Alcatel One Touch Tab 7HD: First Impressions – Powerful tablet for only Php7,490

When the original iPad came out in 2010, tablets instantly became objects of envy. Everybody wanted one, but only a few could afford one. Sure, there were budget options, but they sported resistive screens and sluggish hardware.

They were rarely worth the already low price tags. Fast forward to 2013 and we’re beginning to see trusted international brands come out with decently specced budget tablets that satisfy all the basic tablet needs. Nope, no more single core crapware with WVGA screens. The Alcatel One Touch Tab 7HD is one such budget tablet, retailing for much less than Php10k, and it’s looking pretty respectable at that price range.

The build quality and design is solid, but not spectacular. Save for the headset port, micro USB port and front and back cameras, there are hardly any notable design features. It does have some satisfying heft to it. At 191 x 125 x 9mm, it’s also compact, which is good for holding it one-handed.

True to its namesake, the Alcatel One Touch Tab 7HD features a 1280 x 800 HD IPS screen. It’s one of the best screens you can currently get from an international brand at that price point. A few months ago, you would only expect a 1024 x 600 screen from a tablet that retailed for less than Php10k, or worse, WVGA. This instantly makes the One Touch Tab 7HD a great entertainment device that will allow you to consume all kinds of visual content like ebooks, web articles and movies. On the local scene, the most notable contender is the Cherry Mobile Fusion Bolt (read our review here).

Related: Alcatel Android Lineup for 2013 Gets Launched

The chipset is also pretty powerful. You’re getting a 1.6GHz dual core ARM Cortex A9 processor and a quad core ARM Mali TM-400 GPU. The 1Gb of RAM will help to make multitasking smoother. Screen transitions are fluid and I expect the One Touch Tab HD to perform well in games too, and it runs Android 4.1 Jelly Bean out of the box.

Storage is a bit of a downer. You’re only getting 4Gb of ROM, with just a fraction being user accessible. The rest is reserved for system processes, but at least it’s expandable up to 32Gb via micro SD.

The One Touch Tab 7HD only gives you the most basic wireless connectivity options: Bluetooth 2.0 and WiFi b/g/n. That shouldn’t come as a surprise given the price point, and it’s hard to complain given it costs way less than Php10k.

Speaking of price point, the Alcatel One Touch Tab 7HD only retails for Php7,490. For an international brand, that should be pretty attractive to price-sensitive consumers. It certainly makes a great choice for those who are turned off by the limited after sales support from some of the local brands.

Alcatel One Touch Tab 7HD Specs

• 7” WXGA (800 x 1280 pixels) IPS display
• Android Jelly Bean 4.1
• Dual Core 1.6GHz ARM Cortex A9 CPU
• ARM Mali TM-400 Quad Core
• 4GB EMMC + 1GB RAM
• Micro SD support
• 2mp autofocus primary camera, VGA secondary camera
• WiFi 802.11 b/g/n
• Bluetooth 2.0
• Micro USB
• 3.5mm headset jack
• Dimensions:  191 x 125 x 9mm
• 3,300mAh battery

I’ll be setting aside my main tablet and using the Alcatel One Touch Tab 7HD as my primary entertainment device in the coming weeks. A quick review will be posted soon on my personal blog and a full review on NoypiGeeks in about a week or two. Anything you guys want me to test on the Alcatel One Touch Tab 7HD? Just let me know in the comments.