ASUS today announced three new devices, a 7-inch tablet and a 5-inch phone that can be docked within a 10-inch tablet.

The 7-inch tablet, dubbed the Fonepad, features a 1280 x 800 resolution screen and an Intel Atom processor. It will come with either 8GB or 16GB of internal storage and has an SD card slot. The front camera is 1.2 MP and the “optional” rear camera is 3 MP.

The Fonepad, in general is similar to the iPad Mini and the just announced Galaxy Note 8 from Samsung. ASUS is pricing the device competitively compared to the iPad Mini, starting a €219 ($249).

The other devices (or device) is the latest dock-able smartphone and tablet in ASUS’ PadFone lineup. The PadFone Infinity will be the successor to the PadFone 2, which was only just announced back in October 2012.

The Infinity’s 5-inch smartphone will have a 1.7GHz quad-core processor, 64GB of internal storage, and a 13-megapixel rear camera. Docking the device within the 10-inch “Infinity Station” will display the smartphone’s contents stretched to fit the tablet. ASUS claims the device will get up to 19 hours of 3G talk time before needing to be recharged.

The Infinity will be quite expensive, as the MSRP is €999 ($1,325, converted, though ASUS hasn’t stated a dollar price).

In a strange post-CES reveal, ASUS announced a new cheap tablet for those who think the Nexus 7 is still a little too much. It’s called the MeMO Pad, and it will retail for $150 when it launches in the U.S. in April. The device will be launching in other territories this month.

As you would expect from the price, the MeMO Pad doesn’t offer the latest technology. Instead, its specs are really just a modest offering that’s intended to get the job done. The tablet features a 1024×600 display that’s powered by a 1GHz CPU and Mali-400 GPU. It also has 1GB of RAM and 8GB of internal storage. The storage can be expanded up to 32GB via microSD. As for Android, the MeMO Pad is rocking 4.1, or Jelly Bean.

It’s strange that ASUS didn’t show off its latest tablet at CES, but the company may have held off on this device since its CES presence was focused primarily on its upcoming lineup of slates. Besides, a cheap tablet wouldn’t have set the world on fire at such a press heavy event like CES. It was probably for the best to wait until after the event to unveil it.

As stated, U.S. consumers will be able to pick up the MeMO Pad in April. Those looking for a basic tablet experience could do much worse, but they could also do much better. ASUS’ own Nexus 7 is only $50 more and features much better specs. If $50 is deal breaker, however, the MeMO Pad should serve your mobile computing needs just fine.

The device is called the Asus Transformer AiO, and the manufacturer is calling a “world first.” It features an 18.4-inch multi-touch screen and Nvidia GT graphics. The catch is that the screen can be detached from its cradle in front of the PC and become a tablet.

Of course, an 18-inch tablet is on the larger side of tablets, so it has a handle on the back that allows it to be carried around. Asus calls the device “king-sized,” though it isn’t quite as large as Lenovo’s announced 27-inch IdeaCentre Horizon Table PC. It seems that super-sized devices that nobody is calling for might be the trend at this year’s CES.

The interesting thing about Asus’ Transformer tablet is that it can be operated in two different modes. When it is close enough to the PC it maintains a wireless connection to the full computer, allowing users to run Windows 8 on the tablet and operate it using the touch display. “At the touch of a botton,” however, the tablet can be “transformed” into an Android 4.1 Jelly Bean tablet that has a Tegra 3 quad-core processor. It’s the sort of versatility that is very impressive but simply not useful enough to justify a purchase for the average consumer.

No release date or pricing for the device has yet been announced, though it was stated the Transformer AiO will be available “from Q1 2013.”

The ASUS Qube, like other Google TV set-top boxes, transforms any HDTV into a smart TV. Its main features include 50GB of free WebStorage cloud space and access to the thousands of films on Netflix, Amazon Instant Video and Google Play.

What sets the Qube apart from the pack is that ASUS has built its own unique UI for the box. The company says the UI “displays functions via a rotating on-screen cube shape.” It sounds like it will be similar to the menu UI seen on the Nintendo Gamecube, just with more options.

The set-top box will ship with a motion sensing remote control for games and other applications that support the function. It will also allow users to use their smartphones, presumably an Android device, as the remote control.

According to Google’s announcement from last week, we can expect to see more Google TV devices from the likes of Hisense, TCL, Sony, LG and Vizio in the coming days. ASUS’ Qube isn’t a bad entry in the ever growing number of Google TV devices, but here’s hoping somebody does something special with smart TV software this year. Lord knows Google TV needs the boost in popularity.

The Wall Street Journal spoke to a person “with direct knowledge of the project” to score some details on the new tablet. First up, the price will indeed be $99 and the price will reflect that. The device will have a resolution of 1024×600 and a 1.2 GHz dual-core processor. In fact, the tablet is reported to have specs rivaling that of first generation Kindle Fire devices. It’s expected to be sold in emerging markets, like China, where Apple’s iPad might be too expensive for most consumers.

So where does that leave the U.S.? It’s unknown if Acer will ever release the device here, but it has been submitted to the FCC for certification. It shows that Acer is at least considering a release in the states where low cost tablets are beginning to take some market share away from Apple’s premium iPad tablets. The WSJ’s source pointed to this directly saying that Google’s Nexus 10, which is priced at $499, has changed what’s considered competitive pricing in the tablet market.

It’s also being reported that Acer plans on releasing a lower priced version of its Intel-based Windows 8 tablets next year as well. A different source told the WSJ that its current devices are too pricey, and a lower priced alternative would be very attractive for those wanting to get into Windows 8.

Acer’s tablet, if it launches in the U.S., could beat a rumored $99 Asus tablet to market. There have been rumors for quite some time that Google was building a $99 Nexus 7 with Asus, but nothing has come out of that except for some random hearsay. Directly speaking to the WSJ, Asustek flat out denied that the company is building a $99 tablet, but such a response is to be expected until an official announcement is made.

As for the ultimate fate of Iconia B1, it will probably come to the U.S. if Google and Asus announce a $99 tablet. If not, there’s no reason to release such a cheap tablet in the U.S. beyond just having a cheap tablet. Asus’ Nexus 7 is selling decently well at its $199 price point and Asus needs to focus on competing with that. A $99 tablet with half the power of the Nexus 7 wouldn’t make a dent in Google’s dominion over the Android tablet market.

The survey shows that 53% of consumers will spend more than half of their holiday shopping budgets on electronic devices. Of the tech gifts people expect to buy, tablets are, not surprisingly, the most-wanted items of the year. What is surprising is exactly which tablets customers are expecting to buy. 33% of those surveyed expect to buy Google’s Nexus 7 tablet, while only 30% expect to buy an iPad. The iPad Mini and Kindle Fire HD are tied in the survey, with 24% of respondents expecting to buy each. Bringing up the rear is Microsoft with its Surface hybrid laptop/tablet device (12%).

It’s surprising to see Apple products that are less desired than other manufacturers’ devices. Of course, the customers who use the Tech Bargains website might not be Apple’s main customers. The website is the same one that one month ago released a survey showing that the iPad Mini isn’t particularly desired.

Still, the high price of the iPad Mini and the low screen resolution have combined to make Apple’s smallest tablet just another mini-tablet in the new product category. Just this week a new report on shipment data shows that Apple’s overall share of the tablet market (including the iPad proper) has slipped to just over 50%, while Amazon and Asus (the makers of the Nexus 7) are gaining. The Nexus 7 is coming close to selling 1 million units per month and Amazon is confident enough in the superiority of its Kindle Fire HD that it is running homepage ads comparing it to the iPad Mini.

“After a very strong second quarter, Apple saw growth slow as both consumer and commercial (including education) shipments declined, and rumors of a forthcoming iPad mini began to heat up,” said Tom Mainelli, research director for tablets at IDC. “We believe a sizable percentage of consumers interested in buying an Apple tablet sat out the third quarter in anticipation of an announcement about the new iPad mini. Now that the new mini, and a fourth-generation full-sized iPad, are both shipping we expect Apple to have a very good quarter. However, we believe the mini’s relatively high $329 starting price leaves plenty of room for Android vendors to build upon the success they achieved in the third quarter.”

Apple just today announced that it has sold three million new iPads (iPad 4) during its first three days of availability. The iPad Mini has failed to garner the same excitement other Apple product have seen. Android tablet makers have capitalized on this fact, with Amazon even running an aggressive homepage comparison between the iPad Mini and its Kindle Fire HD.

Still, Apple is shipping over half of all tablets. Samsung is racing to catch up and currently has an 18.4% share of the tablet market. This is up from 6.5% just one year ago. Amazon’s Kindle Fire tablets account for a full 9% of tablets shipped, with Asus, the makers of Google’s Nexus 7 tablet, close behind with 8.6%.

It’s clear that the low-priced mini-tablet market is going to become a big part of the overall tablet market in the coming year. It’s also clear that Apple was late to the mini-tablet game, and that it may have priced itself too high for that particular market.

SlashGear reports that ASUS CFO David Chang spilled the beans on how well the Nexus 7 during the company’s conference call. He said that the company is quickly closing in on one million sales a month. The increasing demand is most likely due to the device’s competitive specs combined with a low entry price of $199.

It’s interesting to note that sales for the Nexus 7 have only been growing since it first launched earlier this year. Chang said that early sales were only around 500,000 a month, but that number has quickly grown to the almost one million sales a month that the company is currently at. It’s a good sign for Google as they prepare to launch their next tablet in November – the Nexus 10.

The Nexus 7 will no doubt continue to perform well this holiday season thanks to a lowered price point of the 16GB model and a new 32GB model that only costs $249. Google is also releasing a 3G 32GB Nexus 7 for $299 that may help bring some consumers over who were waiting for a mobile data model.

It will be interesting to see just how well the iPad Mini can compete against the already established, and lower priced, Nexus 7 and Kindle Fire HD. Amazon is already telling consumers that its tablet is better and cheaper, but Apple is hoping to rely on its strong brand loyalty to move the iPad Minis off shelves during the holidays.

Rock Tech Daily got a hold of a print ad from the UK-based Argos. It features a 32GB Nexus 7 for only £199. That’s the current price of the 16GB Nexus 7. In anticipation of the holidays, Google may be phasing out the 8GB Nexus 7 and replacing it with the 16GB. The 32GB can then take its place as the premium model.

What about US customers? Is there any word that we’ll also be seeing a 32GB Nexus 7? Android Police nabbed some screens from Staple’s online store that shows a 32GB Nexus 7 being offered for $249. They speculate that Google will replace the 16GB with the 32GB model while still offering the 8GB model for $199. That makes no absolutely no sense, and I still stand by my theory that the 8GB model will be discontinued.

Either way, it’s pretty much confirmed that Google will be launching a 32GB Nexus 7. It could be in response to the new Kindle Fire HD which only costs $249 for its 32GB version. Google can’t afford to lose to Amazon this holiday season and the Nexus 7 is more than capable of standing up to the Kindle Fire HD.

Both Amazon and Google could be thrown for a loop next week when Apple announces the iPad Mini. Many are speculating that Apple will charge $250 for an 8GB version. It would be more for less, but Apple fans have already proven that they’re willing to pay a premium for the experience afforded by iOS.

As for Google, they haven’t confirmed or denied the existence of the 32GB Nexus 7. They might be waiting to announce it after Apple reveals the iPad Mini. They could also be waiting for that moment to announce a $99 tablet that could undermine tablet sales for all of its competitors.

Today ASUS announced the PadFone 2, an Android tablet that has a slot to dock a smartphone, which is included.

The package is an upgrade from the original PadFone, and the tablet, according to ASUS, has been completely redesigned. The 10.1-inch tablet now weighs just 649g, and the company claims that the combined weight of the smartphone and tablet is “lighter than most tablets on the market.” The dock mechanism now only requires one step, and the battery is large enough to recharge the smartphone three times.

As for the smartphone, it now has a 4.7-inch screen and features a 1.5GHz Snapdragon S4 quad-core processor, 2GB of RAM, and a 13MP rear camera. It has NFC and 4G LTE capabilities.

Pricing for the PadFone 2 has not yet been announced, though ASUS did state that the device will come with “up to” 64 GB of storage. Also, customers who purchase a PadFone 2 will get 50GB of ASUS WebStorage free for two years.

The PadFone 2 may seem odd, but these tablet/laptop/smartphone hybrid types of form-factors are beginning to become popular with manufacturers. The philosophy seems to be that customers should want a single device that works in a myriad of situations, rather than several devices to cover all situations.