We love it when we get to see something completely new - we get excited about entering new territory. So we were excited to get our hands on the Viewsonic ViewPad 10, which is the first tablet to offer a dual operating system.
As you might gather from its name, the ViewPad 10 has a 10-inch screen, with a metallic border surrounding it. You'll find three hard keys on its front - for Power, Home and Back. But here it gets a bit confusing. If you're browsing the web using Android, the home key is the back key, and the back key is used to call up a tool bar at the bottom of the display. This toolbar lets you choose from functions such as New Windows, Bookmarks and Go. We were somewhat confused by this, nor were we keen on having to continuously press the home key to get back to the home screen, by rewinding through all our previous steps.
The ViewPad 10 is definitely hefty, weighing in at a whopping 835 grams - the iPad is a positively svelte 680 grams. But then, you're getting a bigger screen than on Apple's tablet. If you're really concerned about the weight, you might like to consider the ViewSonic ViewPad 7, which has a smaller screen, and is lighter.
So - that dual operating system. When you fire up the tablet, the screen appears to offer you the choice between Android and Windows, but you have to choose quickly, otherwise it decides for you and starts up Android OS. It's odd that it does this so quickly, because it's actually a bit sluggish when it comes to getting ready for you to use.
It's rather surprising, because ViewSonic has seen fit to put the speedy Intel Atom 1GHz processor in the ViewPad, which makes it one of the most powerful tablets on the market. Having said that, once it's up and running the ViewPad does offer a fast user experience - browsing the web was a speedy affair, even when we had a number of windows open. We just found the slow start-up - especially compared with the iPad and Samsung Galaxy Tab - rather annoying.
The other shame is that the Atom can't support any system higher than the rather elderly Android 1.6. You also can't access Android Market, because Google does not authorise devices that have screens bigger than seven inches, or that do not offer 3G connectivity.
However, Android users will feel at home with the ViewPad 10 - it has a notification bar at the top of the display and you are able to add widgets, folders and shortcuts just by holding your finger down on the home screen. There are five home screens in total - and you'll find a pullout menu on the right side of each screen. Once this bar is pulled out, the user can scroll left and right between two screens.
Mind you, we did find that swiping between two screens led to us mistakenly dragging an icon onto the home screen. This is because ViewSonic has decided to give each icon such a large surface area that it leaves little room for swiping. But we did like being able to pinch the ViewSonic icon in the middle of each home screen, to call up all home screens to display as five thumbnail screenshots.
We were impressed by the responsiveness of the Android keyboard, but it's not really designed to be held horizontally - the centre buttons are too far apart to be easily reached. Place the tablet on a desk, for instance, or turn it into a vertical position, and the accelerometers will do their bit to turn around the keyboard, which makes it easier to use. Shame we can't say the same thing for the Windows system.
Now, first we have to say that Windows 7 hasn't been designed for touch-screens, which is why we preferred using the Android OS on the ViewPad. Windows 7 offers its mouse cursor in the shape of a twinkling star, which looked very pretty, but wasn't that easy to use when we were trying to get to grips with the various icons and tabs.
Bear in mind, however, that as the ViewPad has two USB ports, you could plug in a keyboard and a mouse to improve the experience. We did like that the virtual keyboard can be moved around the display until it's in a place that you prefer. It also has dedicated number keys - which makes for easier typing - but we weren't so keen on the two-second lag when switching between portrait and landscape mode. Windows does, of course, have other advantages over Android - it can play Flash video and offers pre-loaded programs such as Excel, Adobe and Word.
One of the best things about tablet devices is that you can watch videos on a big display, whether you want to immerse yourself in the latest Hollywood blockbuster or amuse yourself with something from YouTube. You're not getting the same resolution that the Galaxy Tab or iPad boast, so don't expect the same perfect picture.
However, as the ViewPad 10 is far cheaper than its two rivals, it's a bit unfair to compare it. But we really didn't like the fact that there are no volume controls on the tablet. If you're running Android, you'll need to go through the settings menu, which is a bit laborious; in Windows you can alter the volume in the bottom right-hand corner of the display.
So to sum up, the ViewPad 10 is not in the same league as the Samsung Galaxy Tab or iPad. Yes, the dual operating system is appealing - but even with two OS's there are shortcomings. Android 1.6 is just a bit too dated, and Windows 7 simply wasn't designed for use on a touch-screen device. Having said that, ViewSonic has crammed in enough under the bonnet for it to be worth a second look, especially if you budget doesn't run to the likes of the Galaxy Tab or iPad.
While the ViewSonic ViewPad 10 comes in at a lower price than its main rivals, and we do like the dual operating system option, it doesn't really offer a very fluid user experience.
By 3G
First impressions
The ViewPad 10 is definitely hefty, weighing in at a whopping 835 grams - the iPad is a positively svelte 680 grams. But then, you're getting a bigger screen than on Apple's tablet. If you're really concerned about the weight, you might like to consider the ViewSonic ViewPad 7, which has a smaller screen, and is lighter.
Android 1.6
It's rather surprising, because ViewSonic has seen fit to put the speedy Intel Atom 1GHz processor in the ViewPad, which makes it one of the most powerful tablets on the market. Having said that, once it's up and running the ViewPad does offer a fast user experience - browsing the web was a speedy affair, even when we had a number of windows open. We just found the slow start-up - especially compared with the iPad and Samsung Galaxy Tab - rather annoying.
The other shame is that the Atom can't support any system higher than the rather elderly Android 1.6. You also can't access Android Market, because Google does not authorise devices that have screens bigger than seven inches, or that do not offer 3G connectivity.
However, Android users will feel at home with the ViewPad 10 - it has a notification bar at the top of the display and you are able to add widgets, folders and shortcuts just by holding your finger down on the home screen. There are five home screens in total - and you'll find a pullout menu on the right side of each screen. Once this bar is pulled out, the user can scroll left and right between two screens.
Mind you, we did find that swiping between two screens led to us mistakenly dragging an icon onto the home screen. This is because ViewSonic has decided to give each icon such a large surface area that it leaves little room for swiping. But we did like being able to pinch the ViewSonic icon in the middle of each home screen, to call up all home screens to display as five thumbnail screenshots.
We were impressed by the responsiveness of the Android keyboard, but it's not really designed to be held horizontally - the centre buttons are too far apart to be easily reached. Place the tablet on a desk, for instance, or turn it into a vertical position, and the accelerometers will do their bit to turn around the keyboard, which makes it easier to use. Shame we can't say the same thing for the Windows system.
Windows 7
Bear in mind, however, that as the ViewPad has two USB ports, you could plug in a keyboard and a mouse to improve the experience. We did like that the virtual keyboard can be moved around the display until it's in a place that you prefer. It also has dedicated number keys - which makes for easier typing - but we weren't so keen on the two-second lag when switching between portrait and landscape mode. Windows does, of course, have other advantages over Android - it can play Flash video and offers pre-loaded programs such as Excel, Adobe and Word.
One of the best things about tablet devices is that you can watch videos on a big display, whether you want to immerse yourself in the latest Hollywood blockbuster or amuse yourself with something from YouTube. You're not getting the same resolution that the Galaxy Tab or iPad boast, so don't expect the same perfect picture.
However, as the ViewPad 10 is far cheaper than its two rivals, it's a bit unfair to compare it. But we really didn't like the fact that there are no volume controls on the tablet. If you're running Android, you'll need to go through the settings menu, which is a bit laborious; in Windows you can alter the volume in the bottom right-hand corner of the display.
So to sum up, the ViewPad 10 is not in the same league as the Samsung Galaxy Tab or iPad. Yes, the dual operating system is appealing - but even with two OS's there are shortcomings. Android 1.6 is just a bit too dated, and Windows 7 simply wasn't designed for use on a touch-screen device. Having said that, ViewSonic has crammed in enough under the bonnet for it to be worth a second look, especially if you budget doesn't run to the likes of the Galaxy Tab or iPad.
The verdict
By 3G
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