‘Yet another tablet under 15K,’ may have been the response from many after the Reliance 3G Tab was announced recently. And yes, like most of the low cost devices entering markets in India, this one too comes from China. Clearly labeled under ZTE, it could make you think and rethink how the company has managed to break the 15K barrier. However, you could simply leave aside the reasoning and read on our review to know if the 3G Tab is yet another cheap tablet or holds within enough features justifying its price tag.
For the price it carries, the Reliance 3G Tab is nowhere near a cheap looking device, we must say. Sporting a decent exterior, it employs a 7-inch TFT capacitive display with multi-touch capabilities. Just below the screen you will find a row of touch buttons (not backlit) – Home, Menu and Back. Scrutinizing the front surface further you’ll also find the light sensor, indicator and VGA front facing camera while the backside shows a mediocre 2MP camera. The edges of the Tab are kept minimalist and uncluttered with speakers, 3.5mm jack, mini USB port, volume control and on/off switch.
It easily slips in hand purses at 389 grams and the look of it could instantly remind you of the Samsung Galaxy Tab. The Reliance unit came with a glossy front side and an easily detachable plasticky backflap disguised in a silver-gray metallic hue. We didn’t attempt breaking it, but the plastic appeared to be pretty fragile. Pulling out the backflap, the Li-Ion battery 3400mAh can be extracted to lay your hands on SIM and microSD card slots. Reliance has also bundled 4GB storage (microSD card) which can be further expanded up to 32GB using the microSD slot. On the inside, it is fuelled with an 800MHz processor and 512MB RAM.
Most of us would agree that an essential feature of a tablet is its display screen. This does not restrict to screen quality but how well it responds to your fingertips. Reliance gave us dicey results here. The 7-inch multi-touch display on this device packs in 480 x 800 pixel resolution and it also managed to follow our finger commands quite effortlessly initially. However, there were several instances when more than a couple of swipes were required.
As aforesaid, the 2 megapixel camera is quite low is terms of quality and lacks flash as well as auto-focus. So, you really can’t do much on this front. The usual front facing VGA camera turns out to rather decent. Video recording again wasn’t something good to talk about. As we turned towards the web browser, Wi-Fi connection came is pretty quick. Pages loaded effectively amidst wiling away some time on social networking. We did experience a certain lag while moving from one screen to another. The lag wasn’t just while browsing but it was overall while navigating otherwise as well.
Caught amidst the highly anticipated Ice Cream Sandwich and the rumored Jelly Beans, the Reliance 3G Tab gleefully employs the Android 2.3.4. So, obviously you get to drool over all the features that Android 2.3 tags along. Now, the inclusion of this version of the operating system is appreciated as there are several smartphones carrying a higher price tag while employing a lower OS version.
This ZTE built tablet has the Reliance mark embossed as soon as you switch it on. You’ll find slight customization with a Reliance skin and annoying welcome tune. Along with the little personalization, you will find the R World Online icon that lets you explore several entertainment facets.
Dell had tried creating a middle ground with its 5-inch Streak that was supposed to be somewhere between a tablet and a smartphone. However, calling this 7-incher a large smartphone does not sound fair enough. Nevertheless, it comes with voice functionality. Needless to say, it is deployed using the Reliance network. We tried using the Bose earphones for voice calls, which weren’t something exceptional but not bad either. Disappointingly, the Reliance 3G Tab is network locked with some expensive 3G plans put on platter by the network carrier. However, without voice calls, you can use the device over Wi-Fi. On the connectivity mode, Bluetooth 2.0 and GS also form a part of the spec sheet.
On the music front, we decided to put aside the Android music player and go shopping in the Android Market. On zeroing on the Mixzing music player to manage the media for us, began our audio and video testing session. Through the loudspeaker, the audio quality just fine and with the Bose earphones it was even better. The video quality could have been better, here you can blame the screen resolution.
After spending hours indulged into the Fruit Ninja on the iPad 2, the experience on the Reliance Tab was pretty washed off, for obvious reasons. Here, we aren’t complaining or comparing, knowing the price the 3G Tab carries. Besides, we tried our hands on some swiftly downloaded apps, games, live wall papers and the experience was just about fine. The Tab boasts of up to 9 hours talk time and 300 hours of standby, and we feel to a great extent it keeps up to it. With average usage, we managed to stretch it for more than a day.
To sum it up, everyone wants a piece of the tablet and not all can get it due to the high price tags that this device category reads. Moreover, we have a very price sensitive market in India. So, for those looking to get hold of a tablet for usual emails, social networking, exploring Android markets for games and a price tag that reads just Rs. 12,999, then the Reliance 3G Tab would be an option to consider. Further, you must be ready to let go camera abilities and tie down to Reliance 3G plans. On our rating meter it has managed to jump up to 7 out of 10.
