iBall Slide i7218 review

iBall had launched a tablet device in September 2011 and now the company has launched a revamped version of its Slide with i7218. The newer version of the device runs on Android 2.3 though the user interface is similar to Honeycomb.The i7218 is cheaper than its predecessor, as it comes with the price tag of Rs. 11,999 and will be competing with the likes of Reliance Tab 3G. When switched on, the device greets you with "Get ready to enjoy the ride", so let's try and find out how is the ride of the new iBall Slide i7218.
Hardware/ Design
In terms of design, the 7-inch tablet is made primarily of plastic and has a metal-based side casing. Unlike the previous model's box like design, this one has a curved and lighter body. At the back is a 2.0 MP camera, with the speakers. The front has a VGA camera on the top and three capacitive touch control buttons on the right.
On the right side, is a Micro-USB port, a mini HDMI port, a USB port, 3.5 mm headphone jack and an external slot for a microSD card. The top panel also houses a power button, volume control and a reset button. The device is loaded with a 1 GHz ARM Cortex Processor. The USB port can be used to connect dongle or an external flash drive. Overall the design and hardware is apt for the purpose, price and usage of this tablet.
The budget Android tablets market is currently exploding in India and there seems to be a new tablet being announced almost every month. In such a scenario, it will be difficult for iBall to create a market for itself with Slide i7218. The strengths of this tablet are that it has a well-rounded design and comes with a Honeycomb like UI on board, unlike the other Android tablets in this price range that are purely Gingerbread. However, with the performance lags and poor touch response this is not the tablet that you would want to lay your hands on.
Price: Rs. 11,999

Pros

• Design

Cons

• Poor touch screen response
• Persistent lag
• Cramped keyboard