The Galaxy Note 2 hit the UK shelves on Oct. 1 and Samsung is slated to release its highly anticipated phablet in the U.S. on Oct. 24. Recently, Asus took wraps off the Padfone 2, its smartphone-in-a-tablet hybrid device at a media event in Taiwan.

Both the Galaxy Note 2 and the Padfone 2 are follow-ups to the Galaxy Note and the Padfone, respectively. Asus announced the original Padfone earlier in February this year and the smartphone-tablet hybrid went on sale in summer. Now, the company is looking to establish a foothold in the larger smartphone market space with the launch of its Padfone 2.

Here's a look at the Note 2 and how it stacks up against the Padfone 2.

Processor

The Galaxy Note 2 features a powerful quad-core Exynos processor, which is clocked at 1.6GHz. The Padfone 2 has an equally powerful 1.5GHz quad-core Krait processor.

Display

The Galaxy Note 2 sports a 5.5-inchSuper AMOLED capacitive touchscreen. The Padfone 2 has a comparatively smaller 4.7 inch Super IPS+ capacitive touchscreen display. Both phones have 1280 x 720 pixels resolution; however, the Padfone 2 steals the show with its higher 312 ppi density vis-à-vis the Note 2's 267 ppi.

Weight, Thickness, and Body

The Note 2 measures 5.95 x 3.16 x 0.37 inches and weighs 0.40 pounds. The Padfone 2 measures 5.43 x 2.71 x 0.35 inches and weighs 0.29 pounds, making it lighter and thinner than the Note 2. Additionally, the Note 2 is both taller and wider than the Padfone 2.

Storage and Memory

Both the devices have 2GB of RAM and will be available in 16/32/64 GB variants. The Note 2 offers additional memory of up to 64GB via a microSD card.

Software

The Galaxy Note 2 will come with the latest Android 4.1 Jelly Bean out of the box. By contrast, the Padfone 2 will come with Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich out of the box, but will eventually be upgraded to Jelly Bean.

Battery

A 2140mAh battery boosts the Padfone 2. On the other hand, a bigger 3100mAh battery fuels the Note 2. However, both phones support up to 16 hours of talk time usage on 3G.

Camera

When it comes to camera, the Padfone 2 trounces the Note 2 easily. The Padfone 2 features a whopping 13-megapixel rear-facing camera, compared to the Note 2's 8-megapixel one. However, the 1.2-megapixel front-facing camera of the Padfone 2 pales in front of the Note 2's 1.9-megapixel snapper.

Availability

Samsung's Galaxy Note 2 is available in the UK, and will hit the U.S. shelves on Oct. 24. It will cost between $650 to $1200 for a non-contract version, depending on the size.

Asus' Padfone 2 is expected to hit the shelves in December this year and will likely be priced between $620 to $ 750 depending on the model.