ASUS was among the first of Microsoft's hardware partners to announce an Always Connected PC, showing off the Qualcomm Snapdragon-powered NovaGo in December. At the time, the NovaGo received a general release timeframe of "early 2018," but ASUS has now further narrowed that window – for Germany, at least.
ASUS has confirmed to German blog Windows United that the NovaGo will launch in Germany in April for €699 (in the U.S., NovaGo is expected to start at $599). It's unclear when in April German buyers can expect to get their hands on the device, but that does line up with ASUS' target launch window. And while we have yet to hear any official word on other release dates, the German launch could hint at when the laptop will land elsewhere in the world. For comparison, the HP Envy x2, which debuted alongside the NovaGo, recently went up for preorder for $999 with a March 9 ship date.
In terms of what to expect, the NovaGo comes in a pretty standard laptop form factor. As with other Always Connected PCs, the star of the show is Qualcomm's Snapdragon 835 platform, which should provide longer battery life than standard Intel-based PCs, along with instant-on capabilities, and a constant LTE connection. Here's a full spec rundown:
- Windows 10 S (upgradeable to Windows 10 Pro)
- Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 platform @ 2.6GHz
- Adreno 540 GPU @ 710MHz
- 13.3-inch Full HD (1920 x 1080) LCD panel with 100 percent sRGB color gamut
- 4GB/8GB 1866MHz LPDDR4x RAM ($599/$799)
- 64GB/256GB UFS 2.0 storage ($599/$799)
- HD camera (1280x720)
- 802.11ac Wi-Fi (2x2 MIMO) / GPS
- Snapdragon X16 modem (1Gbps DL / 150Mbps UL, 4x4 MIMO)
- 52Whr LiPo battery (22 hours max.)
- 12.44 in. x 8.7 in. x 0.59 in
- 3.06 pounds
- Backlit keyboard
- Glass-covered Precision Touchpad
- Fingerprint sensor (Windows Hello)
- Two USB 3.1 Type-A, one HDMI, one DC in
- one audio jack, one nanoSIM slot, one microSD card reader
With the ASUS NovaGo and HP Envy x2 moving closer to release, that leaves the Lenovo Miix 630 as the only currently announced Always Connect PC to lack a more concrete release date. Still, given Qualcomm has already announced fairly robust carrier and retail support for Always Connected PCs, it appears things are starting to ratchet up.
If you're interested in the ASUS NovaGo, we were able to get some hands-on time with the laptop shortly after it was announced, so be sure to check that out for more.
