It's my first tablet so I'm not sure how to compare it to others. I've had a couple of Android phones and they are what gives me some comparison point I guess.
The tablet comes running ICS, and is soon to upgrade to Jellybean.
I'm still getting used to all this home-screen real estate:
Still not really sure what to fill up the extra space with, but I find the screen really pleasant to use. It's accurate and responsive and the display generally looks well-defined and without any noticeable ghosting. Colours look fairly accurate. It lacks the vibrancy of the SGS3, but then it doesn't look over-saturated like that phone can.
Photos look fairly close to what my monitor displays, and video plays back very nicely indeed:
Okay, a still image doesn't give that much indication, I guess, but I was very pleased with the playback.
[Edit: the text here looks rather blurred and blocky. I've checked again and it's perfectly crisp and clear when directly observed. Perhaps camera shake is to blame here. Anyway, I can't be bothered changing the picture now. You'll have to take my word for it. Or not I guess. I'm not a professional reviewer; what do I care?]
Really I only wanted this device for a pdf/.doc reader and the odd bit of video playback and I'm really pleased that it actually seems capable of a lot more.
Pros:
I think the display is great for the price. Nice to be able to watch HD video on a decent resolution display.
It's responsive and I haven't had any noticeable lag yet despite the initial rush of installing and running lots of apps. (It's not quite as quick or smooth as my SGS3, but it's fast enough not to bother me).
16GB storage and a micro-SD card slot gives me all the storage I'll need.
I've had good wi-fi reception all around my house so far, and it's been fine for streaming HD video using gmote even through a few walls and doors.
The Tegra 3 processor allows some gaming I would imagine if I ever decide I want to do that...
It feels well-made. No give, no unpleasant plasticky feeling anywhere, and it looks like a smart hi-tech device (to me anyway).
Speakers seem okay. Certainly fine for basic video anyway.
To my mind it's a bloody bargain at not much over £200!
Cons:
The display could be brighter. Max brightness is okay for indoor use, but I was surprised the brightness topped out so soon as I was adjusting it.
No camera. I don't care about this because my phone has a good camera and I have a decent Fuji digital as well so this really wasn't a priority.
The screen is a fingerprint magnet like nothing else I've ever known!
Biggest drawbacks: The previous ones are minor, but here's a couple that might put some people off:
i) it's not exactly the svelte and sexy device that the ipad is - or the Galaxy tab for that matter. It's a bit chunky (a plus here is that it fits in a full-sized USB port) as you can see in the pic below. And it weighs 710g I believe. Now I didn't think an extra 150g or so over the ipda/tab would make much difference. I mean, I'm a man; I've spent a good portion of my adult life lifting weights - what do I care for an extra 150g burden?! Well, yeah... but it does feel kind of heavy. It's not comfortable to use for long periods of reading holding it in one hand that's for sure. A definite negative mark against it, I feel.
ii) the battery is not great. 3260mAh, so a fair way below other tablets. In my experience it lasts perfectly fine for web browsing and even HD playback, but playing some of the more demanding games (like Great Big War Game with all the extras turned on) burns through battery life fairly rapidly.
Thickness:
All in all I'm very pleased with it at the moment. I'll update once the initial flush of new toy excitement has worn off...
[Gah... stupid camera/website reorienting my photos... tools, I'm blaming you!]
