be less appealing. It is, however, a cheap Android tablet you’ll enjoy most of the time, if you are light-to-moderate as far as your daily usage is concerned. If you have absolutely no need for phone capabilities then you should check out the Nexus 7, which is also a cheap and exceptional tablet, or you might want to wait until Google shortly releases a follow-up. Then again, there’s always a more costly alternative: the Samsung Galaxy Note 8.0.

For those genuinely interested in a phablet, the Asus Fonepad is a bit of a bargain. It does the job of two devices for a budget price. However, you'll need to be prepared to make sacrifices including practicality and, in this case, no rear camera and slower performance issues. Not to mention the inevitable Dom Jolly impression, should you decide to use as a phone without a separate earpiece.

Although it can make calls and send text messages, the Asus Fonepad is clearly not an ideal smartphone replacement, although you can totally use it as one. Just bear in mind that the tablet isn't made to be carried in a pocket, obviously, and its call quality leaves a lot to be desired. The Fonepad, however, stands out with being a good-looking, 3G-capable slate with a quality screen and enough battery power to get you through the day. But most importantly, it can be owned for as low as $250, which is a very reasonable price considering what you get in exchange. Nevertheless, we would definitely recommend you to consider trying the Nexus 7 tablet as well before taking out your wallet. Sure, it can't make phone calls, but it packs much more processing power than the humble Fonepad even though it comes at a similar price. Or if money isn't an issue, the 3G-enabled Samsung Galaxy Note 8.0 would be a great alternative to the Asus Fonepad as it is much faster.

It’ll suit few people as a smartphone, but the FonePad excels as a 3G tablet

It’s easy to dismiss the FonePad because of its huge size, but there are plenty of people around the world who are looking for a tablet that also happens to make calls. The question is whether you want a 7-inch phablet to be your primary device. As a tablet, the FonePad is a solid device, but it’s simply too large to serve as a smartphone. The gadget is too big for normal pockets and holding it up to your face makes you look ridiculous. However, if you plan to use a headset with the FonePad, you’ll like the smooth performance offered by the Intel Atom processor and its long battery life (at least in Wi-Fi mode). We also appreciate the floating apps feature, which makes it easier to multitask. Just don’t expect a great camera experience. Overall, the FonePad should find some takers, but we might wait to see what the Galaxy Note 3 has to offer.

In general use, the Fonepad feels fluid and responsive. Swiping from homescreen to homescreen, panning and scrolling was a pleasant experience, and it handled all the demanding games we threw at it, from Real Racing 3 to Modern Combat 3: Fallen Nation, with hardly any frames dropped at all.