Introduction
Necessity is the mother of invention or shall I say innovation, and in a
cut throat market with no sign of saturation i.e. when the expanse between
supply & demand seems like the Statue of Liberty as seen from Mt. Fuji . Today it seems as though a new tablet is released every week and each company
has a wide range of features in its basket. I personally feel that India is
still more of a price centric market and while I agree that this has its own
pitfalls, the tablet market has become a shining example of how greed could be
a good thing. The various manufacturers in their pursuit to offer “more for
less” have created an array of choices for the consumers that could sometimes
not only exasperate but even bewilder the users.
In the
quest to find the right device, you’ll have to ask some fundamental questions
to your self.
A. Who are you??
As I see it there are 2 types of consumers:
1.
The
Black Box user (BBU)
2.
The
white Box user(WBU)
A person
who uses the functions available without questioning or exploiting the full
capacity of the device is called a black box user. They don’t care what’s
inside or how it works, the limitations; the technical jargons that come with
each new technology etc etc…. They know what they want and don’t really care
about the technicalities. It’s like Katrina in an Hindi emotional scene;
understanding it isn’t necessary as long as she gets the job done.
A white box user is not exactly a guy who gets in the Kernel and debugs it just
for the heck of it, but some one who is really concerned with the various
functions, carefully scrutinises the hardware and updates the device
regularly with new apps etc.
Of course there is a gray area where in you may know some advanced features
like tethering or voice input. If you think you fall in this category you are
well on your way to be a white box user and I expect that you would wilfully
categorize yourself as a WBU.
B. What are you looking for?
Answer:
1. Cool Factor (CF): This includes the
appearance, the display resolution and even the Brand. This is a measure of the
desirability of the device at first site.
Lets admit that not only do we want to have the latest features but need
something that doesn’t cramp our style.
2. Befriendability (BFA): Just a jazzy
term I made up for User Friendly. (If you don’t know what that means, you may
want to spend some more quality time with your Desk/lap-top.)
3. Functionality Integration (FI): This
is based on how well the various functions gel with one another to give a
consistent feeling while using the device. We have all witnessed mobile phones
and other gizmos which had amazing features but no infrastructure (CPU etc) to
fully support these. Like if the device comes with a 8.0 Megapixel camera but
turns your mother-in-law’s b’day party in a Ramsey Brothers movie due to the
lag, you know the manufacturer has bitten off more than his product can chew.
4. Depth of Detail (DoD): This pertains
to the fact that not all devices are treated equally by their respective
manufacturers (its true). Manufacturers
often conduct surveys to find out the users desire for various features but
once (the necessary evil) price comes into play some features may be removed or
modified to suit a particular Price range, I call this Death of Detail. The
market is full of devices that make half-hearted attempts at some very advanced
features for whatever reasons (like device not supporting Bluetooth 3.0 or
higher etc)
5. Vitamin ‘M’ (vM): Its all about the
money honey. As prices may differ regionally I have created a grading scale
based on the factor of value for money i.e. features provided Vs price.
Based on
the above factors I have made a simple comparison for you to analyse and select
the right tablet for you. I have also attached a fact sheet for citing my
conclusions (for the geeks).
|
Brand
|
WBU
|
BBU
|
|||||||
|
CF
|
BFA
|
FI
|
DoD
|
CF
|
BFA
|
FI
|
DoD
|
vM
|
|
|
Samsung Galaxy Tab
620
|
2
|
4
|
4
|
2
|
2
|
4.5
|
2
|
5
|
4.3
|
|
Acer Iconia A500
|
3
|
4
|
3
|
4
|
3
|
3
|
3
|
4
|
4.2
|
|
HTC Flyer (Silver)
|
3.5
|
3.8
|
5
|
4
|
3.5
|
3.8
|
2.5
|
3.5
|
4.8
|
|
Lenovo IdeaPad
Tablet K1 (Red)
|
5
|
4
|
3
|
3
|
5
|
3
|
2
|
4
|
5
|
|
Sony (SGPT111IN/S)
Tablet S
|
5
|
5
|
3
|
2
|
4
|
5
|
4
|
2.5
|
4.9
|
What I
expect is we can add more devices to the list above. Please mail your
suggestions, ratings, grievances (*cough*… disagreements…. *cough*…) and I
shall be happy to put them up for you.
|
Specification
|
Samsung Galaxy Tab 620
|
Acer Iconia A500
|
HTC Flyer (Silver)
|
Lenovo IdeaPad Tablet K1 (Red)
|
Sony (SGPT111IN/S) Tablet S
|
|
GENERAL
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Series:
|
Galaxy Tab
|
ICONIA TAB
|
|
K1
|
|
|
Processor:
|
1.2 GHz Dual Core
|
1 GHz Nvidia Tegra 2 T20 Dual Core
|
1.5 GHz Qualcomm Scorpion
|
1 GHz Nvidia Tegra 2 T20 Dual Core
|
1 GHz ARM Cortex-A9 Dual Core
|
|
Graphics:
|
Mali-400MP
|
ULP GeForce
|
Adreno 205
|
NVIDIA GeForce
|
|
|
Voice Call:
|
Yes
|
No
|
No
|
|
|
|
Supported Networks:
|
2G: GSM 850, 900, 1800, 1900; 3G: UMTS 2100
|
|
2G: GSM 850, 900, 1800, 1900; 3G: UMTS 2100
|
|
|
|
In The Box:
|
Tablet, Stereo Headset, Data Cable, Travel Adaptor Body,
Conversion Plug
|
Tablet, charger, USB cable, QSG
|
Tablet, Battery, Charger, Data Cable, Pouch, Pen, Quick Start
Quide
|
1 tablet, Instruction manual, Wall charger, USB cable
|
|
|
PLATFORM
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Operating System:
|
Android 3.2 (Honeycomb)
|
Android 3.0 (Honeycomb)
|
Android 2.3 (Gingerbread)
|
Android 3.1 (Honeycomb)
|
Android 3.2 (Honeycomb)
|
|
User Interface:
|
TouchWiz UX User Interface
|
Acer User Interface
|
HTC Sense User Interface
|
|
|
|
Sensors:
|
Accelerometer, Gyro Sensor, Proximity Sensor, Digital Compass,
Ambient Light Sensor
|
Proximity Sensor, Gyro Sensor, Accelerometer
|
Ambient Light Sensor, G-Sensor, Digital Compass
|
|
3-Axis Accelerometer, Ambient Light Sensor, Digital Compass,
Gyro Sensor
|
|
MEMORY
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
RAM:
|
1 GB
|
1 GB DDR2
|
1 GB
|
1 GB DDR2
|
1 GB
|
|
STORAGE
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Internal Storage:
|
16 GB
|
16 GB
|
32 GB
|
32 GB
|
16 GB
|
|
Expandable Storage Capacity:
|
32 GB
|
32 GB
|
32 GB
|
Upto 64 GB
|
microSD Card, microSDHC Card
|
|
Memory Card Slot type:
|
microSD
|
microSD Card, microSDHC Card
|
microSD Card
|
microSD Card
|
|
|
DISPLAY
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Display Type:
|
7 inch TFT LCD Capacitive Touchscreen with 1024 x 600 pixels ,
16 M Colors
|
10.1 inch TFT LCD Capacitive Touchscreen with 800 x 1280
pixels , 256 K Colors
|
7 inch TFT Capacitive Touchscreen with 1024 x 600 pixels , 16
M Colors
|
10.1 inch LED 1280 x 800 pixels
|
9.4 inch TFT LCD 1280 x 800 pixels
|
|
Other Display Features:
|
PLS Screen
|
|
Handwriting Support
|
HD Anti Glare Screen
|
Swift and Smooth Touch Experience
|
|
CAMERA
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Primary Camera:
|
3 megapixels
|
5 megapixels
|
5 megapixels
|
5 megapixels
|
5 megapixels
|
|
Secondary Camera:
|
2 megapixels
|
2 megapixels
|
1.3 megapixels
|
2 megapixels
|
0.3 megapixels
|
|
Flash Support:
|
LED Flash
|
LED Flash
|
|
|
|
|
Video Recording:
|
Yes , HD Recording at 1280 x 720 (30 fps)
|
Yes
|
Yes , HD Recording at 1280 x 720
|
|
|
|
Other Camera Features:
|
Auto Focus, Geo-tagging, Smile Detection
|
|
Geo-tagging, Auto Focus
|
|
HD camera powered by Exmor for mobile
|
|
BUSINESS FEATURES
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Mail Features:
|
Email , Pushmail , Voice Mail
|
Email , Pushmail
|
Email , Pushmail
|
|
|
|
Document Support:
|
Document Viewer , Document Editor
|
Document Viewer
|
|
Document Viewer , Document Editor
|
|
|
Other Business features:
|
VPN, Polaris Office, Wi-Fi and USB Printing
|
|
Wi-Fi Printing
|
Amazon Kindle eBook Reader, Documents To Go
|
|
|
BATTERY
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Battery Type:
|
4000 mAh Lithium - Ion
|
3260 mAh Lithium - Polymer
|
4000 mAh Lithium - Ion
|
|
8 hrs
|
|
Talk Time:
|
40 hrs (2G), 20 hrs (3G)
|
|
320 (3G), 480 (Over Wi-Fi)
|
10 hrs
|
430 hrs
|
|
Standby Time:
|
1000 hrs
|
|
|
|
|
|
INTERNET CONNECTIVITY
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Wi-Fi:
|
Yes , 802.11 a/b/g/n
|
Yes , 802.11 b/g/n
|
Yes , 802.11 b/g/n
|
Yes , 802.11 b/g/n
|
Yes , IEEE 802.11 b/g/n
|
|
3G:
|
Yes , HSDPA 21 Mbps; HSUPA 5.76 Mbps
|
No
|
Yes , HSDPA 14.4 Mbps, HSUPA 5.76 Mbps
|
|
|
|
Other Internet Connectivity Options:
|
GPRS , Edge
|
|
GPRS , Edge
|
|
|
|
Pre-Installed Browser:
|
Android
|
|
|
|
|
|
MULTIMEDIA
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Video Playback:
|
Yes , Full HD Playback
|
Yes , Full HD Playback
|
Yes , HD Playback
|
|
|
|
Video Formats Supported:
|
MP4, DivX, Xvid, H.264, H.263, WMV
|
XviD, MP4, H.264, H.263
|
3GP, 3G2, MP4, WMV, AVI, XviD, H.263, H.264
|
|
|
|
Audio Formats Supported:
|
MP3, WAV, eAAC+, WMA, AC3, FLAC
|
MP3, WAV, WMA, eAAC+
|
MP3, WAV
|
|
|
|
NAVIGATION
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
GPS:
|
Yes , A-GPS
|
Yes
|
Yes , A-GPS
|
|
Yes
|
|
Map Support:
|
Google Maps
|
|
Google Maps
|
|
|
|
CONNECTIVITY
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
HDMI:
|
Yes
|
Yes
|
No
|
Yes
|
|
|
Other Connectivity Features:
|
Wi-Fi Hotspot, Wi-Fi Direct, Wi-Fi Channel Bonding
|
|
|
|
|
|
USB:
|
Yes, USB 2.0
|
Yes, Micro USB 2.0 & Normal USB Port
|
Yes, USB 2.0
|
v2.1
|
Yes, 1 x USB 2.0
|
|
Audio Jack:
|
3.5 mm Headphone Jack
|
3.5 mm Headphone Jack
|
3.5 mm Headphone Jack
|
|
Yes Microphone Jack
|
|
Bluetooth:
|
v3
|
v2.1, Supported Profiles (A2DP)
|
v3, Supported Profiles (A2DP)
|
|
v2.1, Supported Profiles (EDR, A2DP, AVRCP, HSP, HID, SPP,
OPP)
|
|
DIMENSIONS
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Dimensions:
|
122.37 x 193.65 x 9.96 mm
|
177 x 260 x 13.3 mm
|
122 x 195.4 x 13.2 mm
|
|
241.2 x 10.1 - 20.6 x 174.3 mm
|
|
Weight:
|
345 g
|
765 g
|
420 g
|
750 g
|
598 g
|
|
| |||||
This is an advance device which combines
mobile and computer and it also easy to carry and handle. It can replace PC
or laptops in near future. Understand your
use or your requirement and then select the device along with the correct price.
Disclaimer: Please understand that the views mentioned herein are my personal and please use the information provided at your own discretion.
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