Asus GPS at GPS Gazette

GPSAndCo posted a couple of pictures and more information about the Asus P526 (or Asus Pegasus).

The specifications posted by GPSAndCo about the P526 are:

• Integrated SiRF III GPS chip and integrated GPS antenna
• Quand band GSM, GPRS and EDGE
• CPU: TI OMAP 850
• Screen: 2,8″ TFT LCD with 65 000 colors and a resolution of 320 X 240 pixels
• Memory: 128 MB ROM/64 MB RAM
• Bluetooth 2.0 + EDR
• microSD Slot
• 2MP Digital Camera
• Weight: 130g
• OS: Mobile Windows 6 (Crossbow)
• Destinator 6 Navigation Software

Finally the post reports that it will become available sometime between April and May 2007 with a price of less than 600 €.

Asus has officially announced the P735, a 3G smartphone that was rumored that it will have GPS capabilities.

From the announcement:

The P735 allows users to make full use of its 3G capabilities and integrates network connectivity, video conferencing, multimedia applications and many other business functions. With the P735, no matter where the user is globally, they can always access the information needed for informed business decisions while keeping total control over their personal life on the go.

Let’s take a look at some of the features and the specifications of the Asus P735

• Supported Networking Systems :UMTS (WCDMA) 2100 MHz with 384 kbps UL/DL, GSM 900/1800/1900 MHz, GPRS Class B, Multi-slot Class 10
• Processor: Marvell Xscale® 520MHz
• OS: Microsoft Windows Mobile 5.0 Pocket PC Phone Edition
• Memory: 256MB Flash+ 64 MB SDRAM
• Display: 2.8“, 65K, TFT, 240 x 320
• Connectivity: WLAN 802.11 b+g
• Expansion Slot: Mini-SD
• Video: MPEG4 / H.263 Playback and Recording, Video call, Audio/Video Streaming
• Music: MP3, WMA, AAC, and AAC+
• Bluetooth: v2.0
• Camera: Dual Camera: 2 Mega-Pixel (auto focus) + VGA
• Battery: 1300 mAh Li-Ion Removable/Rechargeable Battery
• Dimensions: 109 mm x 59 mm x 19 mm
• Weight: 143g with Battery
• ASUS’s Remote Presenter
• Business card recognition feature
• Meeting Planner (for International teleconferencing meeting)

Now all that is left to see is when it will start shipping and the pricing, oh and if Asus will release a GPS version of the P735.

Anouncement

There have been a few reports that Asus is going to release its first 3G PDA Phone called Asus P735. According to the reports it will look very similar to the P535 and the pictures that have been posted along with these reports look like they are from the P535. Nonetheless, Asus seems to be popping more and more GPS enabled gadgets and is becoming one of my major “companies to watch for news and updates target”. I guess we will just have to wait and see.

Via GPSAndCo

Asus launched last week two new Ultra Slim GPS PDA, the Asus A686 and the Asus A696. It appears that the company will no longer be using the MyPal name, although while digging for information about these new units I found a .pdf product sheet that refers to these two as MyPal A686 and MyPal A696. Nonetheless, Asus has created two good looking, encased in stainless steel PDAs that despite the fact that they are super slim (just 1.57cm) the offer GPS functionality. One major improvement over the previous MyPals as far as it concerns the looks of the device is that they have removed the protruding antenna.

Features and Specifications

• Processor: Intel XScale 312MHz (A686), Intel XScale 416MHz (A696)
• Operating System: Microsoft Mobile 5.0
• Memory: 128MB Flash ROM, 64MB SDRAM (A686), 256MB Flash ROM, 128MB SDRAM (A696)
• Screen: 3.5-inch 240 x 320 anti-glare touch screen
• GPS Module: SiRF Star III chipset
• Expansion Slot: SD Slot
• Connectivity: Wi-Fi (802.11 b+g) (According to the pdf above only for the A696), Bluetooth 2.0 (EDR), IrDA, USB 1.1
• Battery: 1200mAh removable/ rechargeable batter
• Dimensions: 11.7 x 7.08 x 1.57cm
• Weight: 165gr
• Audio: Integrated microphone and speakers, full duplex recording and playback

No pricing details are available at this time.

Asus has announced a new dedicated Portable Navigation Device, the Asus S102. The design as you can see looks nice, although I am not too sure about the lime green that they decided to use. The S102 features a 3.5″ full color TFT LCD touchscreen (65,000-color, 240 x 320 resolution), SiRF III GPS chipset, built-in antenna and an external antenna jack. The device offers turn-by-turn voice guidance and hand script and voice recognition technologies that according to the press release:

With hand script and voice recognition technologies, the S102 offers versatile input methods for different usage environments. Keyword search function further permits quick destination setup. The S102 is especially convenient when the user is busy navigating the road, but needs to reroute for a new destination.

Finally the other specs and features that are mentioned in the press release are:

• Memory: Built-in 64MB Flash ROM, 64MB SDRAM, SD card support
• Expansion: SD card
• Audio: MP3 playback support
• Battery: Inbuilt rechargeable Lithium-Ion provides more than 4 hours standard usage
• Dimension: 110mm(L) x 86.8mm(W) x 20.5mm(H)
• Weight: 183g (with battery)

You can read the entire press release here

It appears that Asus is preparing a new Pocket PC Phone with integrated GPS, this new gadget has the code name “Pegasus”. There are currently not a lot of information available other than the fact that it is extra slim (15.4 mm), it uses Windows, it has integrated GPS and what we can see in the pictures (digital camera, numeric keypad and jog dial).

Via Unwired View

Asus MyPal A639 is the new GPS enabled Pocket PC from Asus. The A639 was presented originally in MEDPI in Monaco and later on at the COMPUTEX 2006. The MyPal A639 will have most of the characteristics of Asus earlier model, the A636 but the main difference will be that it will have 1Gb of ROM. Other important changes include the support of Bluetooth 2.0 and Wi-Fi 802.11b/g. Most of the other characteristics have remained unchanged.

No information about pricing and availability have been announced.

Via GPSandCO and Akihabara

Technorati Tags: Asus MyPal A639, GPS, Pocket PC

The Register has published at the end of last year a review of the Asus MyPal A636. Not a newly published review but still helpful. Over at the Register they report:

Asus MyPal A636 is a worthy alternative to GPS-integrated PDAs from the likes of Mio and Acer. It’s less successful as a PDA than the others, if only because the hardware has so clearly been designed with satellite navigation usage in mind. As a GPS platform, it’s impressive, with a good, flexible antenna design and a powerful receiver. It’s let down a little by the bundled software, but there’s nothing to stop you switching to a better app later on.

Technorati Tags: gps, pda, asus, mypal, a636

MobileTechReview has published a review of the Asus MyPal A636, Asus Windows mobile pc with GPS capabilities and they report:

Convergence devices generally make concessions. For GPS enabled PDAs this means the PDA portion may be lacking in horsepower, a recent OS revision or wireless connections. The ASUS A636 is one of the first GPS Pocket PCs we’ve seen that rocks in both departments. The PDA portion’s features, power, performance and connectivity are top notch and the GPS hardware is excellent as are the maps. For the price, you’re getting an excellent machine, that lacks only in the looks department.

Technorati Tags: gps, asus, mypal, a636, review

Pocketnow has published a review of the Asus MyPal A636 the Windows mobile pc with GPS capabilities from Asus. As we have mentioned in our earlier post, the A636 is powered by an Intel XScale 416MHz processor, has a built in SirfSTAR III GPS receiver and incorporates bluetooth and wifi. It has a 3,5″ 240 x 320, 65,536-colour LCD display and a fold out antenna. As expected, one of the its strong points is battery life, which was about 8 and a half hours with the GPS on. The most important problem reported was that the Destinator PN software that is included with the device gets sluggish with large maps. Despite this problem, that is expected to be solved with a future software upgrade, the verdict was in favor of the A636.

You can read the review here