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The folks at ASUS have announced one of the most exciting Google TV devices we’re probably going to see this year. It’s the ASUS Qube, and it’s the first device which aims to break the traditional model of long set-top boxes or Google TV embedded directly into television sets. This little sucker is a cube, and it will deliver a Google TV experience unlike anything we’ve seen before.
ASUS has employed a custom user interface that uses “cubes” for navigation, allowing you to find the content and apps you want in a very awesome way. It almost sounds like what Samsung tried to do with its old Behold phones, though we expect the implementation to be much better and a lot more user friendly.
One of the unique features of the Qube is its motion-enabled remote. You can navigate the Qube interface by waving the remote around, and although other uses haven’t been unveiled just yet we’re expecting ASUS to do even more with it. There weren’t any other details or specs to be had, but we imagine the box will pack enough of a punch to handle anything Google TV has to offer.
Pricing and availability couldn’t be had right away, natch, but we hope to hear a lot more very soon. We’ve been saying for a while that Google TV needs an injection of something exciting, and ASUS might be the first to deliver in 2013 with the most interesting device we’ve seen thus far. PS: Google, this is what the Nexus Q should have been. Just sayin’.
part of what intrigued me about the Q was the speaker amplifier. does this device have such functionality? I think the ability to use it as stereo receiver in addition to all the streaming goodness of GTV and whatnot is what makes the idea attractive.
Hope this is good. I wanna like GoogleTV.
You had my attention until I read “custom user interface”. I’ll wait for the next Nexus Q.
This IS the next Nexus Q. Next epic fail that is.
Boxee Box has much better external design, and even that is ugly. Who would want to expose this qBe to everyone’s eyesight? At least in the Q, you could drill a few holes, put flowers in them and tell people that it’s a fancy vase.
I was really hoping for a thumbdrive sized TV, looks like I’m gonna be buying an A10 stick instead of an ASUS product.
I don’t get this trend at all. At this age, every trend should be about concealing ugly electronics somewhere. I personally have both TV sets mounted on walls, wiring done behind walls, and stupid STB’s under the couch. And it’s not very hard to do, with today’s tech you don’t even need to bother about wires other than power. Even today’s TV sets are as thin as drywall, so you could probably just do a cutout and make your TV screen a part of your house.
What is up with the world?
There is definitely room for someone to disrupt the TV market. Yes, I don’t see this box as anything new…just same ol same ol. The Roku stick is more interesting. But there gotta be something revolutionary coming soon. This TV tech is so old.
“Google, this is what the Nexus Q should have been. Just sayin’.”
To be clear, have you actually seen or tried this device? It doesn’t sound like you have, and if not, it seems more than a bit presumptuous to declare that it is what anything should have been.
read: “google, you should have made this yourself, and called it the nexus q, and never made the q in the first place” …ass
The Nexus Q should have had Google TV is all I’m saying. If you are happy with what the Nexus Q ended up being, then I’m not sure what to say about your tastes. Utter failure, in my opinion. But we’re all entitled to our own.
wow thats a very professional response.
Besides how do you know that google didn’t collaborate with ASUS on this. Considering how quickly google pulled away from nexus Q at the same time google was collaborating with asus on Nexus 7, one has to think that its likely google decided to work with asus on this instead of Q.
What was wrong with my response? Is it bad to have and express an opinion these days?
And while what you say might be possible, that doesn’t change the fact that the Nexus Q was lackluster, ASUS or not. It wasn’t because of the hardware — I thought it was a beautiful little gadget. It was the software and how limited it was.
Say Google DID contract ASUS to make the Nexus Q: I’m pretty sure they didn’t just tell ASUS to go wild with it. Google gave whoever manufactured it all the schematics, details, etc. on how to design it and what its capabilities would be, so the fault lies with Google at the end of the day.
I thought your response was fine…
You’re from Wisconsin? It’s a pretty boring place. Lol, I need to get out of here! Congrats thought on working for Phandroid, love this site and would love to be doing what you’re doing.
Your response is OK by the way.
I wasn’t defending the Nexus Q. I’m just suggesting that this new device may turn out to be great, or it may also be an utter failure, for any number of reasons. For one thing, ASUS’s cube UI might suck. It wouldn’t be the first sucky OEM skin we’ve ever seen.
All I’m saying is that it seems highly presumptuous to state that this is what the Nexus Q (or anything else) should have been on the basis of an image and a press release alone.
I agree that the Nexus Q should have had Google TV, but what you wrote was a much more specific claim than that.
There is no place in my stack of TV-related devices to put a spherical object. At the very least, this *form factor* is what the Q should have been.
If I need a cable box to use this, it’s still a failure.
Who says you need a cable box?? Usable without one
In order to access any of the live TV features, you’ve needed a cable box on every GTV device so far.
If this thing has a tuner built in, I’m on board. Make it work just as it would if it were built into the TV.
you can get a tuner for < $50, id like to see it built in too, but since most modern tv's come with it built in now i think asus would see it as a waste of space.
Alfonszo.. there is going to be a custom user interface. Google has no AOSP interface or UI for TVs and if the did they would have to partner with every TV manufacture like the mobile phone industry or build their own. some people have no sense.
Does Roku partner with every TV manufacturer? Why would Google have to? This is a box.
USB/ESATA port or room for an internal drive or it’s DOA. The ability for someone to view their own collection without the confines of WIFI sharing is essential. If not, it’s just another gimp apple tv with a better interface.
on a phone, this is true….not everything can be pulled from the cloud as we dont have ultra fast web access everywhere and there are data caps. but on this device, what the heck is the point if you dont have WIFI access? it would have 100% no use without wifi. its a “streaming tv box”. without wifi what do you intend to stream? there is not much point t local storage, and is a waste of space and money.
So little is known about this device, but my revue is getting on my nerves. Hopefully this will turn out to be a suitable replacement/upgrade
dont love the idea of custom UI, but in the past ASUS has been ok on the software side of things, with the transformer tabs, and their part in the nexus program of late,, i think it will be ok.
Also, i think the picture is deceiving. i think this device will be smaller then 6″x6x6. so it wont be too bad under a tv.
I’ll wait until one like this comes out from a better manufacturer
Just what we needed another skinned Google OS. Good luck with updates!
with the current state of google TV, a custom UI may be an update in itself…
This God–awful ugly-as-sin box is NOT what the Nexus Q should have been, the Ouya is what the Nexus Q should have been. With full Google TV support i might add. Your posts are usually insightful and well written, but this one just served to enrage me…
Pretty sure dlink had a product with this exact same form anyone recall the name?