Tablet under 10k(budget)

The battle of the budget tablets just got a whole lot sweeter with the launch of budget tablets powered by Google’s latest Android OS, Ice Cream Sandwich. Of late, we have seen quite a few Ice Cream Sandwich running budget tablets hit the streets such as the HCL Me tablet U1, Zync Z990, iberry AUXUS AX02 and the Micromax Funbook to name a few. All these tablets are priced below the Rs. 10,000 price tag.
If you were in the market to pick up one of these tablets, you are spoiled for choices. So, to help you with your buying decision, we have put together a quick look at the specifications, benchmark scores and some of the features of these budget ICS powered Android tablets.

 

Particulars	Micromax Funbook	HCL Me Tab U1	Zync Z990	iberry Auxus AX02
Price	Rs. 6499	Rs. 7999	Rs. 8990	Rs. 9990
Screen Size	7-inch	7-inch	7-inch	7-inch
Screen resolution	480x800	480x800	480x800	480x800
RAM	512MB	512MB	1GB	1GB
Processor	1.22 GHz Cortex-A8	1GHz Cortex A8 CPU	1.2GHz	1GHz Cortex A8 CPU
Front Facing camera	0.3MP	0.3MP	VGA	0.3MP
Rear camera	NA	NA	NA	2MP
Internal Storage	4GB	4GB	4GB	4GB
Expandable Storage	32GB via MicroSD card	32GB via MicroSD card	32GB via MicroSD card	32GB via MicroSD card
Ports/Connection	DC in, Mini USB, Mini HDMI, MicroSD card slot and the headphones jack	mini USB port, a headphone jack, microSD card slot, DC in and a full sized USB port	DC in, USB hub, micro USB port, 3.5mm jack as well as mini HDMI out	mini USB port, mini HDMI out, a headphones jack, microSD card slot, DC in
battery	2800mAh	3600mAh	3600mAh	4000mAh
App store	Google Play Store	No Google Play Store. Hcl Me App store	Google Play Store	Google Play Store
3G	Yes via a USB dongle	Yes via a USB dongle	Yes via a USB dongle	Yes via a USB dongle
Wi-Fi	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Bluetooth	No	No	No	No
Benchmark Scores	Higher is better
Quadrant	1674	1173	1156	1733
Antutu	2702	NA	2148	2941
Linpack Single thread	15.86	NA	7.04	14.53
Linpack Multithread	14.01	NA	6	13.58
GlBenchmark (Egypt Standard)	4384	NA	1541	4265

From the above table, one thing is clear. The iberry Auxus AX02 is the best of the list as it has the highest capacity battery, very good benchmark scores fells really comfortable in our hands and above all is a good overall  performer. It is also the most expensive tablet on our list. 

The iberry is closely followed by the Micromax funbook in terms of benchmarks. The device is the cheapest on our list and hence you may find the touch to be a little less responsive than the others but it is capacitive in nature nonetheless.

Coming in third is the Zync Z990. Its specifications are at par with the competition but its performance wasn’t at par with the other tablets on the list. 

The HCL Me tablet U1 is the last tablet on this list for only one reason. HCL has decided to remove access to the Google Play Store and instead put up its own HCL Me App store. The advantage of this is that you don’t need to log in or have a Google account to access the store. The down side is the App store isn’t updated frequently enough and you don’t have access to all the latest apps. We wish that HCL included access to the Google Play Store along with its own app store. 

DataWind-Quad Electronics rift delays delivery of Aakash tablet

Controversies have continued to chase DataWind. The Canadian company, which was spearheading the original Aakash tablet project, has been accused by its erstwhile assembly partner Quad Electronics Solutions Pvt. Ltd of not clearing dues. DataWind, on the other hand, has accused Quad Electronics of infringing intellectual property rights and trying to sell the Aakash tablet directly to IIT-Rajasthan.
DataWind further claims that Quad Electronics signed an MoU with IIT-Rajasthan and unsuccessfully tried to develop a UbiSlate 7+ competitor. The two partners have already parted their ways and claim to have served legal notices to each other. However, thousands of people who booked the device are suffering because of the rift between the two companies. It may be recalled that DataWind had opened booking for the UbiSlate 7+, upgraded version of the original Aakash or UbiSlate 7 last year, but has not yet started shipping. A lot of people had paid in advance for the device.

“We will provide an update on the number of pre-bookings, units delivered and schedule to clear the backlog at our launch event, planned for the third week of this month,” DataWind CEO Suneet Singh Tuli told Live Mint via e-mail. Tuli had previously revealed that DataWind had received three million bookings for Ubislate 7+ and was likely to launch the device in a few weeks.

Back to back delays have already dented the popularity of the Aakash tablet, which is also touted as the world's cheapest tablet. The Indian government wants to use the Aakash tablet for bridging the digital divide in the country; however the device is yet to see the light of day. Union minister Kapil Sibal recently said the Aakash 2 tablet will launch in May with improved specifications.

Turn Your iPad Into a Windows 8 Tablet

If you want to get a taste of Windows 8 for tablets, a new $25 app for the iPad can simulate the Metro UI on Apple’s tablet. Called Win8 Metro Testbed, the app is made by Splashtop, a company known for its remote desktop apps for iOS and Android.

Before you download the app, you will need Windows 8 Consumer Preview running on a PC (download it here, and you’ll probably want to use dual boot) and install a small streamer file. Once you got that up and running, install Win8 Metro Testbed on your iPad, and the app will basically stream Windows 8 to your tablet via Wi-Fi at up to 60 frames per second – which is very smooth.

The app uses the native touch gestures of Windows 8 tablets, such as swiping from the left to switch apps, swiping to the right to reveal the Charms (options) menu or pull from the top to close an app. Swiping left/right in Internet Explore will move between pages, and when you swipe slowly from the left, the “snapping” feature is enabled, which allows you to run two app side by side.

Given that Windows 8 tablets are not yet available, there are, of course, a few shortcomings to Win8 Metro Testbed on the iPad, such as the lack of camera support. But the main drawback would be that upon connection, the desktop display adjusts itself to the native resolution of the iPad 2, 1024 by 768 pixels. While this is the minimum for Metro apps, the resolution doesn’t support snapping apps side by side, unless you use the 1366 by 768 resolution, which creates black bars across the top and bottom of the screen.

If you’re looking forward to Windows 8 and have an iPad, $25 ($50 after initial promotion ends) is a reasonably priced way to get a taste of Metro apps early. But Splashtop’s Win8 Metro Testbed will probably me more effective to developers who are working on Windows 8 apps and want to test them on a tablet, since they can’t buy an actual Windows 8 one yet.

The Toshiba Excite 13 sports the largest tablet screen yet

Toshiba reveals the first post 10.1-inch tablet and outfits it with a quad-core Tegra 3 processor.
Tablet screens are evolving. So far in 2012, we've seen the iPad double its resolution to 2048x1536 and the AMOLED-based Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.7 reach black level depths that were previously unheard of (but, thankfully becoming more common) on a tablet. So where do we go from here? If Toshiba has its say, we go big.
Today Toshiba introduced the first tablet to break the 10.1-inch barrier. Its new Excite 13 sports a 13.3-inch IPS screen, running at a 1600x900 resolution and comes installed with Android 4.0.
I got a chance to briefly play around with the tablet a few weeks ago. One might expect a tablet with a 3-inch larger screen to feel a bit light and somewhat heavier than conventional 10-inchers and that's exactly what I found here.

Certain apps definitely seemed more at home on the larger screen, however. The Android Maps app in particular looked more impressive and somehow felt easier to use on the 13.3-inch screen than I'd ever experienced before.
I can only imagine what advantages the large screen might afford when playing something like Catan or other board games. Also, someone needs to make a Ouija game for this tablet, stat!
At only 0.4-inches thick the Excite 13 isn't much more substantial than most other tablets. It does weigh in at 2.2 pounds, however. Not "heavy" by any means, but definitely heavier than what I'm used to. Thankfully, Toshiba saw fit to include a stand with the tablet.
Those of you patiently awaiting the Tegra 3 quad-core tablet explosion have likely been disappointed in the last few months, but things look to be picking up. The Excite 13 houses a Tegra 3 CPU, 1GB of RAM, includes micro USB, Micro HDMI, four speakers, and like the Toshiba Thrive before it, a full-size SD card slot. A 2-megapixel front camera and a 5-megapixel back camera round out the features.
And from the "I'll believe it when I see it department" Toshiba purports a 13 hour battery life for the Excite 13. Impressive, if our tests confirm such a long duration.
We'll find out in early June when the Excite 13 arrives in stores. $650 nets you 32GBs of storage, while the 64GB model will retail for $750. These are Wi-Fi-only models and there are no current plans for carrier versions.
My initial, gut reaction to those prices is "too expensive". I know Toshiba is offering more screen real estate than any other tablet before it and includes some nice extras like micro HDMI and full SD support, but once you get over the excitement of the larger than ever screen, you've a normal Android tablet with no added functionality like the Prime's keyboard.
That's my initial assessment at least. I'll need to spend some proper time with the Excite 13 to fairly judge whether its value. Look for a full review in early June.

Cheapest, smartest and wonderful tablet

The UbiSlate7+(x-aakash) is an Android 2.3 touch screen tablet that has a HD video co-processor for a high-quality multimedia experience and core graphics accelerator for faster application support.  This tablet is the only Android device in the market to offer DataWind’s UbiSurfer browser, based on 18 international patents. 
The device includes WiFi & GPRS connectivity allowing anytime & anywhere internet access and phone functionality. Optional 3G modems are also supported via USB. In addition to a micro-SD card slot, a full-sized USB port is integrated into the unit allowing pen-drives, external keyboards, web-cams, dongles and other inexpensive peripherals to be attached.

Price	Device: Rs.2,999 (Optional Internet: Rs.98/mo.)
Microprocessor	Cortex A8 – 700 Mhz
Battery	3200 mAh
OS	Android 2.3
Network	WiFi & GPRS (SIM & Phone functionality)

Features Anytime & Anywhere Internet access with Cellular connectivity for only Rs. 98/- per month (in India only) Connect via GPRS or WiFi GPRS: Embedded modem eliminates the need for external dongles and allows Internet access everywhere WiFi: Allows fast Youtube videos at hotspots Fast web access even on GPRS networks, across the country using DataWind's patented acceleration technology Web, Email, Facebook and much much more! High Quallity Video Streaming & HD Quality Video Playback Games, Full Office suite, Educational software, Over 150,000 apps! Expandable memory to 32GB Use any ordinary pen-drive Even plug-in a 3G dongle And it's a Phone to make/receive voice calls

Specifications Android OS 2.3 Cortex A8, 700 Mhz Processor with HD Video Co Processor 256 MB RAM Storage: (Internal) 2GB Flash / (External) 2GB to 32GB Supported Peripherals: 2 Standard USB Ports (Ver. 2.0) Audio Out: 3.5mm jack Display and Resolution: 7" Display with 800x480 pixels Supported Document Formats: All Version Office Document formats and many more High Quality Video Streaming & HD Quality Video Playback Input Devices: Resistive Touch Screen Connectivity with GPRS & WiFi IEEE 802.11 a/b/g Battery: Upto 180 minutes of battery, AC adaptor 200.240 volts

WebRep

currentVote

noRating

noWeight