ASUS ZenPad S 8.0 Tablet – Great Features, Budget Friendly

With so many tablets out on the market, picking the right one at the right price point can be a daunting task. Our family Android tablet and iPad 2 are both starting to get a little bit older and slower and it was time to start thinking about a replacement.

We wanted something that would not break the bank but would serve us well as a family. I was overwhelmed by the options! When I was given the opportunity to try out the ASUS ZenPad S 8.0, I was excited to see what it had to offer. I was not disappointed. The ASUS ZenPad is slim and sleek, runs fast, gives you a great visual experience, and has fantastic sound. And, it is available at a price point that is doable for our family!

Oh, and check out our Top 10 Christmas Gadgets for Moms, the ASUS ZenPad made the list!

Features that Make the ASUS ZenPad a Great Tablet

The Size

Designed for those who love style it features a brushed aluminum back and faux-leather trim. This 8-inch tablet is 0.26 inches thin, weighs just 0.66 lbs. and offers a 74% screen-to-body ratio.

At 8 inches, the ASUS ZenPad is still a small tablet but gives just a little bit more viewing screen than smaller 7-inch tablets and is not as big as the 10-inch tablets (which when going out-and-about, is a little too big for my purse.) 

I really like the thinness of the ASUS ZenPad tablet. Even with a case on, it is skinnier than any tablet that I have used. (It is even skinnier than my phone!) And, at .66 lbs., when I do throw it into my bag, it doesn’t weigh it down.

Intel Processor

Powered by the Intel® Atom™ Z3560 or Z3580 processor, the ASUS ZenPad boasts amazing performance so you can enjoy fast web surfing, smooth video playback, great gaming experiences and multi-tasking that won’t leave you waiting.

I have a little addiction called “Candy Crush” and I have noticed that on both our older Android tablet as well as our iPad 2, it takes a significant amount of time to load the game. With this Intel processor, the ASUS ZenPad is much faster. There is also a lot less time buffering when using apps like Netflix and YouTube, and loading web pages is much faster.

The Speakers

The ASUS ZenPad is equipped with dual front speakers with DTS-HD Premium Sound and Sonic Master technology. The sound is great! But what I really like is that the speakers are on the front of the tablet rather than on the back.

I teach piano and use my tablet quite a bit both for myself and my students. When I am teaching, I will use a metronome app if my students need help with a steady beat. I also have them play along to YouTube songs when I am working with them on chord charts. I have found that the front speakers are incredible for this.

The music is coming straight at you when you have the ASUS ZenPad set on the music stand rather than getting muffled by the speakers that are covered because they are on the back of the tablet. And with two speakers, it gives an even better sound. The sound is also great when watching Netflix or using other apps that you want enhanced sound.

The Screen

This tablet features ASUS VisualMaster, a suite of visual enhancement technologies that provide an amazingly realistic viewing experience. With ASUS Tru2Life technology you will experience accurate contrast, sharpness, and detail – awesome for watching movies on Netflix!

The ASUS ZenPad also boasts 2K resolution. 2K resolution is the term for display devices or content having 2,048 horizontal lines of resolution and most commonly 1,556 vertical resolution which is a slight increase from the standard HD’s 1080p, which is 1920×1080. Again, this all gives you a better, vivid picture!

But what I really like is that the ASUS ZenPad uses its ambient sensor to adjust the brightness and overall look of the display to fit different lighting conditions. For me, I like taking my tablet with me when I am out-and-about and you never know when I might sit down to read, check email, etc. I get frustrated if I can’t see the screen easy enough to read if I am outside enjoying a cup of coffee.

Even in bright sunlight, this screen is readable because of ASUS’ Tru2Life technology. I also appreciate that it adjusts if I am reading at night in the dark so that there is a softer quality to the picture.

Loaded Apps

The ASUS ZenPad comes loaded with a lot of great apps right out of the box. Two of my favorites are part of the Photography section. You can quickly make a collage of pictures (great for Facebook, Google and Instagram) with the Photo Collage app.

There is also a MiniMovie app that allows you to select photos, add music, create a theme and make a little slideshow movie – perfect to send to the grandparents in Michigan! Both are super easy to use – my kids even enjoy using them to create their own masterpieces.

Another loaded app that I have found useful is the Clean Master app. It prompts me to clean up the ASUS ZenPad tablet every day. It finds all the “junk” that apps load onto your tablet when you use them and deletes it for you. I hope that in the long run, this will keep the tablet running as quickly as it is running now.

Pros:

• Dual Front Speakers
• Battery life of up to 8 hours
• Fantastic Screen resolution
• Stylish design (brushed aluminum back and faux-leather trim)
• Tru2Life Technology that adjusts the brightness of the screen based on your lighting conditions

Cons:

• There is already a small nick on the side of the tablet that I am not sure how I got. The edging might have the potential of nicking over time
• Too many apps pre-loaded that I will probably never use
• The camera – while it has some great features, at 5 MP, it is not the best for pictures. It does pretty good outside in the daylight but even with its low light setting, it is not great when it is darker
• There is not much of a rim on the tablet. I found that sometimes my fingers would be on the edges of the screen and would accidentally turn a page on my Kindle app if I was not careful. And, my little addiction, “Candy Crush,” I have to make sure that my fingers are on the side or it might not respond to my swipe

The ASUS ZenPad is a great tablet. The model that I tried out is the Z580C 32GB which is available on Amazon right now for $169 plus free shipping. This is a lot of power and features at a great price point!

There is also the Z580CA 64GB version available on Amazon for $269. The 64GB model offers a better camera, dual band wireless 802.11 ac and USB type C connector – all things that the 32 GB version does not have.

From A Mom’s Perspective

I feel like the ASUS ZenPad tablet offers a lot of high end features at a very reasonable price (especially if you go with the 32GB model.) I like the stylistic details that make the tablet look and feel great and I LOVE the thin design and the fact that it is so lightweight. It makes it super easy just to throw it into my purse and doesn’t weigh heavily on my shoulder.

The dual speakers are wonderful (probably one of the features that I appreciate the most because of my music and for watching Netflix and YouTube.)

The ASUS ZenPad’s Intel Processor really makes the tablet move at an impressive speed. I like that I don’t have to wait around for a website to pop up but that I can get to where I need to be quickly. Great tablets have Intel inside.

Intel performance delivers lightning-fast Web browsing, long battery life, super-responsive apps and seamless downloads. Intel technology supports both Android and Windows, from high-end to entry-level price points and all kinds of different screen sizes. There is an Intel-tablet designed for everyone to fit all needs and price points. To see all of the great Intel tablet options available to you this holiday season, visit Intel’s website.

*I was given an Asus ZenPad S 8.0 for my honest review of the product.  All opinions are my own.