Viewsonic ViewPad 7 review

It’s fair to say that we weren’t impressed with the first Viewsonic tablet we reviewed. Running Windows 7 and Android, we felt as though the ViewPad 10 was hampered by being forced to run both operating systems. In particular, Android 1.6 meant that the tablet couldn’t do half the things we’ve come to expect of Google’s operating system.

With the ViewPad 7, Viewsonic could well make up for the shortcomings of its first tablet. Running Android 2.2 and with a 7in touchscreen it looks, on paper at least, as though it could well compete with the Samsung Galaxy Tab. It’s worth pointing out that this is actually an OEM product of the Linx Commtiva N700.

In terms of price, it looks a more attractive proposition, costing almost £100 less than Samsung’s tablet first went on sale for. From a first look, it doesn’t even appear as though Viewsonic has cut any corners to get this lower price: there’s a SIM-card slot for 3G access, GPS, Bluetooth and 802.11b/g wireless networking.

Build quality is also very good. A glossy plastic back and brushed-metal-style surround makes the ViewPad 7 look a little like a large Apple iPhone 4. It feels tough, and can easily be held in one hand leaving one hand free to operate the touchscreen. Its square edges are a little sharp and we slightly prefer the rounded edges of the Galaxy Tab, but it’s a close-run thing.

There’s even a leatherette carry case included in the box, so you can carry the tablet everywhere without getting it scratched. Cleverly, the case folds in half acting as a stand, should you want to use the tablet as a media player.

Switching the device on we started to notice some of the drawbacks of the tablet and found that it’s not quite as polished as the Galaxy Tab. For starters, the 7in touchscreen has a resolution of 800×480. This is the same resolution as on the Nexus One smartphone. While this resolution looks very sharp on the smartphone’s 3.7in screen, on the 7in tablet it’s a little low and graphics and text can look a little blocky.

Screen quality is decent, but far from impressive. Contrast is quite low and bright screens have a mottled appearance to them. Viewing angles are quite tight and we found that we hold the tablet pretty much straight-on in order to see it clearly. We also found some content hard to view. In particular, black text on a white background ends up looking grey and can be hard to read unless you zoom in.

Zooming and rotating the screen aren’t quite as smooth as on the Galaxy Tab, either. This is mainly due to Viewsonic’s choice of a 600MHz ARM11 processor, rather than the 1GHz Cortex processor favoured in high-end Android devices. This processor can struggle when playing HD video, so it’s not the ideal product for a media player. It’s a shame in some ways, as the stereo speakers (either side of the screen in landscape mode) are actually pretty good, producing crisp and clear audio. Their only shortcoming is a lack of bass, but that’s to be expected from such small drivers.

The ARM processor has one other drawback: no Flash support. It’s a little disappointing, but the Apple iPad is successful despite not supporting Flash either. Despite these drawbacks, browsing the internet on the ViewPad 7 is both easy and simple.

Fortunately, the choice of Android 2.2 and access to the full Android Market means that there are no other drawbacks on what you can install. With more than 100,000 apps now available, including support from big companies such as Sky and Amazon, there’s a wide choice of software you can install on this tablet.

You’ll need to visit the Market, as Viewsonic hasn’t installed many applications by default on the ViewPad 7. In fairness, this isn’t much of an issue and it’s better, in our opinion, to choose what you want to install rather than getting a device stuffed full of software.

The only application of note that ViewSonic has installed is the Aldiko eBook reader. This supports titles in the popular ePub format, although DRM-protected titles can’t be read. That’s not a huge drawback, as you can always install the Amazon Kindle app if you want to read new paid-for titles.

One potential drawback is that there’s not much storage space on the ViewPad 7, with only 512MB of internal memory supplied as standard. Particularly frustrating is that fact that no MicroSD card comes as standard. Without a memory card you can’t use the camera or Documents To Go office application. This means that you really have to factor in the price of a MicroSD card when you buy the ViewPad 7.

There’s no replaceable battery, but this shouldn’t be a big issue. We found that the integrated model lasted around a full weekend of web browsing before we had to charge the tablet. Charging is via the mini USB port and Viewsonic provides a mains charger, so you don’t have to plug the tablet into a computer.

The 3-megapixel camera on the rear produces acceptable shots in bright light, but in dark areas shots are very noisy. It’s a shame that there’s also no flash. There’s also a 0.3-megapixel camera on the front, which you can use for self-portraits or to make phone calls using over 3G, provided you install a SIM card. You can also make standard voice calls using the standard Android phone app. By default, the ViewPad 7 is set to speakerphone mode, so you’ll have to plug a headset or resort to a Bluetooth model to make private calls.

Android otherwise works pretty much as you’d expect with very little customisation to the operating system, bar getting the homescreen to appear in landscape mode. In fact, you’re stuck in this mode for the homescreen, although pretty much every other application can be used in portrait or landscape. We slightly prefer the Galaxy Tab, as Samsung did a great job of modifying the OS to work better on a tablet, including a homescreen that works in all orientations, an easier-to-use browser and iPhone-style copy-and-paste.

That’s not to say that the ViewPad 7 is a bad device. Android 2.2 in its native form is a great OS that’s very simple to use. Access to the full Android Market puts this device above tablets that don’t allow this, such as the Toshiba Folio 100. The hardware is mostly excellent, too, with all of the features you’d expect to find on a modern smartphone, including GPS, Bluetooth and WiFi.

It works well as a tablet that you can carry everywhere, but at its current price the ViewPad 7 is going to have a tough time, especially considering that you’ll need to add in the cost of a memory card, given that the Samsung Galaxy Tab can now be bought for £450, while the identical Linx Commtiva N700 is almost £90 cheaper.