FineGrain is on the path to go from small time Provo Utah start-up, to big time world success. Founders Levi Price and Eric Rea developed a new case concept for the iPad, one that is strong enough to take a beating and sleek enough to adapt in any situation. In April 2012, the young duo launched a Kickstarter campaign in order to fund the first production run of FineGrain cases, which only took one month to achieve the full backing and support of many in the iPad user-community.
]]>Established | 2012 |
Origin | USA |
Link | Webpage |
Product range | Small |
FineGrain is on the path to go from small time Provo Utah start-up, to big time world success. Founders Levi Price and Eric Rea developed a new case concept for the iPad, one that is strong enough to take a beating and sleek enough to adapt in any situation. In April 2012, the young duo launched a Kickstarter campaign in order to fund the first production run of FineGrain cases, which only took one month to achieve the full backing and support of many in the iPad user-community.
The new FineGrain iPad cases are the “Bowden” ($210) and “Sheffield” ($190) for iPad2/iPad3. Both hard cases are available in choice of walnut or cherry wood edges, but differ in all other choice materials. The Bowden incorporates an aluminum back plate with choice of black or brown full-grain leather cover. The Sheffield incorporates a polycarbonate plate with grey wool felt cover. The cool part about this design is that the back doubles as a dry-erase board. Also, the covers on each design roll-up to form a tablet stand for typing modes.
The quick financial backing clearly suggests that many people wish to buy FineGrain tablet cases. And their desire is completely understandable, because the case designs are a work of art. Even the included micro fiber cleaning cloth has a fine art design print. The future is definitely looking bright for FineGrain.
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A Produkt is a Danish company that has created the "Sticky Strap", as well as many other clever, handy accessories to make mobile life easier. They are based in Porto, the design capital of Portugal and a region that is known for producing Port wine. Speaking of wine, A Produkt has developed a unique new accessory for the Apple iPad & iPad 2 that is made of 100% recycled natural cork material.
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Established | 2009 |
Origin | DENMARK |
Link | Webpage |
Product range | Small |
A Produkt is a Danish company that has created the "Sticky Strap", as well as many other clever, handy accessories to make mobile life easier. They are based in Porto, the design capital of Portugal and a region that is known for producing Port wine. Speaking of wine, A Produkt has developed a unique new accessory for the Apple iPad & iPad 2 that is made of 100% recycled natural cork material.
The "Kork 1"($40) and "Kork 2"($50) are some of the most lightweight back protectors you will find on the market today. These A Produkt cases have an ergonomic natural shape and can be integrated with the Apple Smart Cover. Besides allowing for easy access to all your device’s features and functions, they are designed with angled ports for better sound caption and projection.
Originally priced at $72 each, the costs of the Kork models have been lowered to attract even more consumers to buy A Produkt tablet cases. Those who seek an ultra-light fit for their device, as well as one of the most unique designs, should certainly look to this company to meet their demands.
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Leather tablet cases are primarily about prestige and style, but quite a few may offer function, protection, durability and choice above the average.
]]>Leather tablet cases are primarily about prestige and style, but quite a few may offer function, protection, durability and choice above the average.
The leather tablet case essentially spans the entire range of styles, as seen in tablet bags, tablet sleeves, folio cases, keyboard cases and portfolios, to name a few. The flexibility of leather may be shaped for duo-fold, tri-fold and multi-fold designs which employ a stand feature for laptop-type work and hands-free tablet display. In terms of protection, most leather cases have some sort of more inflexible material within the jacket itself so that the tough-but-soft exterior leather gets a bit more support and thus does the tablet.
The sole disadvantage in leather tablet cases is the potential for damage done to the case itself which, like any leather product, may be susceptible to nicks, cracking and scratches. However, many manufacturers of leather tablet cases now take everyday use of the case into account and treat the exterior so that it's a bit more resistant to outside elements.
Tablet sleeves offer a decent option to users who like the natural feel of tablets, but simply need a basic holder to carry the device around.
]]>Tablet sleeves offer a decent option to users who like the natural feel of tablets, but simply need a basic holder to carry the device around.
Tablet sleeves typically resemble a portfolio or a top-sealing carrier. These accessories are designed to fit the device as tightly as possible and often include some kind of lock to seal it, typically button, Velcro or zipper. In sleeves that embed the device, usually a zipper seals the form-fitting tablet case shut. These may be made in any number of materials, from plastic to textiles to vanity designer material. All are lightweight for ease of carrying
While some extra limited storage space is sometimes available in the form of small pockets or attached cases for accessories, tablet sleeves do not typically over much in functionality. What tablet sleeves may not offer in rugged protection or extras is compensated for in style and portability.
The tablet screen protector is a decent and generally inexpensive way to protect the touchscreen. Sometimes known as “shields”, these accessories are designed for those users frequently on-the-go and/or may be using their tablet outdoors.
]]>The tablet screen protector is a decent and generally inexpensive way to protect the touchscreen. Sometimes known as “shields”, these accessories are designed for those users frequently on-the-go and/or may be using their tablet outdoors.
Tablet screen protectors defend the device from scratching, smearing and outside elements. Designed to be employed while the tablet is in use, these products are of necessity made of thin, transparent material. Screen protectors for tablets should also serve a secondary function in reducing glare from strong sunlight and interior light sources. Screen protectors designed for specific tablets are cut to allow access to ports and/or toggle controls, and can be used in tandem with any tablet case or bag.
While a decent solution for defending the touchscreen in everyday use, it is important to note that screen protectors offer no greater protection to any of the device beyond this – further accessories will be needed.
The "Play Case" category simply refers to any tablet case which may be played with – though these need not necessarily be kids tablet cases. While the great majority of play cases are indeed designed for younger tablet users, adults are also appealed to by manufacturers of this case style, with nostalgic looks at Lego-style blocks and 1980s arcade games, just to mention two examples.
]]>The "Play Case" category simply refers to any tablet case which may be played with – though these need not necessarily be kids tablet cases. While the great majority of play cases are indeed designed for younger tablet users, adults are also appealed to by manufacturers of this case style, with nostalgic looks at Lego-style blocks and 1980s arcade games, just to mention two examples.
In terms of play cases built for kids, any number of case styles are available – though perhaps the best play cases for protective purposes may be found within the “rugged” category. To protect the device, play tablet cases are typically made of rubber, polyurethane, polycarbonate or strong hard plastic. Such cases for the kids should also be properly proportioned, i.e. designed to be manipulated by small hands.
Although quite a few play cases suffer from a lack of functionality beyond mere protection, some designers now offer interactive-style cases with downloadable or included apps to provide and entertaining and/or educational aspect for children.
The Kobo Arc 10 HD is a case of form detracting from function: The awkward shape, thickness and weight (1.4 pounds may not sound like much, but as an ebook-based tablet that’s well weighty) may turn some off before checking out the excellent HD screen and useful apps.
Even the specs are impressive: The Tegra 4 processor makes the Kobo Arc 10 HD among the fastest in its class, if we consider the tablet an e-book reader first. Micro HDMI and Micro USB ports are included for those seeking to do more than mere reading. With just 16 GB of internal storage space and no SD card ports, the most serious of book lovers may be slightly disappointed, but most should be able to make do.
]]>Operating System | Android 4.2 (Jelly Bean) |
Dimension (in) | 10 x .39 x 6.8 |
Weight (lb) | 1.40 |
Screen (in) | 10 |
Resolution (px) | 2560 x 1600 |
Touchscreen | Capacitive |
Other |
Wi-Fi connectivity; rear camera; Micro HDMI, Micro USB ports; several embedded ebook-related apps |
Battery Life | 8 hrs |
The Kobo Arc 10 HD is a case of form detracting from function: The awkward shape, thickness and weight (1.4 pounds may not sound like much, but as an ebook-based tablet that’s well weighty) may turn some off before checking out the excellent HD screen and useful apps.
Even the specs are impressive: The Tegra 4 processor makes the Kobo Arc 10 HD among the fastest in its class, if we consider the tablet an e-book reader first. Micro HDMI and Micro USB ports are included for those seeking to do more than mere reading. With just 16 GB of internal storage space and no SD card ports, the most serious of book lovers may be slightly disappointed, but most should be able to make do.
For those book lovers, Kobo has loaded the Arc 10 HD with lots of handy apps and organizational features for enhancing that e-book experience. This tablet even allows the running of several apps at once for some nice multi-tasking opportunities.
But back to that screen: Not only does the 2560 x 1600-pixel resolution on the Arc 10 live up to that “HD” promise, the sleek glass screen nearly extends to all edges and minimizes the bezel. Response time on the touchscreen is flawless and the unique soft matte back makes holding this tablet easy.
For a while, that is. In the post-iPad Air age, who would be interested in toting around this much weight? And who at Kobo decided it might be a good idea to create a tablet with pointed corners? Here at Tablet2Cases, we may be biased but the solution to enjoying the impossible-to-hold but otherwise excellent Kobo Arc 10 HD would be to get a tablet case with stand to go with it. Prop and enjoy!
The Kobo Arc 8.9 is touted as an alternative to the Google Nexus 7 and is particularly noted for its great gaming capacity. The slightly behind-the-times Android 4.0 OS won’t appeal to the most tech-savvy of tablet users but is hardly a stopping point for the typical user.
A pair of unique software functions help set the Kobo Arc apart at the starting line: “Tapestries” is an extra-convenient way to organize folders, files and apps that other Android-based tablets would do well in incorporating. The “Discover Ribbon” makes recommendations of sites the user may be interested in, based on viewing history.
]]>Operating System | Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich) |
Dimension (in) | 7.4 x .5 x 4.7 |
Weight (lb) | 0.80 |
Screen (in) | 7.0 |
Resolution (px) | 1280 x 800 |
Touchscreen | Capacitive |
Other |
Rear cameras; Wi-Fi; Micro-USB cards, USB port; accelerometer |
Battery Life | 9 hrs |
The Kobo Arc 8.9 is touted as an alternative to the Google Nexus 7 and is particularly noted for its great gaming capacity. The slightly behind-the-times Android 4.0 OS won’t appeal to the most tech-savvy of tablet users but is hardly a stopping point for the typical user.
A pair of unique software functions help set the Kobo Arc apart at the starting line: “Tapestries” is an extra-convenient way to organize folders, files and apps that other Android-based tablets would do well in incorporating. The “Discover Ribbon” makes recommendations of sites the user may be interested in, based on viewing history.
In terms of look, the Kobo Arc isn’t exactly the most attractive tablet out there with its bulkiness: At 0.8 pounds, it outweighs the Nexus 7 and Barnes & Noble Nook, a bit disappointing when one realizes that the Kobo Arc’s dimensions are smaller than these two tablets and the Amazon Kindle Fire.
Some specs supersede slightly what one might figure for a $200-range tablet: The 32 GB storage capacity is a particularly welcome highlight at this price and a 64 GB version is also available; integrated WiFi, micro USB and USB connectivity are good to see as well. The 1.5 GHz TI OMAP 4470 CPU isn’t necessarily the flashiest processor on the market, but the Power VR GPU that Kobo’s thrown in helps things power along nicely – even in gaming, as previously noted.
The biggest disappointment, though, is the humdrum 1280x800 pixel touchscreen. Amazing to think that anything outside of a straight-up e-book reader would contain such low resolution these days, but at this price, this is apparently still to be expected…
The Lenovo IdeaTab A3000 is essentially an upgrade to the company’s A1000 model; while dubbing this tablet as a full-on “laptop computer” (as does PR material and advertising) is more than a bit of a stretch, the A3000 can certainly meet the basic needs of a would-be tablet owner at a reasonable price.
The primary improvement over the IdeaTab A1000 – and several other budget tablets by the company – in the A3000 is the screen. Sharper, more resilient and more responsive than the A1000, this touchscreen is a step up for the company, though the resolution is stuck at a mundane 1024 x 600 pixels.
]]>Operating System | Android 4.2 (Jelly Bean) |
Dimension (in) | 7.64 x .43 x 4.72 |
Weight (lb) | 0.89 |
Screen (in) | 7 |
Resolution (px) | 1024 x 600 |
Touchscreen | Capacitive |
Other |
Front and rear cameras; Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, GSM, HSDPA connectivity; micro USB, micro SD card ports; accelerometer |
Battery Life | 8 hrs |
The Lenovo IdeaTab A3000 is essentially an upgrade to the company’s A1000 model; while dubbing this tablet as a full-on “laptop computer” (as does PR material and advertising) is more than a bit of a stretch, the A3000 can certainly meet the basic needs of a would-be tablet owner at a reasonable price.
The primary improvement over the IdeaTab A1000 – and several other budget tablets by the company – in the A3000 is the screen. Sharper, more resilient and more responsive than the A1000, this touchscreen is a step up for the company, though the resolution is stuck at a mundane 1024 x 600 pixels.
Upon picking up the IdeaTab A3000, the would-be owner is struck by two things immediately: The textured backside makes for a swell grip and easy holding; on the other hand (so to speak), the weight of this tablet is a substantial 0.89 pounds, putting it well at the extreme end of hefty 7” tablets.
Lenovo has done a decent job keeping pace with the competition, and offering the expecting specs for a budget tablet. The 1.2 GHz ARM Cortex processor is slightly behind the times but runs things smoothly enough in this tablet; the operating system is Android 4.2 Jelly Bean, but since automatic upgrades from 4.1 were offered to customers buying earlier versions of the IdeaTab A3000, one would expect future Android jumps to become available upon release.
A decent product at a fair price is the Lenovo IdeaTab A3000, we’d say. This tablet is an OK alternative to the Google Nexus 7 and its ilk, though surely most folks will merely pony up the few extra dollars to go more “name brand.” (Open note to Lenovo: Bump that screen resolution up and then you’ve got a truly notable device.)
The Lenovo A3000 is a 7-inch tablet with an IPS display. It runs Android Jelly Bean, has a 1.2GHz processor and is 11mm thick. We've had some hands-on time with it at Barcelona - check out our video above to see what we thought, and browse the picture gallery below to get a closer look at the product. The A3000 is a definite step up over the A1000, with a higher quality IPS screen. Unfortunately, it's locked at the same low 1,024x600 resolution. The screen is definitely bright and features the same textured backside as the S6000 and many recent Lenovo Android tablets.
The Lenovo IdeaTab A2109 is a bit of a paradox: It’s lightweight but bulky for a 9” tablet; the screen looks outwardly impressive but the 1280 x 800 resolution isn’t especially notable; and priced in the $300 range, it seems like a bargain but a relative lack of noteworthy specs can make this tablet feel overpriced.
Taking a few cues from the Apple iPad, the Lenovo IdeaTab looks a bit like a slightly smaller version of the market-leading device down to the brushed-chrome finish. Inside is a 1.2 GHz Nvidia Tegra 3 quad-core processor with 1 GB of RAM, and the IdeaTab puts this to good use by including a bunch of Google apps plus Lenovo-specific apps including games, gaming portal and video editing software. The 16 GB of internal storage may be expanded with micro SD cards.
]]>Operating System | Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich) |
Dimension (in) | 9.3 x .46 x 6.5 |
Weight (lb) | 1.30 |
Screen (in) | 9 |
Resolution (px) | 1280 x 800 |
Touchscreen | Capacitive |
Other |
Front and rear cameras; Bluetooth, Wi-Fi; Micro SD card port; GPS |
Battery Life | 9 hrs |
The Lenovo IdeaTab A2109 is a bit of a paradox: It’s lightweight but bulky for a 9” tablet; the screen looks outwardly impressive but the 1280 x 800 resolution isn’t especially notable; and priced in the $300 range, it seems like a bargain but a relative lack of noteworthy specs can make this tablet feel overpriced.
Taking a few cues from the Apple iPad, the Lenovo IdeaTab looks a bit like a slightly smaller version of the market-leading device down to the brushed-chrome finish. Inside is a 1.2 GHz Nvidia Tegra 3 quad-core processor with 1 GB of RAM, and the IdeaTab puts this to good use by including a bunch of Google apps plus Lenovo-specific apps including games, gaming portal and video editing software. The 16 GB of internal storage may be expanded with micro SD cards.
While this setup is ideal for most games, though, the screen again is rather blah. The plastic overlay doesn’t help, but future versions of this device would be well served with higher definition. In the final analysis, the Lenovo IdeaTab is something of a tweener: For some, the weight and size will be perfect while the low price will certainly inspire some to give this tablet a try. As for us, we’re waiting on the upgrade to push this device past the humdrum and to the top of the 9” tablet field…
When critiquing Lenovo’s IdeaTab A2109, this reviewer mused for an upgrade to what appeared to be a nearly no-frills, stripped-down device; the A1000 version unfortunately shows that this brand name just isn’t interested in making a super souped-up tablet to compete with true market leaders like the iPad Mini, Google Nexus, Samsung Galaxy Tab, etc., but are content to stick with what they know: Producing budget tablets with little to offer.
Suggested retail price on the IdeaTab A2109 is $129.99 and, relatively uniquely for a Lenovo device, includes a micro SD card slot to jump up that internal memory of (guess what) 8 GB. Well notable is the surprisingly good sound quality – it’s been jacked up with Dolby Digital audio enhancement – which ultimately makes the prospective customer wonder if this technology was built for another device altogether. This aspect makes the A2109 a best case scenario for gifting the music junkie to play around with.
]]>Operating System | Android 4.1 (Jelly Bean) |
Dimension (in) | 7.8 x .42 x 4.7 |
Weight (lb) | 0.75 |
Screen (in) | 7 |
Resolution (px) | 1024 x 600 |
Touchscreen | Capacitive |
Other |
Extra features: Rear and front cameras; Wi-Fi, Bluetooth connectivity; micro USB, mini HDMI ports; Google apps; GPS, accelerometer, gyroscope |
Battery Life | 8 hrs |
When critiquing Lenovo’s IdeaTab A2109, this reviewer mused for an upgrade to what appeared to be a nearly no-frills, stripped-down device; the A1000 version unfortunately shows that this brand name just isn’t interested in making a super souped-up tablet to compete with true market leaders like the iPad Mini, Google Nexus, Samsung Galaxy Tab, etc., but are content to stick with what they know: Producing budget tablets with little to offer.
Suggested retail price on the IdeaTab A2109 is $129.99 and, relatively uniquely for a Lenovo device, includes a micro SD card slot to jump up that internal memory of (guess what) 8 GB. Well notable is the surprisingly good sound quality – it’s been jacked up with Dolby Digital audio enhancement – which ultimately makes the prospective customer wonder if this technology was built for another device altogether. This aspect makes the A2109 a best case scenario for gifting the music junkie to play around with.
Aside from this, though, one can simply run down the Lenovo IdeaTab A1000 specs list to see revealed another generic-quality tablet: The processor is a ho-hum 1.2 GHz ARM Cortex A9 – Could this be the last device to carry this dinosaur of a CPU? – and the performance this delivers is about as sub-standard as one might imagine; games are troublesome and many apps and/or websites simply won’t run. The resolution is just 1024 x 600 pixels, which … ah, you get the idea.
Even among budget tablets, the IdeaTab A1000 cannot be highly recommended – though again, for music-first users, this might be a nice disposable little toy.
At the given price point, the Lenovo IdeaPad Miix 10 delivers a satisfying tablet experience. It does feel a little hollow and the display on the face feels more plastic than anything. Yet the overall user experience is adequate for the cost of entry.
The Miix is certainly less stylish than the Surface. Instead of a kickstand that emerges from the back of the tablet, the Miix comes with a plastic keyboard case. That may sound like a compromise but we found it a much more practical solution than Microsoft’s kickstand and keyboard cover combo.
]]>Operating System | Windows 8 |
Dimension (in) | 6.8 x .39 x 10.4 |
Weight (lb) | 1.27 |
Screen (in) | 10.1 |
Resolution (px) | 1366 x 768 |
Touchscreen | IPS HD Capacitive |
Other |
Bluetooth v4.0; Wi-Fi connectivity; optional 3G; Front-camera; Micro USB; MicroSD |
Battery Life | 10 hrs |
At the given price point, the Lenovo IdeaPad Miix 10 delivers a satisfying tablet experience. It does feel a little hollow and the display on the face feels more plastic than anything. Yet the overall user experience is adequate for the cost of entry.
The Miix is certainly less stylish than the Surface. Instead of a kickstand that emerges from the back of the tablet, the Miix comes with a plastic keyboard case. That may sound like a compromise but we found it a much more practical solution than Microsoft’s kickstand and keyboard cover combo.
The 10.1-inch display offers 1,366-by-768 resolution, which is far from impressive, especially when compared to the high-res displays seen on smartphones and smaller CE tablets, but it's par for the course among Windows tablets.
Like the Samsung Ativ Smart PC and the Acer Iconia W510, this is based on Intel's new Atom processors, which offer performance and battery capabilities along the lines of what you'd expect from Apple's iPad 4. It's what enables the Lenovo Miix 10 to run Windows 8, but be only 9.9mm (0.4-inches) thick and weigh just 576g (1.27lbs). And like those two machines, it comes with a keyboard, so you can easily turn it into a thin and light laptop substitute.
The Miix 10 isn't necessarily a poor tablet, but it doesn't stand out from a crowd. An average display, decent battery life, and poor building materials create a tablet that might be good - at a lower price point. We recommend taking your money and looking into other options including the ThinkPad Tablet 2 and VivoTab.
]]>For most users around the world, the IdeaPad K1 will be the first experience with a Lenovo Android tablet and it should be quite a crowd pleaser overall, despite its somewhat unattractive look. First off, the Lenovo IdeaPad K1 is quite heavy as tablets go at 1.65 pounds (0.7 kilograms), large at 10.39” x 7.44” (26.4 cm x 18.9 cm), and somewhat thick at 0.52” (1.3 cm); plus, the slippery back will not appeal to some users.
However, first impressions aren’t everything and the would-be IdeaPad K1 user should stay around to check out the nice hardware supplied in this tablet: The spec list includes a 1GHz NVIDIA Tegra 2 microprocessor; a micro SD slot and micro HDMI port; cameras of 5 MP and 2 MP; and WiFi connectivity.
]]>Operating System | Android 3.0 (Honeycomb) |
Dimension (in) | 10.4 x 0.52 x 7.4 |
Weight (lb) | 1.60 |
Screen (in) | 10.1 |
Resolution (px) | 1280 x 800 |
Touchscreen | Capacitive |
Other |
Camera, Bluetooth, Micro HDMI, Micro SD, WiFi |
Battery Life | 8 hrs |
For most users around the world, the IdeaPad K1 will be the first experience with a Lenovo Android tablet and it should be quite a crowd pleaser overall, despite its somewhat unattractive look. First off, the Lenovo IdeaPad K1 is quite heavy as tablets go at 1.65 pounds (0.7 kilograms), large at 10.39” x 7.44” (26.4 cm x 18.9 cm), and somewhat thick at 0.52” (1.3 cm); plus, the slippery back will not appeal to some users.
However, first impressions aren’t everything and the would-be IdeaPad K1 user should stay around to check out the nice hardware supplied in this tablet: The spec list includes a 1GHz NVIDIA Tegra 2 microprocessor; a micro SD slot and micro HDMI port; cameras of 5 MP and 2 MP; and WiFi connectivity.
And while the battery life of 10-plus hours is excellent, perhaps most impressive about the IdeaPad K1 is the software. The base operating system is Android Honeycomb 3.1, and Lenovo has made some nice changes to make it even more useful (and easier) to use. Located dead-center in the display screen are icons labeled “watch,” “listen” and “read”; these lead to programs for video, audio and eBook display. While defaults are set for each, the user may rapidly change the landing page for any to match his/her preferences.
A widget for AccuWeather is included, as is Lenovo software entitled SocialTouch, which combines Twitter and Facebook updates into one nice display. Plus, there’s a truckload of apps including Amazon Kindle, Documents to Go 3.0, Norton Security, PrinterShare, the eBuddy IM client, four programs for video editing, PhotoStudio, card games and more – this list alone is certain to make the Lenovo Idea Pad K1 a favorite.
Tablet2Cases recommends to buy it now for $198.
Smart Tab 10 Cosmic is an excellent device designed for users, who seek a tablet with fast and powerful performance provided and also want to enjoy the superior experience of a dual core processor. The biggest USP of the device is that it offers all these features within an economical price range.
Karbonn Smart Tab 10 has 9.7-inch capacitive 10 point multi-touch display offering 1024 x 768 pixels resolutions. It is quite better than several other budget tabs. Touch sensitivity is good, it is bright and offers fun while playing games or watching movies, pictures etc.
Operating System | Android 4.1 (Jelly Bean) |
Dimension (in) | 7.4 x .42 x 9.5 |
Weight (lb) | 1.30 |
Screen (in) | 9.7 |
Resolution (px) | 1024 x 768 |
Touchscreen | TFT Capacitive |
Other |
Bluetooth v3.0, Wi-Fi connectivity; Dual SIM; Front- and rear-camera; MicroUSB; MicroSD; Accelerometer |
Battery Life | 6 hrs |
Smart Tab 10 Cosmic is an excellent device designed for users, who seek a tablet with fast and powerful performance provided and also want to enjoy the superior experience of a dual core processor. The biggest USP of the device is that it offers all these features within an economical price range.
Karbonn Smart Tab 10 has 9.7-inch capacitive 10 point multi-touch display offering 1024 x 768 pixels resolutions. It is quite better than several other budget tabs. Touch sensitivity is good, it is bright and offers fun while playing games or watching movies, pictures etc.
Smart Tab10 comes with 2.0MP camera on the rear of the tablet. There is also digital front facing camera, which helps the users in having video chatting sessions. With Wi-Fi option and HDMI port, you will not feel lack of connectivity with this gadget. It comes with a good user interface that helps the users in having amazing gaming experience with 3D-G sensor.
]]>Karbonn A34 HD Dual SIM calling tablet would certainly attract the users with its Dual SIM feature and an affordable price. This tablet is a good option for those who want an exciting computing experience within budget.
This tab has pretty nominal specifications with no single feature that particularly stands out. It will cater to your needs only when you are not a vigorous user.
]]>Operating System | Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich) |
Dimension (in) | 4.9 x .48 x 7.7 |
Weight (lb) | 0.74 |
Screen (in) | 7.0 |
Resolution (px) | 480 x 800 |
Touchscreen | TFT Capacitive |
Other |
Bluetooth v3.0, Wi-Fi connectivity; Dual SIM; Front- and rear-camera; MicroUSB; MicroSD; Accelerometer |
Battery Life | 8 hrs |
Karbonn A34 HD Dual SIM calling tablet would certainly attract the users with its Dual SIM feature and an affordable price. This tablet is a good option for those who want an exciting computing experience within budget.
This tab has pretty nominal specifications with no single feature that particularly stands out. It will cater to your needs only when you are not a vigorous user.
]]>Electronics specialists Huawei has produced a number of tablets, phablets and like devices through the years, but the MediaPad X1 7.0 released in 2014 appears to represent an evolution in the company’s philosophy vis-à-vis the tablet. The MediaPad may yet be considered viable competition for the Google Nexus 7 after all.
Billed by the company as “the most slender tablet in its class,” this MediaPad’s 7.2-mm thickness must put it in the top two or three. Most of the formerly ubiquitous plastic has been replaced by aluminum for a bit more durability while keeping things light enough. Indeed, the X1 7.0 tablet seems designed to be carried and specifically for phone calls – more on this below.
]]>Operating System | Android 4.2 (Jelly Bean) |
Dimension (in) | 4.09 x .28 x 7.22 |
Weight (lb) | 0.52 |
Screen (in) | 7.0 |
Resolution (px) | 1920 x 1200 |
Touchscreen | Capacitive |
Other |
Bluetooth 4.0, Wi-Fi connectivity; front and rear cameras; Mini Display Port, Micro USB port, Micro SD slot, Accelerometer |
Battery Life | 12 hrs |
Electronics specialists Huawei has produced a number of tablets, phablets and like devices through the years, but the MediaPad X1 7.0 released in 2014 appears to represent an evolution in the company’s philosophy vis-à-vis the tablet. The MediaPad may yet be considered viable competition for the Google Nexus 7 after all.
Billed by the company as “the most slender tablet in its class,” this MediaPad’s 7.2-mm thickness must put it in the top two or three. Most of the formerly ubiquitous plastic has been replaced by aluminum for a bit more durability while keeping things light enough. Indeed, the X1 7.0 tablet seems designed to be carried and specifically for phone calls – more on this below.
The processor is a 1.6GHz quad-core backed with 2GB of RAM; the MediaPad starts with 16 GB of storage, but a 32 GB version is also available, plus the standard micro SD card slot can expand that memory by 32 GB more. Additionally, photo fans and videophiles will love the 13 MP sensor (!) on the rear camera and 5 MP front webcam.
Those cameras, particularly the latter, are no mere showy perks. Combined with the Phone Manager application which handles all matters connected with phone calls (no, really, everything), the identity that the Media Pad X1 puts forth is that of a phablet on steroids. Clearly the top choice for heavy online conversationalists.
The Huawei MediaPad M1 is a good model with attractive specifications. However, it fails to stand out from the crowd with any form of excellence. Instead it simply provides standard features that all other modern tablets offer.
The usual features are inclusive, such as the standard 1280 x 800 pixel resolution and a 5 Megapixel integrated camera. You may be disappointed with the lackluster 1GB of memory and a mere 8 inch screen size for viewing. As tablets go, this one fails to impress on any level.
]]>Operating System | Android 4.2 (Jelly Bean) |
Dimension (in) | 4.8 x .31 x 8.4 |
Weight (lb) | 0.72 |
Screen (in) | 8.0 |
Resolution (px) | 1280 x 800 |
Touchscreen | Capacitive |
Other |
Bluetooth 4.0, Wi-Fi connectivity; front and rear cameras; micro USB port, MicroSD, Accelerometer |
Battery Life | 8 hrs |
The Huawei MediaPad M1 is a good model with attractive specifications. However, it fails to stand out from the crowd with any form of excellence. Instead it simply provides standard features that all other modern tablets offer.
The usual features are inclusive, such as the standard 1280 x 800 pixel resolution and a 5 Megapixel integrated camera. You may be disappointed with the lackluster 1GB of memory and a mere 8 inch screen size for viewing. As tablets go, this one fails to impress on any level.
Still, the MediaPad does come in a range of pretty colors such as Lily, Tulip and Carnation, wait, are those even colors? A Titanium Gray color offers a metallic look. This flowery tablet looks appealing and is ultra slim and lightweight. Other than the 1.6 GHz quad core processor, it has little else to offer. The battery is a low grade 4800 mAH polymer with poor output and handling, it will struggle to last 8 hours between charges.
At a suggested retail price of $550, the Huawei MediaPad M1 seems very expensive for the meager features and specifications available and I expected something better. If all you want to do on your tablet is office tasks or play Facebook games this is a reasonable tablet choice but there are more affordable tablet solutions for that than the Huawei MediaPad M1
]]>Huawei has made no major strides design wise with the Media Pad Youth 2, to be honest there have been no changes in the design when compared to the Huawei Media Pad Youth. It follows the same general design trend used by 7 inch tablets. Its only major offering is the metal clad back, which makes the device cool to the touch and makes it feel a little more premium.
Overall, the Huawei MediaPad 7 Youth2 offers a better set of features in comparison to another recently announced budget Android tablet—the Samsung Galaxy Tab 3 Lite—but it’s somewhat a downgrade of the original 1080p-equipped Youth slate.
Operating System | Android 4.3 (Jelly Bean) |
Dimension (in) | 4.8 x .39 x 7.6 |
Weight (lb) | 0.77 |
Screen (in) | 7.0 |
Resolution (px) | 600 x1024 |
Touchscreen | TFT Capacitive |
Other |
Bluetooth v3.0, Wi-Fi/3G/HSPA connectivity; SIM; Rear-camera; MicroUSB; MicroSD; Accelerometer |
Battery Life | 16 hrs |
Huawei has made no major strides design wise with the Media Pad Youth 2, to be honest there have been no changes in the design when compared to the Huawei Media Pad Youth. It follows the same general design trend used by 7 inch tablets. Its only major offering is the metal clad back, which makes the device cool to the touch and makes it feel a little more premium.
Overall, the Huawei MediaPad 7 Youth2 offers a better set of features in comparison to another recently announced budget Android tablet—the Samsung Galaxy Tab 3 Lite—but it’s somewhat a downgrade of the original 1080p-equipped Youth slate.
As the name would lead you to believe, the MediaPad 7 Youth is targeted a younger generation, and in that vein is supposed to be light, portable and powerful. With a nearly full aluminum back plate, the tablet is 9.9mm thick and weighs 350g (.77lbs) which is about average for this size device.
In terms of specs, there’s really nothing to write home about. The voice call support is kinda, sorta special, but are you honestly telling me you look forward to using a 7-incher as a phone?
Operating System | Android 4.1 (Jelly Bean) |
Dimension (in) | 4.8 x .39 x 7.6 |
Weight (lb) | 0.77 |
Screen (in) | 7.0 |
Resolution (px) | 600 x1024 |
Touchscreen | TFT Capacitive |
Other |
Bluetooth v3.0, Wi-Fi/3G/HSPA connectivity; SIM; Rear-camera; MicroUSB; MicroSD; Accelerometer |
Battery Life | 16 hrs |
As the name would lead you to believe, the MediaPad 7 Youth is targeted a younger generation, and in that vein is supposed to be light, portable and powerful. With a nearly full aluminum back plate, the tablet is 9.9mm thick and weighs 350g (.77lbs) which is about average for this size device.
In terms of specs, there’s really nothing to write home about. The voice call support is kinda, sorta special, but are you honestly telling me you look forward to using a 7-incher as a phone?
Android JellyBean 4.1 is the OS running on the MediaPad 7 Youth which is not the latest version of JellyBean but it is still easy to use and functional. Processing wise, the tablet comes with a 1.6 GHz Dual-core processor and 1 GB RAM which will load and run pretty much all your apps smoothly but you’ll probably face some lagging if you’re playing a heavy game or if you’re running more than app at once.
The Youth will likely take the Vogue's place as Huawei's top tablet given that it features a faster processor, better data speeds, and superior touch capabilities, though it is both a little thicker and heavier.
]]>The Huawei MediaPad 7 Vogue stands out with a feature rarely found on tablets nowadays. It is capable of making phone calls thanks to its cellular radio and built-in earpiece. This means it could potentially serve as a smartphone replacement, although we'd say it would be much more suitable as a secondary handset.
Measuring 9.5mm thick, the Vogue is actually a little thinner than, say, the Google Nexus 7, which is 10.45 mm thick, so it’s definitely not too clunky. In fact, the device is generally comfortable to hold (just not against your face), even one-handed, and the buttons are nice and chunky and stick out far enough for easy pressing.
Operating System | Android 4.1 (Jelly Bean) |
Dimension (in) | 4.8 x .37 x 7.6 |
Weight (lb) | 0.74 |
Screen (in) | 7.0 |
Resolution (px) | 600 x1024 |
Touchscreen | IPS LCD Capacitive |
Other |
Bluetooth v3.0, Wi-Fi/HSPA connectivity; Mini-SIM; Rear-camera; MicroUSB; MicroSD; Accelerometer |
Battery Life | 20 hrs |
The Huawei MediaPad 7 Vogue stands out with a feature rarely found on tablets nowadays. It is capable of making phone calls thanks to its cellular radio and built-in earpiece. This means it could potentially serve as a smartphone replacement, although we'd say it would be much more suitable as a secondary handset.
Measuring 9.5mm thick, the Vogue is actually a little thinner than, say, the Google Nexus 7, which is 10.45 mm thick, so it’s definitely not too clunky. In fact, the device is generally comfortable to hold (just not against your face), even one-handed, and the buttons are nice and chunky and stick out far enough for easy pressing.
The Huawei MediaPad 7 Vogue has a 7" IPS LCD display with a resolution of only 1024 x 600 pixels, which is the lowest that makes sense on a tablet - WVGA seven-inchers are stretching it really. Pixel density is mediocre at 170ppi but something you can live with - of course there are devices that will gladly double that, like the new Nexus 7 at 1920 x 1200.
The camera is really nothing special since it’s only a 3.15MP camera on the back. It’s basically there if you need it in an emergency.
On the hardware front, there's a 1.2GHz quad-core processor and 1GB of RAM. Internal storage is only 8GB, but you can expand this via microSD to add up to an extra 32GB.
The MediaPad 10 Link's name already reveals a lot about its most important feature, which is the possibility of accessing the internet via a mobile network. The MediaPad 10 also features a resolution of 1280x800 pixels, 8 GB of internal storage and the same SoC found in the MediaPad 10 FHD.
The resolution of the device is 1280 × 800 pixels stretched to fit a 10.1-inch IPS LCD panel. It’s already 2013 and displays like these are disappointing in terms of sharpness. Fine text are relatively a pain to read but most webpages are readable.
Operating System | Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich) |
Dimension (in) | 6.9 x .39 x 10.1 |
Weight (lb) | 1.36 |
Screen (in) | 10.1 |
Resolution (px) | 1280 x 800 |
Touchscreen | IPS LCD Capacitive |
Other |
Bluetooth v3.0, Wi-Fi connectivity; Front- and rear-camera; MicroUSB; MicroSD; Accelerometer |
Battery Life | 10 hrs |
The MediaPad 10 Link's name already reveals a lot about its most important feature, which is the possibility of accessing the internet via a mobile network. The MediaPad 10 also features a resolution of 1280x800 pixels, 8 GB of internal storage and the same SoC found in the MediaPad 10 FHD.
The resolution of the device is 1280 × 800 pixels stretched to fit a 10.1-inch IPS LCD panel. It’s already 2013 and displays like these are disappointing in terms of sharpness. Fine text are relatively a pain to read but most webpages are readable.
From a hardware perspective, the MediaPad certainly feels robust enough, and flicking through menus is fast and speedy.We've only just begun scratching the surface of the Cat 4 nature of the tablet, but the download speeds are consistently pretty high. Not crazy high, but high, which is pretty enticing.
The MediaPad 10 Link runs on Android 4.1 Jellybean, overlaid with the brand's custom Emotion UI. While the interface is familiar and easy to navigate, and Jellybean is the most popular version of the Android platform, I can't understand why Huawei did not kit the device out with the latest version of the Android operating system.
When it was teased earlier this year, Huawei's MediaPad 10 was shaping up to be a screamer. But in the slow crawl to market, its cutting-edge specs became commonplace for the Android tablet space. Sure, the combination of a quad-core proprietary CPU, full HD 1,920 x 1,200 IPS display, Android 4.0, a 6,600mAh battery and up to 32GB of storage means this has the makings of a stellar slate.
But enough about speakers and two-tone back panels, that’s hardly the best that the MediaPad 10 has to offer. Power it up and you are greeted with the tab’s 10.1-inch FHD IPS display rated with a resolution of 1920 x 1200 pixels, or more than enough to reproduce 1080p quality video and graphics.
Operating System | Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich) |
Dimension (in) | 6.9 x .35 x 10.1 |
Weight (lb) | 1.30 |
Screen (in) | 10 |
Resolution (px) | 1920 x 1200 |
Touchscreen | IPS LCD Capacitive |
Other |
Bluetooth v3.0, Wi-Fi/HSPA/LTE connectivity; Mini-SIM; Front- and rear-camera; MicroUSB; MicroSD; Accelerometer |
Battery Life | 7.5 hrs |
When it was teased earlier this year, Huawei's MediaPad 10 was shaping up to be a screamer. But in the slow crawl to market, its cutting-edge specs became commonplace for the Android tablet space. Sure, the combination of a quad-core proprietary CPU, full HD 1,920 x 1,200 IPS display, Android 4.0, a 6,600mAh battery and up to 32GB of storage means this has the makings of a stellar slate.
But enough about speakers and two-tone back panels, that’s hardly the best that the MediaPad 10 has to offer. Power it up and you are greeted with the tab’s 10.1-inch FHD IPS display rated with a resolution of 1920 x 1200 pixels, or more than enough to reproduce 1080p quality video and graphics.
The manufacturer's quad-core processor and 16-core graphics card are to ensure the performance of Huawei's MediaPad 10. The tablet lags behind the competition with 8 GB internal storage. The capacity can be increased by 32 GB via an SD card. However, many apps cannot be moved to it and the storage capacity could get tight.
The camera is OK, certainly nothing to write home about. It's utterly blown away by competitors such as the HTC Jetstream and the Google Nexus 10 tablet from Samsung. The Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1's camera takes the Huawei MediaPad 10 FHD to the cleaners even though the Note has 5 megapixels under the hood and the MediaPad has 8 - food for thought.
The Huawei Ideos S7, also sold as T-Mobile Springboard in USA, may be described as a scaled-down version of Samsung Galaxy Tab and is notably lower in price. Serious tablet users may be disappointed with some of the losses in functionality due to this striving for savings, but the average user should enjoy the Ideos S7 well enough.
The biggest gap between the two machines is the Android 2.1 operating system on the Huawei Ideos S7. Without Android 2.2 – and unlike the Samsung Galaxy – the Ideos S7 cannot support Flash Player 10 in the browser. Another loss because of budget - the Huawei Ideos S7 has no built-in memory, but provides space for 32GB Micro SD memory cards. And both the less-sensitive resistive touchscreen and the smaller, slower microprocessor slow things down a bit.
]]>Operating System | Android 2.2 (Froyo) |
Dimension (in) | 4.25 x .61 x 8.2 |
Weight (lb) | 1.10 |
Screen (in) | 7.0 |
Resolution (px) | 480 x 800 |
Touchscreen | Resistive |
Other |
3G, Bluetooth, Camera Headphones, GSM, Micro SD, USB, WiFi |
Battery Life | 4 hrs |
The Huawei Ideos S7, also sold as T-Mobile Springboard in USA, may be described as a scaled-down version of Samsung Galaxy Tab and is notably lower in price. Serious tablet users may be disappointed with some of the losses in functionality due to this striving for savings, but the average user should enjoy the Ideos S7 well enough.
The biggest gap between the two machines is the Android 2.1 operating system on the Huawei Ideos S7. Without Android 2.2 – and unlike the Samsung Galaxy – the Ideos S7 cannot support Flash Player 10 in the browser. Another loss because of budget - the Huawei Ideos S7 has no built-in memory, but provides space for 32GB Micro SD memory cards. And both the less-sensitive resistive touchscreen and the smaller, slower microprocessor slow things down a bit.
Despite a few minor shortcomings, the positives in the Huawei Ideos S7 are enough to appeal to many users. The lightweight tablet is easy to tote and the 7” screen does an excellent job with video material. And one giant advantage for the Ideos S7 is its performance as a telephone with great sound, quick response and high usability.
]]>Although the Honor T1 is an entry-level tablet, Huawei tried its best to keep it from looking like one. The 8-inch tablet has a thickness of 7.9mm and a weight of 360 grams, and the housing comes with a partially-metallic build, uncommon design features for a tablet priced at 130 Euros.
The 8 inch IPS display offers a resolution of 1280 x 800. Under the hood is a quad-core 1.2GHz Snapdragon 200 CPU, and inside you'll find 1GB of RAM and 16GB of native storage. A 5MP snapper is on back with a .3MP camera in front. The 4800mAh battery keeps the lights on, and the tablet carries 3G HSPA+ connectivity, supporting speeds up to 42Mbps.
Operating System | Android 4.3 (Jelly Bean) |
Dimension (in) | 5.0 x .31 x 8.3 |
Weight (lb) | 0.79 |
Screen (in) | 8.0 |
Resolution (px) | 1280 x 800 |
Touchscreen | IPS LCD Capacitive |
Other |
Bluetooth v4.0, Wi-Fi/HSPA connectivity; SIM; Front- and rear-camera; MicroUSB; MicroSD; Accelerometer |
Battery Life | 10 hrs |
Although the Honor T1 is an entry-level tablet, Huawei tried its best to keep it from looking like one. The 8-inch tablet has a thickness of 7.9mm and a weight of 360 grams, and the housing comes with a partially-metallic build, uncommon design features for a tablet priced at 130 Euros.
The 8 inch IPS display offers a resolution of 1280 x 800. Under the hood is a quad-core 1.2GHz Snapdragon 200 CPU, and inside you'll find 1GB of RAM and 16GB of native storage. A 5MP snapper is on back with a .3MP camera in front. The 4800mAh battery keeps the lights on, and the tablet carries 3G HSPA+ connectivity, supporting speeds up to 42Mbps.
Huawei is using 1.2 GHz Snapdragon 200 MSM8212 quad core with Adreno 302 GPU. The humble quad core SoC is aided by 1 GB RAM for smooth multi tasking. Clearly this device is meant for basic day to day usage, enjoying multimedia content on a large display, reading activities, etc. and is capable of handling such stuff.
In the short time we handled the device, we can tell it works very well and performance is fluid. We are not huge fans of the cartoonish UI, but that is something that can be fixed thanks to Android’s versatile ecosystem.
The Flyer tablet represents – and squeezes much use out of – HTC’s expertise in smartphone technology. Beginning with the Android 2.3 Gingerbread operating system, the HTC Flyer most excels in reproducing smartphone functions up to and including text messaging on a top-quality LCD screen.
The good/bad news here is that the HTC Flyer tablet’s prime disadvantage is noticed first - put plainly, this is hardly the best-looking tablet out there. A seeming mishmash of black, silver and white parts make up the HTC Flyer and the default screen on the user interface is garish as well (though it does display the excellent color detail possible in this device). In addition, the aluminum shell and some bulky hardware push the HTC Flyer to nearly a full pound of weight at 420 grams. Plus, this is one of the single thickest 7” tablets on the market.
]]>Operating System | Android 2.3 (Gingerbread) |
Dimension (in) | 4.8 x .52 x 7.7 |
Weight (lb) | 0.93 |
Screen (in) | 7.0 |
Resolution (px) | 1024 x 600 |
Touchscreen | Capacitive |
Other |
3G, Bluetooth, Camera, GPS, Micro SD, USB, WiFi |
Battery Life | 6 hrs |
The Flyer tablet represents – and squeezes much use out of – HTC’s expertise in smartphone technology. Beginning with the Android 2.3 Gingerbread operating system, the HTC Flyer most excels in reproducing smartphone functions up to and including text messaging on a top-quality LCD screen.
The good/bad news here is that the HTC Flyer tablet’s prime disadvantage is noticed first - put plainly, this is hardly the best-looking tablet out there. A seeming mishmash of black, silver and white parts make up the HTC Flyer and the default screen on the user interface is garish as well (though it does display the excellent color detail possible in this device). In addition, the aluminum shell and some bulky hardware push the HTC Flyer to nearly a full pound of weight at 420 grams. Plus, this is one of the single thickest 7” tablets on the market.
On the other hand, the HTC Flyer delivers many positives – at least until the user gets to the average-at-best video camera and imager. The 1.5GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon processor is super powerful and quick, and the on-screen keyboard function features responsiveness and usability among the tops in this area. But the battery life is not incredible, its 30% less than what Apple iPad users have grown to expect.
The most unique feature of the HTC Flyer, though, is its "Magic Pen." Truly the first stylus to bring extra functionality to the tablet, the Magic Pen allows the user to write or draw on any Flyer screen in addition to a provided children’s paint program and in HTC Notes. Use of the pen is a bit tricky at first, but is easily figured out with a few tries.
As an excellent tablet at any price, we may recommend the HTC Flyer to just about any user – as long as he/she can get past that first impression.
The EVO View 4G is a 7" Android tablet with a 1024 x 600 capacitive multi-touch display. It sets itself apart from other tablets because you can use it with HTC's optional $80 Scribe pen to take notes and draw. At release, Sprint was offering the pen for free with the HTC EVO View 4G with contract, but we don't know how long that offer will run.
The HTC EVO View 4G shares the same design as the Flyer we reviewed last month, but in keeping with the EVO family, the color scheme has been changed to charcoal with red accents. We approve.
Operating System | Android 2.3 (Gingerbread) |
Dimension (in) | 4.4 x .51 x 7.7 |
Weight (lb) | 0.93 |
Screen (in) | 7.0 |
Resolution (px) | 600 x 1024 |
Touchscreen | LCD Capacitive |
Other |
Bluetooth v3.0, Wi-Fi/4G connectivity; Mini-SIM; Front- and rear-camera; MicroUSB; MicroSD; Accelerometer |
Battery Life | 6.5 hrs |
The EVO View 4G is a 7" Android tablet with a 1024 x 600 capacitive multi-touch display. It sets itself apart from other tablets because you can use it with HTC's optional $80 Scribe pen to take notes and draw. At release, Sprint was offering the pen for free with the HTC EVO View 4G with contract, but we don't know how long that offer will run.
The HTC EVO View 4G shares the same design as the Flyer we reviewed last month, but in keeping with the EVO family, the color scheme has been changed to charcoal with red accents. We approve.
There are some touches that make the EVO View (and it’s non-Sprint 4G cousin, the HTC Flyer) interesting. For one, the ends of the tablet (left and right when held in landscape orientation) have these little plastic lips on them that give an excellent sense of grip to your thumbs and fingers. It’s almost like HTC took a cue from SLR designers in that regard, and is definitely an improvement (IMO) on the standard “slab” format of most tablets today.
One problem with this device, and I'll explain how to fix it in a moment, is that the scribe pen does not attach to the tablet in any way. If you want to keep it with the device, you'll have to… I don't know… tape it to the back, right? No way.
As far as hardware features are concerned, the EVO View 4G’s most impressive spec is its 4G network compatibility. Assuming you have Sprint’s 4G coverage in your area, the Evo View 4G offers an incredible range of ways to stay connected and pull down content quickly. Other specs, such as a 1.5GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon processor with 1GB of RAM, Bluetooth 3.0, and 802.11n Wi-Fi, are par for the course these days.
Overall, the HTC Evo View 4G is a solidly built little tablet with a lot of attention paid to details. But in comparison with Apple's highly successful iPad 2, the HTC Evo View 4G is relatively thick and its screen area is approximately half that of the iPad. There's an argument to be made for tablets with the Evo View 4G's smaller, more portable screen size, but for us, the experience often overlaps too much with using a smartphone and still feels constricted for Web browsing.
Besides the moderately expensive price point for a “Did it really have to run on a Gingerbread OS?” device, the HTC EVO View 4G actually does a pretty decent job of being one of the nicer 7-inch tablets out there.
]]>The HP TouchPad ended up no. 2 on the list of the year’s most popular tablet PCs behind only the Apple iPad, but not for any virtues in hardware or software. After releasing the device in July 2011, Hewlett-Packard announced its discontinuing of the TouchPad in the fall and lowered the price to a must-sell $99 or so. By year’s end, this tablet had achieved minor cult status among techies and is beginning to fetch nice prices on eBay.
Much has been made of the TouchPad’s status as the first device of any kind to be running HP’s webOS 3.0, the latest version of the operating system fairly ubiquitous on smartphones. The good news is that webOS 3.0 brings much familiarity to the TouchPad as well as many handy applications that can be in exchanging between tablet and webOS smartphone.
]]>Operating System | webOS |
Dimension (in) | 7.5 x .54 x 9.4 |
Weight (lb) | 1.60 |
Screen (in) | 9.7 |
Resolution (px) | 1024 x 768 |
Touchscreen | Capacitive |
Other |
Camera, Bluetooth, WiFi, USB |
Battery Life | 8.5 hrs |
The HP TouchPad ended up no. 2 on the list of the year’s most popular tablet PCs behind only the Apple iPad, but not for any virtues in hardware or software. After releasing the device in July 2011, Hewlett-Packard announced its discontinuing of the TouchPad in the fall and lowered the price to a must-sell $99 or so. By year’s end, this tablet had achieved minor cult status among techies and is beginning to fetch nice prices on eBay.
Much has been made of the TouchPad’s status as the first device of any kind to be running HP’s webOS 3.0, the latest version of the operating system fairly ubiquitous on smartphones. The good news is that webOS 3.0 brings much familiarity to the TouchPad as well as many handy applications that can be in exchanging between tablet and webOS smartphone.
The bad news is that the hardware gets generally low marks for slow performance. Despite a 1.2 GHz Snapdragon processor and 1 GB of RAM, most applications take surprisingly long to download and operate, while video playback is often simply impossible. The limited edition white version of the HP TouchPad sports a 1.5 GHz processor and some (but not all) of these problems are resolved.
Video calling is also problematic, again despite sufficient-seeming hardware, in this case 802.11 b/g/n WiFi connectivity.
In terms of positives, the HP TouchPad’s 9.7”, 1024 x 768px IPS touchscreen makes for excellent displays, sound is also among the best in this class, and the battery life is around 8.5 hours of full-use. Quite noteworthy is some interesting embedded software, including a custom Facebook app and Epicurious, essentially a virtual cookbook replete with pictures, text and recipes.
In short, the HP TouchPad has all the pluses and minuses you’d expect from a company taking its first plunge into the tablet PC market; we can only wonder if it’s the last.
]]>The strange and increasing convoluted history of HP in the tablet world continues with an attempt by the company to produce … a phablet? Well, someone at the electronics giant probably reckoned, this company has tried everything else…
As the name befits, the Slate 7 Voice Tab is the bigger brother of the Slate 6, with both models set for simultaneous release in European markets in spring 2014. This 7” tablet is priced along the lines of the similarly-sized Google Nexus 7, but the offerings are naturally quite different. At £199 it has the Nexus 7 to contend with, but this tablet also works as a phone.
]]>Operating System | Android 4.2 (Jelly Bean) |
Dimension (in) | 3.27 x .35 x 6.5 |
Weight (lb) | 0.71 |
Screen (in) | 7.0 |
Resolution (px) | 1280 x 800 |
Touchscreen | Capacitive |
Other |
Bluetooth 3.0, Wi-Fi connectivity; front and rear cameras; Micro USB 2.0, Micro SD slot, Accelerometer |
The strange and increasing convoluted history of HP in the tablet world continues with an attempt by the company to produce … a phablet? Well, someone at the electronics giant probably reckoned, this company has tried everything else…
As the name befits, the Slate 7 Voice Tab is the bigger brother of the Slate 6, with both models set for simultaneous release in European markets in spring 2014. This 7” tablet is priced along the lines of the similarly-sized Google Nexus 7, but the offerings are naturally quite different. At £199 it has the Nexus 7 to contend with, but this tablet also works as a phone.
Though squat in appearance (9.7 mm is quite a lot for a 7” tablet), the Slate 7 devotes a great deal of space to the screen. Said screen is the standard mid-range 1280 x 800-pixel resolution – nothing to compete with a sharp-looking Nexus or Amazon Kindle device here, but again the phone capability is the main selling point in the Slate 7.
Just to make the phablet a bit more tablet-esque in terms of functionality, however, HP has outfitted both Slate devices with 3G and Bluetooth compatibility plus micro SIM, standard SIM and micro SD slots. The 1.2 GHz quad-core processor is pretty decent for a tablet of this price and size, while the up-to-date (as of this writing) Android 4.2 is the operating system.
In the end, we’re not 100% sure whether classifying the Slate 7 as a larger phablet is a disservice; with just enough tablet features and an excellent price tag, this one can certainly well serve the phone-first tablet user.
]]>The HP Slate 8 Pro might garner some quick comparisons with other 8-inch tablets, like Apple's iPad Mini -- thanks to its 4:3 aspect ratio -- or Samsung's Galaxy Note 8 -- due to its sleek all-white body -- but the superficial resemblances end there. The HP tablet one-ups its fellow 8-inchers, with its sharp 1,600x1,200-pixel resolution IPS display, Nvidia's speedy Tegra 4 CPU, and a healthy 2GB of RAM.
Despite the plastic build, the Slate 8 Pro is really nice to hold, and it’s hard to deny that it has a certain charm. The plastic backing also helps to keep the weight down on all of the Android tablets.
]]>Operating System | Android 4.2 (Jelly Bean) |
Dimension (in) | 5.7 x .39 x 8.7 |
Weight (lb) | 1.00 |
Screen (in) | 8.0 |
Resolution (px) | 1600 x 1200 |
Touchscreen | Capacitive |
Other |
Bluetooth 4.0, Wi-Fi connectivity; front and rear cameras; micro USB port, MicroSD, Accelerometer, Beats Audio sound enhancement |
Battery Life | 11.5 hrs |
The HP Slate 8 Pro might garner some quick comparisons with other 8-inch tablets, like Apple's iPad Mini -- thanks to its 4:3 aspect ratio -- or Samsung's Galaxy Note 8 -- due to its sleek all-white body -- but the superficial resemblances end there. The HP tablet one-ups its fellow 8-inchers, with its sharp 1,600x1,200-pixel resolution IPS display, Nvidia's speedy Tegra 4 CPU, and a healthy 2GB of RAM.
Despite the plastic build, the Slate 8 Pro is really nice to hold, and it’s hard to deny that it has a certain charm. The plastic backing also helps to keep the weight down on all of the Android tablets.
The HP Slate 8 Pro ships with a powerful Nvidia Tegra 4 Krait 300-architecture quad-core SoC clocked at 4 x 1.8 GHz, including an Nvidia GeForce Tegra 4 graphics chip for 2D and 3D graphic calculations. This SoC is augmented by 1 GB of DDR3 SDRAM and 16 GB of system storage (with 12.3 GB remaining after Android 4.2.2 and the preinstalled apps are subtracted). If the latter should prove to be insufficient, a micro SD card can always be installed (with up to 32 GB).
On past HP tablets, the display has been one of the biggest letdowns because of poor color reproduction. On the Slate8 Pro, the story is a little bit different.The display itself is actually pretty good. The 1600x1200 resolution clocks in at roughly 250PPI, which isn't too shabby and makes for a decent reading experience. In fact, because of the increased display size, I've been reaching for the S8P over the 2013 Nexus 7 the majority of the time if I plan on reading. Or watching videos. Or surfing the web.
In term of performance, HP Slate 8 Pro really screams (and annoyingly loud.. haha :D). With the monster goodies like a quad-core 1.8GHz Tegra 4 chipset, 1GB of RAM and 72-core GeForce GPU, you can do a lot of things on this device. Too bad this tablet only comes with 1GB of RAM, which is considered as small for today’s standard.
The HP Slate 8 Plus (7500) is an 8-inch Android 4.2.2 Jelly Bean tablet (at time of shipping anyway) with HD resolution at 1280 x 800 from a IPS display. The processor is a 1.6GHz quad-core HiSilicon Balong V9R1 ARM Cortex-A9 processor which HP’s “Huawei tablets” have now started running.
As far as connectivity goes, HP gave the Slate 8 Plus Wi-Fi 802.11n, Bluetooth 4.0, and the ability to support 3G data on some models. Overall, it looks a lot like the Huawei MediaPad M1 and it even has an aluminum housing.
]]>Operating System | Android 4.2 (Jelly Bean) |
Dimension (in) | 4.8 x .31 x 8.4 |
Weight (lb) | 0.77 |
Screen (in) | 8.0 |
Resolution (px) | 1280 x 800 |
Touchscreen | TFT Capacitive |
Other |
Bluetooth v4.0; Wi-Fi/3G connectivity; Front and rear cameras; Micro SIM; Micro USB; MicroSD; Accelerometer |
Battery Life | 11.5 hrs |
The HP Slate 8 Plus (7500) is an 8-inch Android 4.2.2 Jelly Bean tablet (at time of shipping anyway) with HD resolution at 1280 x 800 from a IPS display. The processor is a 1.6GHz quad-core HiSilicon Balong V9R1 ARM Cortex-A9 processor which HP’s “Huawei tablets” have now started running.
As far as connectivity goes, HP gave the Slate 8 Plus Wi-Fi 802.11n, Bluetooth 4.0, and the ability to support 3G data on some models. Overall, it looks a lot like the Huawei MediaPad M1 and it even has an aluminum housing.
]]>