Unlike the old adage, first impressions are more often than not last impressions. This certainly holds true in the context of Micromax’s tablet PC Funbook. At an attractive price of Rs 6,500, the Funbook will surely catch the attention of first-time tablet PC buyers. But does it live up to the value-for-money proposition?
If price is the only criteria you are looking at while buying a tablet, the Funbook isn’t a bad choice. It has a sleek design, and though it has a small screen (7 inches) it is easy to handle and carry around. The resolution – 800x480 pixels — in comparison to a few other tablets in the sub-Rs 10,000 category is quite low. But then, this is a tablet aimed at a particular target audience who shouldn’t be fussy as long it scores high on their functional usage.
The Funbook comes with the Android 4.03 platform and is powered by a 1.22 GHz Cortex-A8 CPU and has 512MB RAM. Funbook takes a bit of time to get started once you hit the power button. After about three-five seconds, it comes to life, and for most of the apps, one has to log in through their e-mail address to use those. The touch screen is responsive but the pinch-to-zoom could have been better. The one thing that keeps floating in your head while using the Funbook is its price. It is like you don’t expect great things at the price at which the Funbook is being offered.
The camera is extremely poor and it only has a front camera which has a resolution of VGA camera. One shouldn’t even bother clicking pictures as the quality is very poor. There is a video camera as well, but the quality, again, is below average. One of the good things about the Funbook is the content and apps with which it comes. Micromax’s e-learning app offers about 500 smart courses from school to college level, including preparatory material for engineering and medical exams. For people looking at a cheaper alternative which scores high on informative apps, the Funbook is a good choice.
| FUNBOOK FACTS |
|
Even the entertainment content on the Funbook is quite good. There are over 5,000 videos and songs sourced from content providers like Hungama and Bigflix. Most of these apps are free to download. It also comes with a Live TV app which is a paid app and one has to pay a subscription fee. There are about 50-odd channels available on this app including movies and music. Browsing on the Funbook is — as with most of its features — just about at a decent level and could have been better. The pinch-to-zoom feature sometimes makes browsing a bit difficult and with a low resolution, it’s not easy on the eye either. The default browser is the Ice Cream sandwich browser from Android. Gaming, surprisingly, is a good experience on the Funbook, despite poor resolution and not-so-great touch screen responsiveness.
The Funbook doesn’t come with the option of using a SIM card and one has to rely on Wi-fi connectivity or use a wireless dongle. It has a host of ports — which are very handy — including HDMI, mini USB and a headset jack. The battery life is decent and it takes about 3.5 hours to charge fully. After using for three hours at a stretch, the battery had only been half-consumed. For its first product in the category and the price point (yes, the price again), the Funbook isn’t a bad option for those looking to buy their first budget tablet PCs. The Funbook overall is a decent tablet to have if you don’t have too many expectations.