[clue] cheap Android 4.0 tablet

[Jim Ockers]

Hi CLUEbies,

I've never had an iPad and didn't think I needed a tablet.  A friend of 
mine who does business in & around China introduced me to these cheap 
Android tablets.  I got an Android 4.0 (ICS) tablet with 1GB RAM, 4 core 
CPU, 16GB flash, 10.1" display, wifi only, for $178.  It is the same 
Android as my phone and with the exception of a few China-specific 
settings (most of which I've figured out how to change) it's really 
great.  Angry Birds is a lot more fun on the big screen.

I don't want to take the time to write a full review but I thought I 
would mention it because I'm probably not the only person on this list 
who likes toys, and for the price it's pretty cool.  They have sub-$100 
tablets with 7" displays.  The wifi has lost connection a couple of 
times for no apparent reason, and it is a bit crashy when watching web 
videos.  You get root access.  The ES File Manager lets me access my 
Samba fileserver and my \\server\movies file share via wifi.  The built 
in MX Player app plays every movie file format I've tried from my file 
server, and no playback issues.  The video quality is pretty good - it's 
not a "retina" display but for watching movies it seems fine.

I ordered it out of Hong Kong from http://www.umitablets.com/ and they 
shipped it 3 day DHL express which cost an additional $30 or so I think.

The iPad is way more state of the art and with it you get Apple's 
fantastic industrial engineering.  The AC adapter/charger thingy for 
this tablet is not that great, but then again for the price I'm not 
paying for any of Apple's engineering.

I might write up a real review with photos & screen shots at some point, 
but not right now.

Jim

-- 
Jim Ockers, P.E., P.Eng. (ockers at ockers.net)
Contact info: http://www.ockers.net/