A tablet for all seasons

Priced at less than Bt5,000, the ASUS Fonepad 7 is a highly affordable seven-inch tablet that can function as a phone and is handy to carry around to check mails, update and monitor Facebook as well as read e-books and web pages.

It’s heavier and marginally thicker than other tablets of its ilk, and those used to skinny gadgets might find it a little too study for their taste.

Fonepad 7 runs on Android 4.3 operating system though an upgrade is promised.

It is powered y a powerful 2X2: Intel Atom Multi-Core Processor 1.2 GHz with Intel Hyper-Threading technology that ensures fast and responsive web-browsing as well as smooth HD video playback.

It has 1 gigabyte of working memory or RAM and 8 GB of internal storage, expandable with an microSD card up to 64GB.

The Fonepad 7 has a 7-inch LED-backlit display with 1,024 x 600-pixel resolution and an anti-fingerprint coating. The 2-megapixel camera, is capable of recording 720p video, and the 0.3 megapixel front camera takes satisfactory shots.

Fonepad 7 supports dual SIM making it easy to set which SIM is used for voice calls and which for data connection.

For data connection, Fonepad 7 supports HSPA+ 3G connection of 850/900/1900/2100 MHz. I tested its 3G connection on my TrueMove H 850 MHz 3G account and was pleased with the data connection speed.

During the test, I managed to check mails and update and monitor my Facebook account with ease while riding bus to and from my office. Downloading and installing of apps was fast.

I found Fonepad 7 had quite good performance for a tablet in this price range, The touch screen and menus were responsive, the scrolling was smooth and web pages were rendered fast. Video clips and YouTube clips played smoothly.

It’s fine for playing digital music too. I tested it with my in-ear Razor headphones and found the bass was powerful and really enjoyable.

Asus adds its own ZenUI user interface for Fonepad 7 on top of the Android 4.3 interface and says the interface is designed to make you feel that you are the centre of everything.

Part of the ZenUI is the “What’s Next”  function to immediately remind of your next important task or event. It works together with Calendar and reminds you when the screen is in screen lock mode.

The ZenUI also has a Do It Later function, which allows you to add interesting articles shared by friends on social media, important daily news and import email and text messages for later perusal.

The Open Cloud function integrates cloud space on Google Drive, Dropbox, and Microsoft OneDrive into your favourite ASUS apps to make accessing your content flexible and convenient. It supports file manager, music player and gallery apps. Your photos and music files can be streamed directly from the cloud to your tablet, eliminating the need to download & store the files in your tablet’s memory.

Buyers of the Fonepad 7 are eligible for 5GB Life Time ASUS Webstorage Space.

ASUS Fonepad 7 retails for Bt4,190.

 

Key specs

_ Operating System: Android 4.3

_ Display: 7-inch LED Backlight WSVGA (1024x600) Screen with anti-fingerprint coating

_ CPU: 2X2:Intel Atom Multi-Core Z2520 Processor 1.2 GHz with Intel Hyper-Threading Technology

_ Memory: 1GB

_ Storage: 8GB eMMC with 5GB Life Time ASUS Webstorage Space

_ Network Standard: HSPA+ 3G WCDMA: 850/900/1900/2100; 2G EDGE/GSM: 850/900/1800/1900

_ Wireless Data Network: WLAN802.11 b/g/n; Bluetooth V4.0, supporting Miracast

_ Camera: 0.3 MP Front Camera, 2 MP Rear Camera with Auto focus (720p Video Recording )

_ Audio: Front Speaker with SonicMaster technology

_ Interface: 1 x Micro USB, 1 x 2-in-1 Audio Jack (Headphone / Mic-in), 1 x MicroSD supporting up to 64GB of additional storage, 2 x Micro SIM card slot

_ Sensor: G-Sensor

_ Battery: 10 hours battery life; 15Wh Li-polymer Battery

_ Navigation: GPS, GLONASS & AGPS

_ Dimensions: 192 x 110 x 10.7 mm (WxDxH)

_ Weight: 290 g