LG Optimus G Pro launched in India

July 4, 2013 Udit Malhotra

LG Electronics today announced its latest Mobile Handset, the LG Optimus G Pro (LG E988).

The LG Optimus G Pro is a feature rich Smartphone that has been built using latest and state-of-the-art Hardware and the latest release of the Android Operating System. Launched at a Price-Tag of Rs.42,500/-, this Handset is intended for sale to buyers of Premium Smart Phones and those who are wanting to upgrade their Premium Smartphones from Apple, HTC, Samsung, Sony, etc. As a Launch Offer an LG Smart Cover worth Rs. 2500/- is being offered free with the LG Optimus G Pro. A few online retailers are also booking the LG Optimus G Pro at a Special Price of Rs. 38,990/-.

The LG Optimus G Pro has a Large 5.5″ Full HD (1920*1080) IPS Display for Superior Graphics and Accurate Colors with a 16:9 Aspect Ratio for Widescreen Viewing, 400 ppi (Pixels per Inch) and Corning Gorilla Glass 2 for enhanced Scratch Resistance and Protection of the Phone’s Display. In spite of its large display the LG Optimus Pro has a comfortable grip for one hand operation and fits well in one’s pocket. The Narrow Bezel (just 3.65mm) of the LG Optimus G Pro makes it look sleek and highlights its Display. The backside of the phone has a Textured Pattern for an Anti-Slip Grip and Scratch Resistance.

The LG Optimus G Pro is equipped with a High Speed 1.7 GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 600 Quad-Core Processor for Processor Intensive Applications, High End Games, Fast Internet Browsing and Connectivity.

The LG Optimus G Pro has also raised the benchmarks of Cameras in Premium Mobile Phones by offering a 13MP Full HD Rear Camera and a 2.1MP Full HD Front Camera. Both the Cameras are feature rich and can be used simultaneously. The LG Optimus G Pro has a Dual Camera – Dual Recording feature with which you can record an occasion using its Rear Camera, while recording your own presence using its Front Camera. The Camera also has a VR Panorama mode for creation of 360 Degree Panorama Pictures.

Some of the other features of the LG Optimus G Pro are:

Smart Video (pauses the video when you are not watching the video)
Pause and Resume Video Recording (for pausing a video recording at the time of unwanted footage and resuming the recording seamlessly for a single video)
QRemote (the phone can be used an Infrared Remote Controller for TVs, Setup Boxes, Audio Systems, etc.) and
Qslide for simultaneous Display of multiple running Applications

The LG Optimus G Pro is also equipped with a best-in-class Long Lasting, High Capacity Battery of 3140 mAh. The high capacity Battery of the LG Optimus G Pro has been designed to deliver longer usage time and longer battery life.

The Key Specifications of the LG Optimus G Pro Smartphone are:

Opearting System: Android Jelly Bean OS 4.2.1
Display: 5.5-inch Full HD IPS display (1080 x 1920 pixels, 400 ppi)
CPU: Qualcomm Snapdragon 600 1.7 GHz Quad-Core Processor
Cameras: 13MP Rear camera and 2.1MP front camera (Both Cameras support full HD recording at 1080p)
Battery: 3,140 mAh Battery
Size: 150.2 x 76.1 x 9.4 mm
Weight: 172g
Other Features: QSlide, Dual Camera/ Dual Recording, VR Panorama, Pause & Resume Recording, Audio Zoom, Smart LED home button, QTranslator, QRemote, Dual Screen Dual Play

Our View: In our opinion, for establishing a large footprint in the market, LG should have launched this High Performance and Elegant Smartphone at a lower price. With a lower price it would have not only got more customers, more market share but would have also hit its Competitors hard in the Premium Smartphone market.

We’ll keep you posted with a Detailed Review of the LG Optimus G Pro soon.

Have Comments or Questions that need Answers? Ask us and we will be happy to answer all your queries.

Ford, New Technologies

Stepping into the future with Ford Tech

October 11, 2012 Udit Malhotra

I sometimes fear that all the smart brains on the planet are either working with Apple, Samsung, Google or Microsoft. All the technological advances I have seen in the recent past are mobile tech, app tech blah blah. What about the rest? Has all of it fallen stagnant? Hell, even the Space Program has been scrapped which gives rise to the thought that our advances to outer space will be limited to the moon.

I’m not going to take your time bashing NASA or our lack of will to push for more technological advances in areas apart from mobile tech. I will instead focus on a technology that takes help of your mobile tech and helps you DRIVE better. Yes, folks driver BETTER and more safely.

I was impressed with the little advances and the big ones that Ford Motor Company has come up with in the recent past in this regard. They are of course, the front runners in electric car development and there are rumors’ that they and Google are working together. This conjecture is purely based on the fact that first Ford Focus Electric rolled off the production lines straight into Google’s lap.

I’m not going to waste your time on speculating what might be brewing there, what i have are snippets on Ford Tech that are going to rolled in their cars. Some might have already found their way in the Ford cars running on the roads, some might just be in production stage but it doesn’t take away the fact that these are some simple but exciting pieces of car technology that you would love to have in your vehicle!

FORD SYNC: Ladies and gents, the name is self-explanatory. But before you put it off as a simple sync tech between your car and phone, I would like to point out that the absurdly simple things that you can do with this not only make your driving experience easier and efficient. It also makes you a SAFE driver. Let’s face it; we have always been distracted by our phone while driving at one time or the other. Hit a red light and we flash out our phone’s to send a tweet or a reply to a message or answer a call.

Well, Ford SYNC lets us do that without us taking out the phone from our pocket and looking at it to do those tasks. Eyes on the road, hands on the steering wheel and you are controlling the temp of your or answering a call or LISTENING to the text message that you just received.

With Ford SYNC APPLINK you can talk with the apps on your smartphone, I would like to point out here that as of now there are limited apps that support this feature but Ford is working on getting developers for this. I found this feature very exciting because not only you get to control an app on your phone via your voice, it also lets you give in-app commands e.g. “change station” on Pandora and voila that’s what Pandora does!

A heads up for all of you who want to get your hands on this – SYNC is going to feature in Ford’s new SUV Ford EcoSport. Rumors are the launch of car is going to be early Q1 of 2013.

Ford Hands-Free Liftgate: This has so far been my favorite feature. It’s not really cut-throat tech and you would probably laugh if if I told you otherwise. But it’s what I call “this is one of those simple features that I have always wanted”. Picture you are out shopping and you come back with bags in both hands and now you have to take the decision of putting the bags someplace while you unlock and open your boot trunk. Well, what if instead of putting your bags down, you just kicked the underside of your car and the trunk door flew open? Cinematic ha? This is exactly what Ford lets you do with their Hands-free Liftgate. Yessir, UBERCOOL.

Ambient Lightning: This one is just for the kicks. Feeling blue on a Monday? Ford’s ambient lightning lets your car reflect your mood. All the interior lightning will glow blue and you and your car will be drowned in the same mood. The available colors as of now are Ice Blue, Soft Blue, Orange, Red, Green, Blue and Purple.

Pretty neat ha?

SecuriCode™ Keyless Entry: Carrying keys in this day and age seems a little off; I mean there were sci-fi movies which put us in 2012 as driving cars without needing a steel key to start our machines. Fear not we are there! Instead of a key, with Ford’s SecuriCode™ Keyless Entry you just have to punch in numbers and voila! This eliminates the risk that you forget the keys inside the car or for that matter forget the keys anywhere. The design is suave and yes, no fumbling for keys ever. Period.

Automatic start and stop: In an economy where the fuel prices are going anywhere but down, this feature Is gold. As soon as you hit the brakes near the red light, the engine switches off and restarts as you lift your foot off the break. Pretty rad ha? All the other features and electrical components will be running, it’s only the engine which will go to sleep. Goes all long way in saving you cash on the fuel which burns while your car is stationary.

Open XC: This lil’ baby is for the future, it’s an API to your car, which makes it more responsive. It’s like putting feelers inside your car which can communicate with you. The concept so far is to put an advanced operating system in your car which will do all those tasks that you used to do with your smartphone. All the services will be integrated inside the car. Presently the interface runs on a combination of Arduino and Android. And simply because it is part android, it can communicate with your android based smartphone as well. The possibilities of all the apps based on this are humongous. This interface is currently open sourced by Ford and they are hoping more developers will jump in and make this the grand feature in the cars of the future.

Android Tablets, Pantel

PANTEL launches Penta T-Pad IS709C Tablet for just Rs. 3995/-

September 28, 2012 Udit Malhotra 535 Comments

Tablet PC provider, Pantel Technologies Pvt. Ltd. has launched a very attractive looking Android 4.0 OS based Tablet, Penta T-Pad IS709C. The Penta T-Pad IS709C Tablet is available from Pantel’s Online Store, Grabthefuture.in and the online retailers, Snapdeal.com and Homeshop18.com for just Rs. 3995/-.

Snapdeal and Homeshop18 are offering the 709c Tablet with Free Shipping across India within 5 days and Payment by Credit/Debit Cards, Net-Banking, Cash on Delivery and EMIs. Pantel’s Shopping Portal Grabthefuture.in is charging Rs. 304/- extra for Bank Charges and Shipping.

With an attractive look in Metallic Silver color, a rich feature list and low price of just Rs. 3995/- it leaves competing Tablets far behind. With its low price, this Tablet can be a game changer in the Budget Tablet market. A Pouch for is being supplied with the Tablet and a Screen Protector is fixed to its LCD Display.

Other Tablets with similar specifications are priced much higher. The Lava E-Tab Z7H Tablet is priced 38% higher at Rs. 5499/- (without the Pouch), the Croma CRXT1075 Tablet is priced 50% higher at Rs. 5990/- (with a Free Pouch and Screen Protector) and the HCL ME U1 Tablet is priced 100% higher at Rs. 7999/-.

The Penta T-Pad IS709C is an Android 4.0.4 (ICS) OS based Tablet. It uses the ROCKCHIP RK2906 SOC (Basically a RK2918 SOC without HDMI Output) and has a 7 Inch Multi-touch Capacitive Display.

The RK2918 SOC integrates a Cortex A8 – 1GHz Processor with support for NEON SIMD, a powerful GC800 Graphics Engine. The RK2918 SOC is the First SOC in the World to support hardware based decoding of full HD Videos at 1080p.

The Tablet has 512 MB RAM (Available Memory may vary depending on software configuration) and an Internal Memory of 4GB. Its Storage is expandable through a TF (Micro SD) Card up to 32 GB. The Tablet is equipped with a 0.3 MP (VGA) Camera for Video Chatting/ Skype Calling, a G-Sensor, a Mini USB (On-the-Go) Port and has a 3000 mAh Battery.

The Tablet offers Wi-Fi compliant wireless connectivity and supports 2G and 3G data connectivity using external USB Dongles (GSM and CDMA). The Penta T-Pad IS709C Tablet is approved by BSNL for use with its Data Services. Pantel has a strategic alliance with Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) for bundling its Tablets with BSNL’s 3G Data Services.

Before purchasing this or any other budget Android Tablet you should verify the ‘Maximum Speed’ of its Processor using popular Benchmarking Software like Quadrant and AnTuTu, both available free-of-cost at the Google Play Store. During the last 30 days Quadrant and AnTuTu Benchmarking Software has been individually downloaded 1 – 5 Million times. (Statistics Source: Google Play Store). You may also use other Benchmarking and System Information Applications like Vellamo, Elixir2, Z-Device Test, Passmark Performance Test and Linpack for the same.

The usefulness of these Benchmarking and System Information Applications can be ascertained from the fact that during the last 30 days alone, up to 11.5 Million Users have installed these Applications on their Android Devices. (Statistics Source: Google Play Store).

Luckily for Consumers of Tablet PCs, Pantel has neither over-clocked the Cortex A8 Processor in the Penta T-Pad IS709C to 1.2/1.4/1.5 GHz nor it is falsely advertising the speed of the Cortex A8 Processor as 1.2/1.4/1.5 GHz.

Benefits to you: Without over-clocking, the Tablet is expected to offer Stable Operation as well as Good Performance. You will get no or fewer ‘Application Not Responding’ Error Messages in comparison with Tablets having over-clocked Cortex A8 Processors. Without over-clocking, its SOC’s useful life shall also be extended due to lesser generation of Heat. The Tablet’s run-time on Battery shall also be longer in comparison with Tablets having over-clocked Cortex A8 Processors.

Our Review and Video Review of the PENTA IS709C Tablet is coming soon on this site. Stay tuned in.

The Tablet’s Home, Return and Menu Buttons are mounted on the front panel of the Tablet. Its Power Button is mounted on the Side next to its USB OTG-cum-Charging Port. There are no physical/hard buttons for increasing/reducing the Volume. Volume can be increased/decreased from its on-screen control. Its Microphone also appears to be on the front panel of the Tablet. At its location, the Microphone of the Tablet may offer a higher clarity during video chats/ Skype calls. The Camera of the Tablet is located at the corner of its front panel in an easier-to-hold Portrait Orientation. However, whether a corner mounted Camera would be convenient in actual use or not remains to be tested. The Tablet does not have a Full Size USB Host Port and a HDMI Port. Lava E-Tab Z7H and the HCL ME U1 also do not offer Full Size Usb Ports. Pantel’s other popular model IS701C, priced at Rs.4999/- is equipped with a Full Size USB Host Port as well as a HDMI Port. The Battery of this Tablet has 7% more capacity than the Battery in the Lava E-Tab Z7H Tablet and 20% less capacity than the HCL ME U1 Tablet.

We tested Pantel’s Customer Care by calling them on phone (0120-480-5200). The number was answered at all times when we called with our queries. The Customer Care Staff was polite during all calls. However, some of the queries which could not be answered on phone were not responded by email, as assured.

Pantel offers many other models of fully featured Android Tablets. Unlike many small Importers of Tablet PCs, Electronic and IT products, Pantel has multiple certifications on Quality and Compliance viz. :

ISO 9001:2008 (Certification for Quality)
ISO 14001:2004 (Certification for Environment Management)
RoHS (Certification of reduction of hazardous substances)
CE (Certificate of Compliance)

Update: 15 October 2012: Issues with PANTEL-Penta T-Pad IS709C Tablet: The pre-installed Facebook Application does not work. Gives Log-in Error. The Facebook Application cannot be updated from the Google Play Store as the Downloaded Update requires the pre-installed Application to be uninstalled and reinstalled. The pre-installed Application cannot be uninstalled as Root level Permissions are not provided to the User. Disabling and Enabling the Application again also does not help. It seems the pre-installed Application is corrupt or has a compatibility issue. We communicated the above mentioned issue to Pantel Customer Care on 15 October 2012 and are awaiting their resolution for the same. Till a resolution for the issue is received, the User can access Facebook from the Tablet’s Browser. It will not give the same speed/user experience, but something is better than nothing. We also noticed minor and hairline scratches in Two out of Three Sealed Units received by us. Although the scratches are minor, these are present in new units, seems like yet another case of Quantity taking over Quality. The scratches on the 709c Tablets also reminded us of the scratches found and reported by many Owners of the recently launched iPhone 5.

Update: 17 October 2012. Issues with PANTEL-Penta T-Pad IS709C Tablet: Google‘s Chrome Browser and Friendcaster for Facebook also cannot be installed on the 709C Tablet. Both these Applications are not compatible with the current version of the IS709C Tablet’s Software. Also upon connecting a USB Dongle, a notification stating that the ‘Storage is Corrupted‘ appears. We have communicated these issues to Pantel Customer Care and have been informed that a ‘New Software’ for the IS709C Tablet shall be available soon.

Update: 18 October 2012. Issues with PANTEL-Penta T-Pad IS709C Tablet: External Power Speakers (2.0/2.1) DO NOT WORK with the 709C Tablet when connected to its 3.5mm Audio Out Socket. They work fine when connected to other Budget as well as High End Tablets. For Music Lovers, this is a big shortcoming as all popular Mobile Phones, MP3 Players and Media Players work fine, when connected to External Speakers for a better listening experience.

Update: 29 October 2012. Software Upgrade – PANTEL-Penta T-Pad IS709C Tablet: We are testing a new Software Upgrade (Pre-Release version) for the 709c Tablet. Its Partial Test Results are:

Pre-installed Facebook Application: Works (did not work in the originally pre-installed software)
Tata Photon – Huawei EC 156 USB Data Card: Works (did not work in the originally pre-installed software)
Overall Performance and Stability: Good

Update: 3 November 2012. Highly Recommended – PANTEL-Penta T-Pad IS709C Tablet: We have completed testing of the new Software Upgrade for the 709c Tablet. “Facebook Log-in Error” was one of the major issues with this Tablet. After the new Software Upgrade, the Facebook Application works flawlessly. Another issue with this Tablet was that it did not support the Tata Photon Huawei EC156 USB Data Card. After the new Software Upgrade, this issue has also been resolved. With its new Software Upgrade, we highly recommend the Pantel-Penta IS709c Tablet. It has Good Performance, Stable Operation and offers Great Value-for-Money at a very reasonable price of Rs.3995/-. A detailed review of the 709c Tablet with its new Software Upgrade and the Download Link (URL) for its Software Upgrade shall be published on this Page soon.

Update: 5 November 2012. More USB Data Cards/Dongles are now supported with the New Software Upgrade – The PANTEL-Penta T-Pad IS709c Tablet now supports Ten USB Data Cards/Dongles instead of Six USB Dongles supported earlier. The USB Data Cards/Dongles supported with the new Software Upgrade are:

BSNL 3G – LW272 – WCDMA
BSNL 3G – LW273 (White) – WCDMA
Tera 3G – T3G72A – WCDMA
BSNL 3G – ZTE – MF180 – WCDMA
Tata Photon+ – Huawei(EVDO) – Ec156 – CDMA
Airtel Huawei – E1731 – WCDMA
Idea Huawei – E1732 – WCDMA
Reliance – ZTE – MF190 – WCDMA
Huawei – E173 – WCDMA
Huawei – E1550 -WCDMA

The USB Data Cards/Dongles not supported by the new Software Upgrade are:

Micromax – MMX – 353G – WCDMA
Micromax – MMX – 352G – WCDMA
Reliance – ZTE(EVDO )- AC2737 – CDMA
MTS ZTE (EVDO) – AC2746 – CDMA
MTS ZTE (EVDO) – AC2747 – CDMA
Visiontek – 82G – WCDMA

Update: 6 November 2012. External Low Power 2.0 PC Speakers are supported – We tested GENIUS SP-Q06S 2.0 PC Speakers (2*0.5W) with the 709c Tablet after performing its Software Upgrade. The Speakers worked fine at all Volume levels. The Equalizer and Sound Effects also worked fine on the Tablet. However, CREATIVE-XFREE – 2.1 Speakers (2*10W) tested by us were supported only up to approx. 40% Output of the Tablet. F&D 3000U 5.1 Speakers did not work in any mode (2.1/4.1/5.1) with the Tablet. It seems that the Output Power of the Tablet’s Audio chip is less than that required by 2.1/ 4.1/ 5.1 Speakers.

Update: 7 November 2012. New Software Upgrade Available – Users of the 709c Tablet can resolve major issues faced by them with its new Software Upgrade. To get its Download Link and Software Upgrade Instructions click here. The Download Link (URL) for the new Software is mentioned in the Software Upgrade Instructions.

Update: 17 December 2012. New Software Upgrade Available – Users of the 709c Tablet can resolve any issues faced by them with its new Software Upgrade. To get its Download Link and Software Upgrade Instructions click here. The Download Link (URL) for the new Software is mentioned in the Software Upgrade Instructions.

The Technical Specifications of the Penta T-Pad IS709C Tablet are :

Operating System Android 4.0.4
SOC Rockchip RK2906 (Basically a RK2918 SOC without HDMI Output)
Processor Cortex A8 1.0 GHz
GPU Vivante GC800 Graphics Engine
RAM 512MB (~323MB Available)
Internal Memory 4GB (~2.04GB Available)
External Memory Expandable up to 32 GB with a TF (Micro SD) Card
Display Type LCD
Display Size 7 Inch
Touch Type Multi-touch Capacitive
Sensors
- Accelerometer (MMA8452Q – Present and Active/Enabled),
- Light Sensor (AL3006 – Present but Inactive/Disabled),
- Magnetic Field Sensor (AK8975 – Present but Inactive/Disabled),
- Orientation Sensor (AL3006 – Present but Inactive/Disabled)
- Proximity Sensor (AL3006 – Present but Inactive/Disabled)
Camera 0.3 MP
Speakers Stereo Speakers
Battery Capacity 3000 mAh
USB Port Mini USB (On-the-Go)
Wireless Connectivity Wi-Fi IEEE 802.11 b/g/n
Connectivity Supports 2G and 3G USB Dongles (GSM and CDMA)
Supported Dongles (A Software Upgrade may be required by existing Users for support for all 10 Dongles. Originally the Tablet supported 6 Dongles)
- BSNL 3G – LW272 – WCDMA
- BSNL 3G – LW273 (White) – WCDMA
- Tera 3G – T3G72A – WCDMA
- BSNL 3G – ZTE – MF180 – WCDMA
- Tata Photon+ – Huawei(EVDO) – Ec156 – CDMA
- Airtel Huawei – E1731 – WCDMA
- Idea Huawei – E1732 – WCDMA
- Reliance – ZTE – MF190 – WCDMA
- Airtel Huawei – E173 BU-1 – WCDMA
- Huawei – E1550 -WCDMA
Audio Jack 3.5mm
Supported Video Formats AVI(H.264, DIVX, XVID, rm, rmvb, MKV(H.264, DIVX, DIVX, XVID), WMV, MOV, MP4
Supported Audio Formats MP3,WMA,MP2,OGG,AAC,M4A,MA4,FLAC,APE,3GP,WAV
Supported Document Formats EPUB, MS-WORD, MS-EXCEL, MS-POWERPOINT, PDF, TXT
Quality & Compliance FCC Approval, CE and ROHS
Warranty 1 year
Package Contents Tablet, Pouch, Charger, USB Charging-cum-PC Connectivity Cable, Mini USB to USB Converter Cable (for Dongles/Pen Drives), User Guide, Product Literature

Important Note: The Product Specifications have been updated by us on the basis of 3 Nos. IS709c Tablets evaluated by us on 13 October 2012. The Product Specifications on the Pantel and Snapdeal websites are different. Please check the exact Product Specifications with your Retailer/Pantel before placing your Order..

Image Credit: http://snapdeal.com

You may also like to read:

Updated: 17 December 2012 10:06PM. Software Update.

Update: 29 November 2012. SOC Rockchip RK2906 (Basically a RK2918 SOC without HDMI Output)

Update: 7 November 2012. Download Link for Software Upgrade.

Updated: 6 November 2012. External Low Power 2.0 PC Speakers are supported.

Updated: 5 November 2012 6:54PM. More USB Data Cards/Dongles are now supported with the New Software Upgrade.

Updated: 3 November 2012 8:46PM. Highly Recommended – PANTEL-Penta T-Pad IS709C Tablet and Software Update.

Updated: 29 October 2012 4:45 PM. Homeshop18, New Software Update, Benchmarking Software and Sepcifications: Facebook Application Works, Tata Photon EC156 Works. Vellamo Benchmarking Software. Active/Inactive Sensors.

Updated: 26 October 2012 1:45 PM. Specifications: Active/Inactive Sensors.

Updated: 18 October 2012 1:45 PM. Issue: External Power Speakers (2.0/2.1) DO NOT WORK with the 709C Tablet.

Updated 17 October 8:17 PM. Issue: Google Chrome Browser, Friendcaster for Facebook Applications are not compatible with the 709c Tablet. USB Dongle Notification Issue. Pantel Software Update Coming Soon.

Updated 15 October 11:52 AM. Issue: Pre-installed Facebook Application does not work. Gives Log-in Error.

Updated 13 October 6:11 PM. Product Price Comparison and Product Specifications.

Lava, Reviews

Lava E-Tab Z7H Tablet Review

September 18, 2012 Rakesh Malhotra 59 Comments

Consumer Alert: Lava E-Tab Z7H Tablet

Indian mobile handset vendor, LAVA International Ltd. is misleading and cheating Consumers of Tablet PCs by falsely communicating and wrongly advertising the Processor Speed of its Lava E-Tab Z7H Tablet as 1.2 GHz whereas actually it is just 1 GHz.

Lava has printed a wrong and misleading Processor Speed on the E-Tab Z7H Tablet’s Retail Packaging, in its Downloadable User Guide and its website.

Check-out the following Picture of the Retail Packaging of the LAVA E-Tab Z7H Tablet with a wrong and misleading Processor Speed printed on it:

(Click on the Image above for Enlarged View)

The wrong and misleading Processor Speed of the Lava E-Tab Z7H Tablet has also been specified on the Lava website:

(Click on the Image above for Enlarged View)

We tested the Lava E-Tab Z7H Tablet for its Processor Speed using Quadrant Standard, Antutu, CPU Master and Four other Benchmarking and System Information Applications.

To our utmost surprise, with all 6 Benchmarking and System Information Applications, we found the Processor Speed of the Lava E-Tab Z7H Tablet to be just 1 GHz and not 1.2 GHz as falsely communicated by Lava and its online Retailers. The Benchmarking and System Information Test Results of the Lava E-Tab Z7H Tablet are shown in Pictures below:

(Click on the Image above for Enlarged View)

Before purchasing any unbranded or re-branded Android Tablet you should verify the ‘Maximum Speed’ of its Processor using popular Benchmarking Software like Quadrant and AnTuTu, both available free-of-cost at the Google Play Store. During the last 30 days Quadrant and AnTuTu Benchmarking Software has been individually downloaded 1 – 5 Million times. (Statistics Source: Google Play Store). You may also use other Benchmarking and System Information Applications like Elixir2, Z-Device Test, Passmark Performance Test, CPU/RAM/Device Identifier (version 5.2.0+) and Linpack for the same.

The Lava E-Tab Z7H Tablet uses an Allwinner – A13 SOC (System-on-Chip). A Cortex A8 Processor with a Speed of 1 GHz is built inside every A13 SOC.

The following Description and Table from the ARM website clearly shows that the Maximum Speed of the Cortex A8 Processor used in the Lava E-Tab Z7H Tablet is 1 GHz and not 1.2 GHz:

From the Description and Table above, it becomes clear that ARM has designed the Cortex A8 Processor for a speed up to 1 GHz. It also becomes absolutely clear that Lava is misleading Consumers of Tablet PCs by wrongly specifying a Processor Speed of 1.2 GHz in its E-Tab Z7H Tablet.

It is relevant to note that other vendors of Tablet PCs like BSNL-PANTEL and TATA-CROMA, who are also using the Cortex A8 Processor in their Tablet PCs are correctly mentioning its Speed as 1 GHz.

PANTEL correctly mentions the Speed of the Cortex A8 Processor used in its Penta T-Pad IS701C, IS703C, IS801C, WS802C and WS704C Tablet PCs as 1 GHz.

TATA-CROMA also correctly mentions the Speed of the Cortex A8 Processor used in its CRXT1075 Tablet PC as 1 GHz.

PANTEL is offering its BSNL approved PENTA T-Pad IS709C Tablet with Features and Specifications similar to the Lava E-tab Z7H for just Rs. 3995/-. The Penta T-Pad IS709C is 37% cheaper than the Lava E-Tab Z7H at its current online price of Rs. 5499/-.

PANTEL is also offering its BSNL approved PENTA T-PAD IS701C Tablet with a full size USB Host Port, a HDMI Port for LCD TV/Projector connectivity and other Features and Specifications similar to the Lava E-tab Z7H Tablet for Rs. 4946/-. The Penta T-Pad IS709C is 11% cheaper than the Lava E-Tab Z7H at its current online price of Rs. 5499/-.

TATA-CROMA is offering its CRXT1075 Tablet PC with the latest Android 4.1 (Jelly Bean) OS. The CRXT1075 Tablet PC comes with a Screen Guard and a Pouch. It is priced at Rs. 5990/-. The Screen Guard and Pouch are not provided with the Lava E-Tab Z7H Tablet. The CRXT1075 Tablet is available in easy EMIs and a 15 days Money-back Guarantee from cromaretail.com. The Croma CRXT1075 Tablet PC is also available at Croma and Croma-Zip Stores all over India. Croma service for its house brand ‘Croma’ is said to be good.

In the Lava E-Tab Z7H Tablet, Popular Browsers like Firefox and Chrome for Android DO NOT work properly. While using Firefox typed characters are not visible in the Tablet. While using Chrome its Touchscreen becomes non-responsive on the edges.

‘Application-Not-Responding‘ messages appear in plenty while using the E-Tab Z7H Tablet. The E-Tab Z7H Tablet’s compatibility with popular Android software is absolutely untested and the user is left frustrated using this Tablet.

Switching the Equalizer On/Off is a Difficult Task and it is simply Not Possible to adjust the Bass Boost and 3D Effects in the E-Tab Z7H Tablet.

The Low Brightness and Poor Quality Microphone of this Tablet leave a lot to be desired. The Low Brightness and Poor Quality of the Microphone of this Tablet become prominently noticeable during daytime Video Playback and Skype Calls using this Tablet.

We found the wireless connectivity of the E-Tab Z7H Tablet to be good over WiFi compliant Routers.

The Lava E-Tab Z7H Tablet is prone to scratches and within 4 weeks of usage with reasonable care, the back side of our E-Tab Z7H Tablet has got noticeable scratches.

The Battery Charger of the Lava E-Tab Z7H Tablet warms up considerably and does not have a single Safety Approval. Check-out the Battery Charger of any Samsung/Apple/Nokia/LG/Blackberry/Motorola/Sony/Acer or other reputed brand of Tablet or Mobile Phone or Laptop. You will see many Safety Approvals on each every Battery Charger. The ‘Safety‘ and ‘Maximum Current Handling Capability‘ of the Battery Charger of this Tablet is questionable.

Its bundled ‘Moon+’ Ebook Reader is convenient. Moon+ and many other good Ebook Reader applications can be downloaded along with Thousands of Ebooks, free-of-cost from the Google Play Store. I found at Two Ebooks bundled with the E-Tab Z7H Tablet to be good.

The bundled ‘Merit Nation‘ and ‘Tata Photon‘ Coupons may be useful for some. With 6-7 months left for children’s exams, the Merit Nation Subscriber may have to pay a full year’s subscription. The Tata Photon Data Card is available free-of-cost in many Circles upon prepayment of 2 months subscription. So both these Offers may not be the most attractive offerings for customers.

I rate the rest of the bundled content as Bloatware, unnecessarily using the E-Tab Z7H Tablet’s Resources. The bundled content has been preloaded on the Internal Storage/ROM of the E-Tab Z7H Tablet, so everything (including the unwanted content) shows up again, every time the Tablet is restored to its Default Settings.

The Lava E-Tab Z7H tablet does not come with a User Manual. Its User Manual has to be downloaded from the Lava website. The ‘Connectivity’ Page on the Lava website provides a Software Update for the E-Tab Z7H Tablet but does not inform its purpose i.e. whether it is for the USB Data Cards or otherwise.

Significantly, we found that the Lava E-Tab Z7H Tablet has Poor Build Quality.

The Battery inside the E-Tab Z7H Tablet is neither held in any ‘Battery Slot’ nor with any ‘Battery Retention Mechanism’. The Battery has been fixed inside the Tablet using cheap Cello Tape! The Poor Build Quality of the Lava E-Tab Z7H Tablet is shown in the Picture below:

(Click on the Image above for Enlarged View)

Battery Charging and Long Duration Usage of the E-Tab Z7H Tablet causes “Temperature Rise” inside the Tablet. Due to the temperature rise and over a period of time, the cello tape may loosen and come-off. Consequently, the loosely fitted Battery inside the Tablet may cause:

a “Short Circuit” inside the Tablet and “Permanent Damage” to other Components inside the Tablet such as its Camera, Main Board, LCD Panel, Processor, RAM, Storage Devices, Connecting Cables, Connectors, etc.
“Injury to the User of the Tablet“. (More likely if the Unit is on-charge at the time of short-circuit inside the Tablet. A Lithium-Ion Battery can explode in case of a Short Circuit.)
“Noise from inside the Tablet” upon moving the Tablet.

Please note in the Picture above that there is No UL or equivalent Battery Safety/Compliance Approval or Safe Disposal Instruction/Graphic on the Battery nor is its Brand or Capacity mentioned. Check-out the Battery of any Samsung/Nokia/LG/Blackberry/Motorola/Sony or other reputed brand of Mobile Phone or Laptops or the Tablets shown below. You will find many Safety Approvals and relevant details on every Battery.

To say the least, such Poor Build Quality is not expected from any Vendor of Tablet PCs.

The following Pictures will give you a clear idea about the Build Quality and Battery Fitment in popular global brands of Tablet PCs:

(Click on the Image above for Enlarged View)

We communicated all our findings to Lava for their clarifications about the same. Lava did not deny our findings and wanted that we ‘do not publish’ our findings/review about the E-Tab Z7H Tablet on this site. We were also told that a Tablet ‘E-Tab Z7H+’ similar in appearance to the ‘E-Tab 7ZH’ Tablet shall be launched during the end of this month. For the Z7H+ Tablet to be worthy, we hope that it has a faster Processor, a higher capacity Battery, a Standard USB Host Port, HDMI Port and a safer method to hold the Battery inside the Tablet.

Update: 11 October 2012. Lava has launched its Z7H+ Tablet. On its website Lava states the speed of the Cortex A8 Processor in the Z7H+ Tablet as 1GHz. The Z7H+ Tablet is equipped with Stereo Speakers. Lava website states that the Z7H+ Tablet supports Airtel E1731, Idea E1732, Reliance 3G MF190, MTS Mblaze AC2746 EVDO and Reliance EC150 EVDO USB Data Dongles. There is no mention of support for Tata Photon EC156 and EC1261 USB Data Dongles. Both these Tata Photon Dongles are supported in the Lava Z7H Tablet. The Tata Photon Offer is also not available with the Z7H+ Tablet. The Z7H+ Tablet may be using a different SOC. The HDMI Port and a Full Size USB Host Port are also not available on the Lava Z7H+ Tablet. The 512MB RAM, 4GB ROM and 2800 mAh Battery Capacity in both the Lava Tablets remain the same.

A “Detailed Performance Review” and a “Video Review” of the Lava E-Tab Z7H Tablet is coming soon on this site. Do check them out.

Due to the above mentioned facts, I do not recommend the Lava E-Tab Z7H Tablet. With all its deficiencies, the Lava E-Tab Z7H Tablet is also expensive. Brands like BSNL-PANTEL and TATA-CROMA in particular offer better Tablet PCs which offer superior performance and much better value for your money.

For immediate purchase, you should consider the Penta T-Pad IS709C, Penta T-Pad IS701C or the Croma CRXT1075 Tablet PC. You can also wait for the new Akash II/ Ubislate 7C Tablet. It has Mobile Phone Capabilities (SIM Slot), a 1 GHz Cortex A8 Processor and other specifications similar to the Lava E-Tab Z7H Tablet. The new Akash II/Ubislate 7C Tablet has won rave pre-launch reviews outside India. It is expected to be launched in October 2012 at approx. Rs. 4500/-.

Some Comments about the Lava E-Tab Z7H Tablet by Flipkart Buyers are:

(Click on the Image above for Enlarged View)

Our findings of the Actual Processor Speed of the Lava E-Tab Z7H Tablet have also been confirmed by Tech2.in in in their independent review of the Lava E-Tab Z7H Tablet dated 28 September 2012:

(Click on the Image above for Enlarged View)

Lava is also making false communications while advertising its E-Tab Z7H Tablet through online retailers like Flipkart, Ezoneonline, Snapdeal, Infibeam, etc. Consequently, Lava is also spoiling the trust of Consumers in these Online Retailers. Check-out the following Pictures with the wrong and misleading Processor Speed of the LAVA E-Tab Z7H Tablet in the Advertisements and Offers of Flipkart, SnapDeal and Ezoneonline.

With false and misleading communications, poor build quality and unfair trade practices Lava would lose Customers sooner than later. If you own a LAVA E-Tab Z7H, ask your Retailer for a Refund.

(Click on the Image above for Enlarged View)

You may also like to read :

PANTEL launches Penta T-Pad IS709C Tablet for just Rs. 3995/- and

Helpful Tips on Buying Electronic Gadgets

Last Updated on 11 October 2012. Correction: The User Guide of the Lava E-Tab Z7H Tablet does not accurately describe the function of the Second Button of the Tablet, located just below its Power/Lock Button. As a result on 8 October 2012, in our update to this Post the Second Button of the Tablet got incorrectly described. The Second Button from the Top does not function for Power On/Off purpose but takes the User back to the Home Screen of the Tablet from a running Application or from the Application/Widget Menus. However, if this Button is pressed while the Home Screen is being displayed, it has ‘No Function’ (as described by us on 8 October 2012). The error is regretted.

Updated on 8 October 2012 with Comments/Reviews by Certified Buyers of Flipkart for the Lava E-Tab Z7H Tablet of and a Screenshot of the review of Lava E-Tab Z7H Tablet dated 28 September 2012 on Tech2.in.

Updated on 4 October 2012 with Download Links to Android based Benchmarking and System Information Software, Cortex A8 Processor Data from ARM Limited Website, Images of Build Quality of Popular Tablet PCs and a brief Product Safety and Performance Review of the Lava E-Tab Z7H Tablet.