Android Vizio Tablet
In the market for a new tablet? Like to know how the low priced Vizio stands up in an unbiased review? You’ve come to the right place.
By Richard Macias
In the market for a new tablet? Like to know how the low priced Vizio stands up in an unbiased review? You’ve come to the right place.
At first glance you’ll notice the sleek finger print magnet screen that has become synonymous with slate tablets. Next you will notice a standard camera facing the front and none in the back. There are three touch sensitive buttons that change orientation from portrait to landscape located at the bottom front of the unit. Along the sides of the unit you have volume buttons, micro HDMI 1.4 port, Micro USB, Micro SD card slot, 3.5mm headphone jack and 3 built-in speakers.
With the unit in hand and powered on you will immediately see three very obvious things. One, it is pretty heavy for such a small unit. Two, the 8” screen feels a bit small but is just right fitting snug in your hands. Three, it has a serious hot spot that is sure to keep your fingers warm during the winter season (not an added bonus). The back of the unit makes you wish it came with a built in stand but you can buy a case cover with one built in.
The Android interface looks nice but moves a bit sluggishly on the tablet. Most standard applications will open smoothly. However, graphic intensive apps tend to move a bit slower. Like all other androids, the Vizio is able to play flash, which is always a plus, especially when visiting sites like newgrounds.com and miniclip.com for some fun flash animation and games. Even though it has been stated that Adobe will discontinue their mobile flash development they will continue to support current versions. However, it is unclear whether updates will continue for current flash supported units. Social media apps display just fine with no real issues other than the occasional slowdown. Audio playback is excellent with three high quality speakers and the volume level is one to be proud of. The multi-touch display works well. However, it could be a little more precise, especially with close knit hyper links. I have read some complaints regarding its ability to playback Netflix and Hulu but I didn’t notice any issue… and I watched over 20 hours of movies both on the unit and through its HDMI connection to my Sony Bravia.
The universal Remote Control app is definitely cool but not all that useful and doesn’t work with all products. Many apps tend to freeze and have to be forced to close. The built in camera is not for the faint of heart under low level lighting since you will barely be able to see anything. Using the camera under natural lighting produces a better quality picture and works well with Tango, but don’t look to it for high quality shots. The video quality reminds me of my old webcams from the 90’s; it’s usually out of focus and lags. The camera interface seems to have been ported over from a Windows 95 software; with its atrocious border it makes you sad just looking at it. On the upside, there are other apps you may use but none can make up for the lack of a quality picture. I’d say that, while it doesn’t work well, it’s not incredibly bad either.
This unit does work well with most standard games, i.e., Angry Birds, Cut the Rope, Fruit Ninja etc. However, those three touch sensitive buttons are always getting in the way of good gaming. I can’t count the number of times I hit the back, home or menu buttons while playing Glow Hockey. It’s a real hassle since you can’t rest your hand on the bottom of the screen or, if your hand just breezes over the buttons, you get kicked out of the game. Another issue with gaming comes in the form of graphic intensive gaming. Playing CK Zombies or Minecraft can be next to impossible. The unit becomes very hot and the game begins to move at 10 fps making for a very undesirable experience. The unit fits better in your hands than larger tablets but its weight keeps you from wanting to play on long trips.
The Vizio promises 10-hours of battery life but may only deliver 4 – 6 hours depending on what apps are running. I got 4 hours of battery life when streaming Netflix movies; while playing just music, I had 8 good hours. On standby, I have had the unit on for over a day before it turned off.
In short, the Vizio tablet is worth checking out if you are in the market for a low priced tablet. It makes for an excellent gift or addition to your electronics arsenal. It could use some polishing in both hardware and software but at the current price (I’ve seen it as low as $189.52) it deserves consideration.
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Display
Type: LED LCD
Screen Size: 8″
Resolution: 1024×768
Capacitive Touch: Yes, Multi-touch
Camera, Photos and Video
Camera: Yes – Front facing, VGA Chat Camera / 30fps
HDCP Compliant: Yes, play licensed media from your Tablet to TV
Premium Audio: SRS TruMedia
Wireless
Carrier: n/a
WiFi: Yes – 802.11b/g/n
Built-in IR Blaster: Yes – For Universal remote functionality. Preloaded universal remote app covers 95% of CE devices in US market
Bluetooth: Yes
Hardware/OS/Software
UI/OS: V.I.A. Plus interface on Android platform
Flash Support: Yes
Processor/CPU: 1GHz
Memory
Processor Memory (RAM): 512Mb
Built-in Storage: 4GB
User Available Storage: 2GB
Maximum User Storage: 32GB
Inputs/Outputs
Micro HDMI 1.4 (type D): 1
Micro USB: 1
Micro SD Card Slot: 1
Headphone Jack (3.5mm): 1
Weight
Gross: 2.5lbs.
Net: 1.2lbs.
Dimensions
Product: 6.6″W x 8.1″H x .48″D
Packaging: 7.5″W x 9″H x 2.4″D
Additional Specs
Sensors: Ambient Light Sensor, Accelerometer
Battery Life: Up to 10hrs of normal use
Power: 5V 2Amps (5V2A)
Language: English, French and Spanish
Environmental: BfR & PVC free, WEEE and No CFC’s
Certifications: UL, FCC, IC, HDMI, Bluetooth
Package Contents: Tablet, USB power adapter, USB cord and cleaning cloth