Newegg.ca shows ZenPad S 8.0 (Z580CA-C1) release date of September 25!?

August 15, 2015 Categories: Canada, Release Date, Uncategorized, Z580CA, ZenPad S, ZenPad S 8, ZenPad S 8.0, ZenPad S8 by 4 Comments

It has been near impossible (yes, it has been impossible) to get a firm or solid release date for the ZenPad Z580CA-C1 in North America. We did see Newegg.com (thanks to a note sent in from a visitor) that the US based branch of Newegg did ship out a few Z580CA units, but is now in a backorder status. For a while we saw B&H showing a “mid August” release date, but they have since replaced that with “coming soon”. Things appear quite positive for the US market.

So given those developments on Newegg.com, we see a real head scratcher on Newegg.ca. We are quite sure that a release date in Canada of September 25 must be a mistake. In fact when we first saw this listed, we thought it was August 25. Nope. It says September!

zenpad-canada-z580ca-c1-release-date

If anything it seems quite possible that during next week, people may see their Z580CA tablets start to ship. With Newegg.com shipping some out already, something is certainly happening. Regardless of the accuracy of the Newegg.ca listing and date, we don’t feel it’s worth fretting over.

Along with an actual firm shipping date, we are also still digging for details around the official Asus cases like the Tri Cover and the Zen Clutch Case. Hopefully those will be on the market when your pre orders start shipping.

New details of ZenPad 10 keyboard Audio Dock accessory

August 15, 2015 Categories: Accessories, Z300C, Z300CG, Z300CL, ZenPad 10, ZenPad 10 Keyboard by 33 Comments

If you’re looking for the ZenPad version of the Transformer Pad, then you are looking at the ZenPad 10 Z300 Series. We are finding some new details, but price and release date are not part of the news unfortunately. We will update with those prices as they come available.

Really what’s interesting is that Asus is marketing this as a keyboard for tablets and smartphones. They say this keyboard dock can connect to eight different devices via Bluetooth for pairing isn’t going to be a hassle. Perhaps you can consider some real life uses for a bluetooth keyboard that is designed to dock into a ZenPad 10 tablet. Perhaps it could find some use for a Smart TV home theatre environment.

We shouldn’t lose sight of the fact that this is dubbed the “Audio Dock” (DA01) which means audio. We have yet to see any reviews of the audio quality, but it could provide a use for pairing with a smartphone for playing music.

Specs and Details (DA01):

  • 12 hours music playback
  • 8 device pairing memory
  • 10 meter wireless range
  • 40 day battery life for keyboard only usage
  • 455g weight
  • compatible with Z300C, Z300CG, Z300CL
  • 248.6 x 176.3 x 8.6 (L x W x H) mm

Photo Gallery:

 

Official accessories prices in Canadian (CAD)

August 13, 2015 Categories: Accessories, Cases and Covers, Power Case, Power Cover, Price by 0 Comments

Sorry that this may be considered a teaser at this point, but we do have some news regarding ZenPad accessories for North America. We’ve posted some Taiwan prices and Germany (Euro) prices, but now we’re able to tell you some prices in CAD, or Canadian Dollars. We can’t say for certain how these will translate into US dollars, but official prices in USD should be coming up right away. For now, these are going to at least give you something to go with in terms of planning what to buy.

Release dates and availability of these accessories? We just don’t know yet, sorry to say. This is where the “teaser” aspect is mentioned.

  • Zen Case (ZenPad 8.0) – $19.99 CAD
  • Power Case (ZenPad 8.0) – $39.99 CAD
  • Z Stylus (Z580CA and Z300 Only) – $49.99 CAD

We should have addition details/prices in the coming days so please have a bit more patience! All updates (CAD prices) will be added to this post.

Marketing efforts ramping up for Z580CA ZenPad S 8.0 tablet release

August 13, 2015 Categories: Video, Z580CA, ZenPad S, ZenPad S 8, ZenPad S 8.0, ZenPad S8 by 3 Comments

We had discovered the Z580CA official promotional video a week or two ago, but now we see it listed on the main Asus YouTube channel. This will certainly create some pretty big views in our opinion.

More than anything, this should give everyone hope that this tablet is nearing its release date. Oddly, some European markets are not yet seeing pre orders yet, but we hope to report news any day now.

Regarding this video, we are happy to see that Asus is going with labeling it at “Z580CA” to help people understand that there are 2 ZenPad S 8.0 models and they differ in quite a number of ways.

It’s nice to see the accessories in a promotional video, but we haven’t seen any real movement in retail listings at this point. Again, we hope to report news any day now on the official Asus accessories.

Asus depending on strong ZenPad sales for break-even year for tablets

August 13, 2015 Categories: News by 0 Comments

asus-tablet-zenpad-logo-3It has been widely reported over the past year about flailing tablet sales. To keep this into perspective, even the almighty Apple iPad has been in decline. The earlier growth would have largely been due to the fact that people didn’t own tablets, but now they do and replacing them hasn’t been a priority.

So when looking into the tablet sales numbers for Asus, the first year sales have been not good. Breaking down the numbers, Asus sold 2.5 million units in the first half of 2015. This compares to the 4.1 million units that they sold in the first half of 2014.

In terms of forecasts, Asus is expecting the ZenPad launch in the third quarter to raise tablet shipments to 1.8 million units. Their original forecast was to ship 7 million tablets and with a decent ZenPad performance, Asus should meet their break-even mark.

We’ve said this in the past. It only takes one runaway success to really turn the business around. From all early indicators, the ZenPad S 8.0 is the tablet that could pull it off. Forecasts are forecasts and are by no means set in stone.

Looking at the slow sales in the first half of 2015 can also be attributed to marketing efforts or the lack thereof. The ZenPad launch should stir up the interest and public awareness in the second half of 2015. Once the new iPad and new Samsung Galaxy Tab S2 come to market and comparisons can be made to the Z580CA, at that point it should be more clear if Asus has that savior tablet for their business.

In addition to pushing out marketing efforts, reports suggest Asus is heading into the enterprise market with the ZenPad tablets. What this means exactly we’re not sure. Perhaps it means a larger model? Pro edition? ZenPad S transformer/convertible? We aren’t sure what the plans are for entering the enterprise market, but we’re trying to learn more for you.

India appears poised to get 4G LTE ZenPad 10 (Z300CL)

August 12, 2015 Categories: India, Z300CL, ZenPad 10 by 0 Comments

asus-zenpad-10-z300c-gold-metallic-005Clearly India is a big market for Asus if you look at the Zenfone smartphone, release events and recent comments from Asus executives. Although Asus recently announced the ZenPad 7.0 and ZenPad 8.0 at the ZenFestival in India, we’ve seen plenty of questions about the ZenPad S 8.0. No details yet that we’ve seen.

We have some news though for the India market. The 4G LTE version of the ZenPad 10 just showed up in the importer database. Now this is showing as a prototype tablet, but it does at least show some movement and possible pricing.

It’s listed in the database as having a value of Rs. 9,749. What makes this a unique listing is that it’s showing a Z3580 Intel processor which isn’t even listed on the official Asus.com product page. Does this mean it won’t ever see the light of day?

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