- AAKASH TABLET or DATAWIND UBISLATE
Price: Rs 2,999
Specs:
7-inch resistive display; 366 MHz processor, in addition to Graphics
Accelerator and HD Video Co-processor; 256 MB RAM; 2 GB Flash Memory
with 2 GB Micro SD card, expandable to 32 GB; Android 2.1 operating
system; Wi-Fi, GPRS; 2 USB ports; 2100 mAh battery.
First things first: You will not rave about the performance of the Ubislate, or Aakash
as the Government prefers to call it. Datawind's 7-inch tablet comes
with a sticky resistive touch display, a three-hour battery and no 3G
connectivity. The company does not even call it a tablet.
That
done with, now let's come to why it is here on the GG Choice page, which
features the best product of the month. Let's just put it this way:
Suddenly, you don't need a pricey smartphone to be able to access social
media sites, apps and multimedia, all at the same time. Yes, that is
why the Ubislate earns a place for itself on this page. It may only be a
poor relative in the whole family engendered by the iPad, but even with
its simplest of powers, it makes the members of the smartphones clan
look up and take notice.
- Should you buy a low-cost tablet?
At
Rs 2,999, the Ubislate (the government-issue Aakash is tagged at $35 or
around Rs 1,700) is at least a couple of thousand rupees less than the
most basic Android phone. Even without 3G, it affords quick access to
the Internet via Wi-Fi and GPRS (the government version does not have
GPRS and speakers). Datawind's patented data-compression technology
makes web access via GPRS much quicker than normal. Its multimedia
capabilities are good, with loud audio and clear video on its 800x480
resolution screen. It runs on Android v2.1 and has a 2100 mAh battery.
Add Rs 300 more and you will get a keyboard plus protective case for the
tablet. (And for those who require such things, the 7 incher comes with
two USB ports...take that iPad and Galaxy Tab!)
- iPad v/s tablet war heats up
Why
the price is important while putting the Ubislate in its correct place
in the tablet panoply is because it could trigger a fall in the price of
basic machines. Datawind is itself already working on giving the device
a capacitive screen and 3G connectivity. This version will be priced
around Rs 7,000, making it, when it releases, the cheapest 3G tablet in
the market. The aim thereafter is to bring down the price - through
sheer volume sales - to Rs 3,000. In fact, Suneet Singh Tuli, CEO of
Datawind, says that his company is trying to tweak costs to make the
capacitive screen avatar of the Government's Aakash available for the
same price as the current resistive screen version. It can dare such a
thing because, thanks to the Union HRD Ministry, it has guaranteed sales
of 1,00,000 units. Add to that the numbers from the commercial retail
of the Ubislate. Then think of where such a pricing would leave the
expensive smartphones or the mid-range tablets.
- What the Ubislate challenges
- CREATIVE ZIIO 7
Android v2.1; 7-inch resistive display; 1 GHz processor; 512 MB RAM; 8GB memory; Wi-Fi; In-built battery. Price: Rs 17,999.
- RELIANCE 3G TABLETAndroid
v2.3; 7-inch capacitive display; 800 MHz processor; 512 MB RAM; 8GB
memory; 3G, Wi-Fi; 3400 mAh battery. Price: Rs 12,999
Android v2.2; 7-inch resistive display; 1 GHz processor; 512 MB RAM; 8GB memory; 3G, Wi-Fi; 2200 mAh battery. Price: Rs 9,999
