off brand Nexus 7 competitor

[bromberg]

I am seriously considering this Android tablet, realizing full well it is not in the same class as the Nexus 7.
Does anyone have any thoughts on "no name/entry-level" tablets such as this?

Thanks very much,
Dan

 

[zedorda]

I bought something similar for my son couple years ago. They work well as long as you understand that a "MID"(Mobile Internet device) is a internet focused item and not all that good for apps. Some may do apps better than other but its never as good as other tablets like the N7. Not many get updates for long my son's tablet is still on ICS and won't likely get anymore updates. Newegg.com has several budget minded tablets.

 

[B. Diddy]

Welcome to Android Central! Please STAY AWAY from that device. Off brand Android devices are most often not worth it, even if they are cheap. More often than not, you'll get a heavy, slow, glitchy, poorly supported device that may not even have full access to the Google Play Store. See Jerry Hildenbrand's opinion here: Beware the super-cheap Android tablets on Black Friday | Android Central

Specifically for that device, it has only 512 GB RAM, which is very low these days (most good devices these days have 2 GB RAM). It has only 4 GB of storage ROM, which is where you can install apps--expanding the memory with an SD card does not give you more room to install more apps. And not all of that 4 GB is available to you--probably 2-3 GB are taken up by the system, so you may actually only have 1-2 GB to work with. The 800x480 resolution is awful--the picture will be incredibly bad. And it doesn't specify if that CPU is single or dual core. A single core CPU will mean very slow performance.

There are a lot of good deals right now for much MUCH better tablets from known manufacturers. Stay away from this one! Happy shopping.

 

[patruns]

I am seriously considering this Android tablet, realizing full well it is not in the same class as the Nexus 7.
Does anyone have any thoughts on "no name/entry-level" tablets such as this?

Thanks very much,
Dan

You get what you pay for. I would not touch a device like that. Low specs, likely lack of reasonable support and generally will sour you on Android based on the experience. Better to buy a remanufactured name brand if price is that important.

 

[bromberg]

B.Diddy:
I was just about to hit the ENTER button but read your review and your points are well taken.
So Nexus 7 (possibly 10?) it shall be: any suggestions which upgrade features I should consider?
Thanks again,
Dan

 

[B. Diddy]

Phew! Glad I got you in time.

If you want something like the Nexus 7, but perhaps a little more economical, consider the MeMO Pad HD 7, which is comparable to the 2012 Nexus 7 (and, like the Nexus 7, is also made by Asus), but with the added benefit of a microSD card slot. Groupon has a deal for them now, $129 for a 16 GB version, brand new: ASUS 7" MeMO Pad HD 16GB Tablet Deal of the Day | Groupon

On the other hand, Groupon also has the 2012 Nexus 7 with 32 GB for $149, also brand new. Decisions decisions! https://forums.androidcentral.com/e...e-nexus-7-by-asus-16gb-or-32gb&token=-suRS3aZ

What do you mean by upgrade features?

 

[B. Diddy]

Oh, and they also have the MeMO Pad 10 for $189: ASUS MeMO Pad 10" 16GB Tablet Deal of the Day | Groupon

 

[bromberg]

B. Diddy:

Thanks again for your timely replies - I'll investigate those Groupon deals you suggested.

Since this is my first tablet I don't want to kick myself for purchasing Nexus7-look-alikes that don't measure up. I've read so many good reviews about the Nexus7 that I'm ready to just close my eyes and swipe my card already. By "upgrade features", I meant assuming Nexus offers it, should I get the most storage (since there is no expandable slot), fastest processor, etc... for it? I haven't seen where it's customizable so this may be a moot point.
One last question, since I have no cell phone, assuming I'm in a public WiFi hotspot, is it possible to use the Google Voice feature in GMail to make phone calls (like I can from my desktop) ?

Thanks for all your help and followup!
Dan

 

[B. Diddy]

My pleasure to help. The only options are memory, and I always err on the side of getting the higher memory option, because it's better to be safe than sorry. Apps (especially games) keep getting bigger and bigger, and since the Nexus 7 doesn't have any microSD card slot (as you rightly point out), there is nowhere else to move data in order to clear more space. So go for the 32 GB version instead of the 16 GB, if price is no object.

I've never tried it, but Talkatone is supposed to allow you to make calls over wifi using Google Voice. I know it works on my wife's iPad Mini, but I've never tried it on my Nexus 7.

 

[bromberg]

B. Diddy:

Talkatone looks very promising so thanks for the suggestion (and convincing me to go for the 32GB Nexus7 model). It never occurred to me that Google Voice needed an app since I thought by merely logging into my GMail account that Google Voice would be ready to go; but maybe I once did install a Firefox addon to enable Google Voice?
Two more questions, if I may:
1) Any thoughts on holding off for the successor to the Nexus 7? I've heard rumblings about a possible Nexus 8 for the holidays?
2) Is there any way to search for an Android app possessing a particular feature? Specifically, I'd like to find an app such that when displaying a page in French, if I hover over a word the English translation would appear. Having never installed an app I don't know if there is a website dedicate to finding an app based on description.

Thanks again for your solid replies!
Dan

 

[B. Diddy]

It never occurred to me that Google Voice needed an app since I thought by merely logging into my GMail account that Google Voice would be ready to go; but maybe I once did install a Firefox addon to enable Google Voice?

I think you can make Google Voice calls on your desktop Chrome using the proper extension, but I don't think that function is possible yet on mobile Chrome. I may be wrong, so if anyone else knows better, please correct me.

1) Any thoughts on holding off for the successor to the Nexus 7?

I'd say that there's really no need to hold off, unless you really need a slightly larger screen. The 2013 N7 is simply outstanding.

2) Is there any way to search for an Android app possessing a particular feature?

Although I'm not sure if there's any app available that does exactly what you're describing, the easiest way to search is simply go to Google and enter the various terms that you want. So for your example, you could Google "Android translate webpage hover," or something like that, then see if any of the results are from the Google Play Store. And hey! I just found Touch Translator, which I think does what you're asking for. (I actually surprised myself--I didn't expect to find anything!)

 

[bromberg]

B. Diddy,
I'm not looking for a bigger screen (in fact, I wish there was a tablet as small as a cellphone [the only reason I'm buying a tablet is for all those wonderful apps available - I actually don't own a cell!] so I could put it in my pocket/belt holder, but nobody makes one); I just don't want to kick myself if the Nexus 8 came out with an expandable memory port or some other desirable feature.
Didn't mean for you to Google my "hover-translate" request for me, but thanks! I was just wondering if there was some website that specializes in mapping an app to a description, but you're right, that's what Google is for!
Thanks for all your help and suggestions - I'm sure I'll have more questions for the forum when I purchase my Nexus.
Dan

 

[B. Diddy]

I just don't want to kick myself if the Nexus 8 came out with an expandable memory port

I think it's safe to say that Google will not produce any device with a memory card slot. They've made it pretty clear that they do not intend to do this, and instead prefer users to rely on cloud storage if they are interested in expandable memory.