The FonePad 7 is an affordable option for those wanting a large screen device that also works as a phone (phablet, as they call it).
The tablet (or phone, or phablet, whichever you like to call it) comes with a 7″ LED Backlight WSVGA (1024×600) Screen with Anti-fingerprint coating and it is powered by Intel® Atomâ„¢ Multi-Core Z2520 Processor 1.2 GHz with Intel Hyper-Threading Technology and runs on Android 4.3, and it has 1GB memory, 4GB storage (usable space around 2GB).
The non-removable back cover is made of plastic, it is textured and available in 4 different colors (Black, White, Red & Blue). Imaging department is where the FonePad 7 fall short at, with only a 0.3 MP Front Camera and 2 MP Rear Camera, I’ll talk about this a later.
The FonePad 7 supports Dual-SIM with up to HSPA+ for data, and storage expansion of up to 64GB.
Detailed specs as below, taken from the official product page.
User Experience & Benchmarks
The tablet works great as a 7″ device, sufficient for reading and some light gaming too. An experienced user could probably tell that the device doesn’t have great pixel-per-inch on screen but the display quality is good.
The phone doesn’t perform well in the audio department either, with the call quality (as in the voice output) seems a muddled. It’s not a great device for audio playback either, it’s loud enough but the quality is mediocre at best. The single speaker at the top of the tablet meant also that the audio will be lob-sided should you be playing a game that’s in landscape (horizontal) orientation.
Speaking of games, I tested the FonePad 7 with Asphalt 7 which is an old game but reasonably demanding even by today’s standards and the FonePad 7 could barely handle it. The games turns choppy once more detailed objects (like other cars) fill the screen.
The camera is horrible with only 2-Megapixel (4:3 ratio) being the largest size available. Sure, megapixel isn’t everything but megepixel is helpful when the image quality isn’t good.
The battery life for the FonePad 7 is pretty good, 10 rounds of Bejeweled Blitz on the brightest screen setting and loudest volume barely takes 5% off the charge.
For those seeking numbers, here’s the benchmark details from 3D Mark and Antutu.
The Verdict
The ASUS FonePad 7 (FE170CG) tablet is available at around RM 400, which I think is a pretty good price for a 7″ tablet with Dual-SIM and HSPA+ connectivity. If you’re looking for outstanding audio quality, great call quality and gaming performance then this is not the device for you.
