The 7-inch Viewsonic Viewpad 7 is powered with ARM11 600 MHz processor that runs Android 2.2 OS and preloaded with Google Mobile Services (GMS) for easy access to Android Market where 200 thousand+ apps are located. It is not only a computer; it is also a phone, mp3 player, camera, video player, GPS navigation system and etc. It offers front (0.3 Megapixels) and rear (3 Megapixels) cameras perfect for taking pictures and facetime-like experience and for a type free search, a microphone is installed for voice search. For connectivity, this tablet is equipped with Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g and 3G to make sure that you are connected all the time when there is no Wi-Fi signal. The Viewpad 7 is also equipped with Bluetooth connectivity for easy photo sharing.
The design of the Viewsonic Viewpad 7 is not far from other Android tablets, but it is actually closer to Apple’s iPhone 4 design. The sides are covered with silvery plastic material and the front and back of the tablet is glossy black. The Viewpad’s size (179.4mm x 110mm x 11.5mm) and weight (13.2 ounces) is almost the same as the Samsung Galaxy Tab. While the Viewpad 7 has the same 7-inch screen like the Galaxy Tab, its resolution (800 x 480) is lower than the Tab (1024 x 600). The Galaxy Tab has a round edges compared to the Viewpad 7’s sharp edges due to its flat design. While the overall look is good, its screen is a fingerprint magnet.
While using the tablet, the 7-inch capacitive multi-touch LCD screen is pretty responsive when browsing to the different desktops. Browsing into the gallery is very smooth and will give you a different experience as it interacts with the accelerometer and performing the pinch-to-zoom works very nice when viewing a picture.
The 3 Megapixels rear camera is fairly decent and it picked up fairly warm colors and tones when capturing images and videos, but the front camera is a bit grainy because it’s only 0.3 Megapixels.
Scrolling through the web page with the built-in internet browser is smooth and the pinch-to-zoom is fairly decent for an ARM11 600 MHz processor. Playing web videos on the browser like YouTube is also fair and not sluggish.
Now, let’s look at the game performance of the Viewsonic Viewpad 7. Loading a racing game “Raging Thunder 2” took only 9 seconds and it is very responsive when steering the car. But, I must admit that in Archos 7, the game is a little bit smoother and faster.
There are two 0.5 Watt speakers on the either side of the tablet and the sound quality is fairly good and loud for a tablet when playing music and videos. With its 3240mAh Li-ion battery, you can have 6.5 hours of video playback.
The Viewsonic Viewpad 7 is initially priced at &599 and now it is down to $299 if you purchase it on the Viewsonic’s website.
May 26, 2011
Android Tablet Reviews