Jan 08, 2013 10:57 AM
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(Updated Jan 08, 2013 11:10 AM)
There has been a flurry of low budget tablets especially in the Indian market but many of them have failed due to the lack of big players in this arena but Acer’s new device called the Iconia B1-A71 is a promising new kid on the block. This tablet was released at a pre event of the CES. Though it cannot match up to the likes of the Apple Ipad mini or the Nexus 7. It does make its cut by its pricing and maybe a good bet in the Indian Market. And this is a specifications review and not a user review. The device will be released possibly in the month of February in India.
Dimensions and Design – The tablet is 7 inch tablet with a thickness of 11.3 mm, which makes it slightly thicker than the Nexus 7 which measures around 10 mm and a lot more than the ipad mini which measures around 8 mm. The design is not too great to be mentioning about. Like most other budget tablet it also has a plasticky feel to it. It weighs around 320 gms which one of the lighter tablets in the market. Considering its size and weight it is good for very long duration single handed usage.
Screen – The screen is WSVGA capacitive multi-touch display 7 inches with a resolution of 1024 x 600 pixels. The pixel density comes to around 210 ppi. Good enough for its price tag.
Operating System – The device runs on Android 4.1 Jellybean and which surprisingly runs very smoothly on this device though an Android 4.2 Jellybean. The company hasn’t spoken about an update for the device as yet. I’ll be posting it here as soon as I get enough details about it.
Storage – The device has an internal storage of 8GB and and can be supplemented by a memory card of upto 32 GB. The device has a DDR3 RAM of 512 MB which can be quite disappointing but nonetheless the device works well that you might not feel a need for more (unless and until you trying bombarding the device with a lot of apps).
Processor - The device runs on 1.2 Ghz Dual core mediatek processor. The processor supplements the memory well to provide a very good tablet experience to the user.
Connectivity Options - The device comes with a wifi b/g/n with Bluetooth 4.0 but the lack of HSPA+ might hurt the device a bit. It also has a 3.5 mm headphone jack with a micro usb port for charging and data syncing. It has all other standard connectivity options are available.
Camera – The device sports a VGA front camera and no back side camera. This may also prove as a major setback for this device. I expected at least a 2 MP back camera. A better camera is always a USP for a device.
Battery Life – The device has a 2710 mah battery with a far behind those of its competitors in the low budget range, again a major cause of concern for the manufacturers. Only a hands on will determine how the tablet will actually fare in working conditions.
Price and Release details – The pricing of the tablet has been said to be below 150 $ and in India it might be in the sub 10k range. Though the device is not that spectacular, it may fare well in the market owing to the fact that the device comes from a major tech giant like Acer. It will be released around the first week of February and let us see how it is going to fare in the Indian market.
Thanks and Regards,
SlightlyDrunk
