ASUS’ Transformer Book V Merges Smartphone, Tablet & Notebook, Runs Android and Windows

Recent years have proven that ASUS loves creating multi-purpose devices, and at the ongoing Computex event in Taipei, the company’s pushed things one step further with the Transformer Book V.

The “V” in the name refers to the five separate modes the device can use. For starters, it can be a notebook, running either Android or Windows. In the mood for some tablet use? The screen can be detached in an instant, and again, either Windows or Android can be chosen from. Further, an Android phone, powered by Intel’s Moorefield SoC, can slip into the back of the display.

As it appears, the Android portion of the device will only work if the phone is plugged into the back of the display, which is a little inconvenient, but probably necessary. You might recall ASUS’ TD300, which it announced at January’s CES. It also had the ability to use Android and Windows in either notebook or tablet mode, but Google put an end to that – if a device ships with Android, it only wants that device to have Android.

So what’s the difference here? It’s the phone that has Android, not the tablet. So, in effect, while the Transformer Book V offers multiple Android configurations, it’s all powered by a phone that has only Android. It’s unfortunate that Google’s forced this kind of design – the TD300 to me is still the more attractive one of the two.

Nonetheless, an exciting side-effect of the Book V is that the smartphone is powered by Intel’s Moorefield. That alone intrigues the heck out of me, and I’m looking forward to seeing what the benchmark numbers look like.

At this time, we’re not sure when the Transformer Book V will launch, or what its price will be. I’ll update this post as soon as we’re given that information.