Asus launched the Dual SIM version of their FonePad 7 today in Delhi for Rs. 12999/-. We got to check out the retail device for a very limited time. The FonePad 7 Dual SIM is a very unique tablet from Asus, especially at this price point. Let’s check out the first impressions the latest Android Tablet from Asus.
Detailed Specifications:
| OS Support | Android Jelly Bean |
| CPU & Chipset | INTEL Clover Trail Plus |
| Input Device | 10-finger capacitive Touch screen |
| Display | size: 7″ IPS resolution: 1280*800 (WXGA) view angle: 170 degree |
| Graphics | SGX544MP2 Graphics 300MHZ |
| Memory | 1GB |
| Storage | EMMC 8GB Asus WebStorage: 16GB for 1Y |
| Battery | Voltage/cell/ type /Capacity: 15 Wh, 3910mAh non-removable polymer battery Battery Life: 10hrs (play 720P video, display brightness 100nits) |
| Weight W/ Battery | 340g |
| Audio | Codec : Audio CODEC (GOOGLE CTS minimum request) Speaker: Build-in high quality speaker * 1 Mic(internal) : Mic |
| Connectivity | 802.11 b/g/n Bluetooth 4.0 |
| 3G | Yes |
| SIM Card | Micro SIM |
| Network-Bands | ● for WW (Single SIM/Dual SIM): 3G :WCDMA :900/2100/850/1900 2G :EDGE/GSM : 850/900/1800/1900 ● for Indonesia(Dual SIM): 3G :WCDMA :900/2100 2G : EDGE/GSM : 900/1800 |
| Network-Data Rate | WCDMA HSPA+ UL:5.76 Mbps/DL:42 Mbp |
| GPS | Yes |
| NFC | N/A |
| Sensor | G-sensor E-compass Proximity sensor |
| Interface | 1 x Micro USB 1 x Head phone/ Mic-in 1 x Micro SD (SDHC)/ Max.64GB Miracast |
| Front Camera | 1.2M |
| Rear Camera | 5M |
| Accessory (Bundled) | Adapter & Power plug, Manual, Warranty card |
| Adapter | Output: 5.2V, 7W Input: 100-240V AC, 50/60Hz universal |
| Dimensions | 199.5 mm (W) x 120.8mm (D) x 11.35(H) mm |
Packaging:
The tablet comes in simple white coloured box with minimalistic design which not only looks good but also secures the FonePad 7 quite well. Inside you can find the well packed FonePad 7 Dual Sim, USB AC Wall Charger, USB to Micro USB cable & small quick start guide plus warranty card combo.
FonePad 7 Dual SIM that was launched in India is the 8GB variant. It has micro SD card slot for further expansion up to 64GB. The back of the retail box clearly provides information that available storage out of 8GB is around 5GB to the user.
The charger supplied is 5.2V and 1.35A. This is little odd configuration rather than common 5V DC and 1A to 2A output.
The USB Cable is standard USB to Micro USB and can be used for using with AC Wall charger or to connect to PC or Mac.
The first thing we noticed is the sturdy build quality. Yes, it is not feather light and you will feel some weight in hand. But the overall feel in hand is quite solid. The back side is glossy plastic but the user will still get a good grip. There is also little thickness to the product which also leads to better grip in hand.
On the top there is a 3.5mm Audio jack for Audio out as well as micro USB jack charging and data transfer. There is also a dedicated secondary microphone for noise cancellation in calls.
At the bottom there is only primary microphone and nothing else.
At the right side, there is a Power/Lock key and the Volume control keys. Keys have solid feedback and also feels quite solid even in plastic.
At the back there is a 5MP Auto Focus camera without any LED Flash. In short usage, we have found that AF has decent speed and shot to shot timings are not very slow. In fact at this price point the camera is above average.
Even though there are two colours available as white and grey, both uses black front which is mostly dominated by HD IPS display with up to 10 finger multi-touch. Asus FonePad 7 as name suggests also features the dedicated earpiece for making voice calls and also sport the 1.2MP Front Camera for IP Video calls. Unfortunately the FonePad 7 lacks the ability for UMTS or 3G video calls.
Asus FonePad 7 Dual SIM lacks an ambient light sensor for Auto Brightness. There is no Notification LED too. The left side of the tablet has slots for two Micro SIMs and one slot for Micro SD card and its protected by the plastic cap. The SIM 1 is can access both 3G/2G network and SIM 2 can access only 2G GSM network. This is basically a Dual SIM Dual Standby system where only one SIM can be active at a time.
The most striking part of this tablet is its display. The HD IPS LCD which has the resolution of 1280 x 800 is really quite sharp, vivid and bright. The display has good viewing angles and great blacks. At Rs 12,999, this tablet has one of the best displays in the market right now.
The FonePad 7 Dual SIM runs on Android 4.3 Jelly Bean and we hope that Asus will update this tablet to Android Kit Kat 4.4.2.
Overall our experience even though a short one was quite good. The device has Asus skin over stock Android 4.3 but still the software is so fine tuned that one may even think that FonePad 7 is actually powered by a quad-core SOC. I am sure the Hyper Threading in 1.2 GHz dual-core Intel Atom Z2520 processor with 300 MHz PowerVR SGX544 GPU is used quite well. The navigation is quite smooth without lags on first impression. Even some poorly optimized apps actually run quite smooth.
The earpiece is decently loud and the speaker at back is not very loud but rather has much quality output. The headset output and its quality is good too and is enough to power headphones like Bose On Ears, Bose QC20, Sennheiser Momentum. The output is quite clean even at full volume.
Overall the Asus FonePad 7 Dual SIM 3G is a good value for money tablet with good display in this price range. But these are just first impressions. We will be reviewing the tablet on FoneArena soon.