Here is a compilation of data I have gathered from numerous Chinese seller's sites and some non-Chinese sellers (all the devices are China-made). I have also gathered information from some Android forums discussing these devices a bit more in-depth and from people who have bought them and shared their experiences and advice on the ones available to buy.
I have also added some data on major brands beinging out tablet devices. I will add more into the specs list as I find news of them.
Chinese iPad Mobile Internet Devices (MID) "Apad" Specifications and Data
ALL PADS:
ALWAYS CHECK AND CONFIRM BEFORE BUYING:
- CPU Typeas these specs all vary slightly between sellers and pad models.
- RAM amount
- Screen size and resolution
- Dimensions (if concerned about them)
Some sellers will advertise capacitive displays. I would not trust this at all I have only heard reports of resistive displays.
Most public opinion on cameras or webcams in these devices is that they suck and are not worth bothering with.
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7/8" PADS:
There is basically 2 types (when considering CPU):
1. VIA WM8505 (slow)The pads can vary drastically in their appearances but the components inside are generally going to be one of the above chips.
2. RockChip 2808 (good)
Most 7" pads are around 200x120x14mm in size. They vary slightly between each type/seller.
The published weights vary drastically from about 150g up to 400g depending on the seller/pad.
Most Apads are advertised in both 7 and 8 inch size screens - confirm these specs with chinese sellers before buying and check upon recieving goods.
General Public Opinion: Avoid the VIA-WM CPU chips. They are too slow. Always go for a RockChip CPU. Confirm this with sellers before buying and after recieving the device. Always use a payment service that offers buyer satisfaction so you can get a refund if you don't get what is advertised to you.
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10" PADS:
These pads have the same CPU chips as the 7" models, but there is also a ZeniThink chip. The ZT-180 which runs at 800MHz compared to 600MHz for the RockChip.
There are some 10" models that have the VIA WM8505 CPUs in them. It is advisable to avoid the VIA-WM chip models.
The "WiiPad" is a 10 inch device which has the same chip as the generic Apad ZT-180 CPUs. It is simply a rebranded ZT-180 Apad.
- On August 2nd, 2010 it came to light that ZeniThink's CPUs for the ZT-180 Apads were, in fact, not a Cortex A8 CPU. They are an ARM 11 CPU.
What does this mean for the end-user? It means three things:
1. The CPU is not running as fast as originally expected. ARM11's compared to an A8 processor is slower. How much slower is hard to determine since they are different generation processors.The ZT-180 device got very good user feedback when it was released, but many customers were upset they had been lied to about the device's abilities. If you don't care about official flash upgrade support and playing back every format of videos then the ZT-180 will probably keep you happy. I have read on the Android Forums that users found popular format videos (divx/xvid) are playing back really well on the ZT-180. Some other (less common) formats have some trouble.
2. The device will have no official flash support with Google's Android 2.2 however this could change at any time. Due to the open source nature of Android OS, there can also be open communities of programmers that can support the product and create updated ROMs for it. Whether that does or doesn't happen is unknown at time of writing.
3. 1080p (high definition) videos playback may be impacted for certain video formats, and the CPU also affects some video playback abilities that would be introduced in newer (2.2) Android versions.
General Public Opinion: The RockChip 10" devices are pretty good, but the ZT-180 has been reported as being better.
Currently my advice is to sit on your credit card and wait it out until the end of year as there's meant to be more devices being released and some with capacitive displays (like Apple's iPhone and iPad screens).
Name CPU Spec GPU Spec RAM Screen Spec OS Int Memory MF Battery Life Dimensions Weight Features Avg Price Comments
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Apad 7" RockChip2808 ARM926ELC/600MHz DSP 500MHz chip 128Mb 7 or 8"/800x480/Resistive GA1.5 2-16Gb ~2-4hr Various ~400g WiFi,Mic 150 USD The RockChip 2808 driven Apads are considered the best value for money if you are after a device to do simple tasks like email, web browsing and reading eBooks.
Apad 7" VIA WM8505 ARM926/533MHz None/"Built-in" 128/256Mb 7 or 8"/800x480/Resistive GA1.5 2Gb ~2-4hr Various ~330g Wifi,Mic 125 USD Various styles. Almost any chinese seller not specifying chiptype will be selling this chipset. Dimension specs differ between sellers. General advice is to avoid models using this chipset.
Apad 10" RockChip2808 DSP 500MHz chip 128Mb 10"/1024x600/Resistive GA1.5 2-32Gb ~2-4hr ? ? Wifi,Mic 240 USD There are a number of 10" RockChip pads with only 128Mb RAM. Some pads are advertised with 256Mb RAM. There is another 10" model with the ZT-180 CPU and 256Mb RAM. Haven't read any public opinion on these.
APad 10" ZT-180/800MHz ARM11 Vivante GC600 256Mb 10"/1024x600/Resistive GA2.1 2Gb ~2-4hr 278x185x15 ? Wifi,Mic 250 USD RAM has been verified as 256Mb, a good GPU chip is inside. 20100801 - The CPU in this device has been exposed as NOT BEING a Cortex A8 CPU but is actually an ARM11. ZeniThink (the CPU manufacturer) was retagging chips and lying about the chip's abilities. This means this device is NOT flash upgradeable.
Augen 7" Telechips TCC8900/800MHz ? 256Mb 7"/800x480/Resistive GA2.1 2Gb ? ? ? Wifi,Case 149 USD Introduced at KMart for $149 on sale, regular price $169 USD. User feedback has been average for this unit. The device does not have an accelerometer in it so the screen interface does not flip when the device is rotated from landscape to portrait mode like most other Apads. For the price and security of being able to return to a major department store chain if anything goes wrong (warranty) the public feedback has been rather good due to those major aspects.
Samsung Galaxy 7" 1.2GHz A8 ? ? 7"/?/?/AMOLED GA2.2? 16Gb ? ? ~370g ? ? Samsung Galaxy tablet is reported to be released in Sep 2010.
WiiPad 10" ZT-180/800MHz ARM11 ? 256Mb DDR 10"/1024x600/Resistive GA2.1 2Gb ~5hr 278x185x25 ? Wifi,Mic 231 USD The WiiPad is simply a re-branded ZT-180 10 inch device. The CPU in it is also NOT a Cortex A8, but is an ARM11. Anything written about hte ZT-180 models applies to the WiiPad. Available from www.wiipad.us
Check Back Later
Since these devices are very new and new models are being pumped out over the next few months I will probably update this page to include newer models as they are announced and released.
Also check out the Android Forums for discussion and more details on user experiences with these devices.
Where can I buy an aPad?
You can buy aPads online and some major department stores are already releasing them with Android OS loaded. Some websites are (listed in alphabetical order):
AliExpress
AndroidTime Shop
jiongtang Shop
Merimobiles
WiiPad.us
I do not vouch for the reliability or honesty of any of these sellers. I wouldn't know any of them from a bar of soap. You should spend a little time on the Android Forums finding out who are decent sellers regarding support, updates, reliability, shipping times etc and choose what suits your needs and expectations.
Update History
20100808 - Updated info on ZT-180
20100802 - ZeniThink's ZT-180 CPUs are exposed as being ARM11 chips and not Cortex A8.
20100731 - Added new info for public feedback on Augen 7" device and ZT-180 10" device. Added some "general public feedback" summaries under tablet size sections. Added links to online sellers.
Excellent comparison. Have been looking for something like this all over the place.
Thanks. Will be checking back occasionally for updates.
I'm sorry,but i don't agree with some of your opinions.
You can ask me for more info about Chinese tablets or MIDs.
As far as I know,most of them are good value for money,though some limitation existed.
hi,
it good from u to write such analytical review on chinese MID
i am also looking for a good chinese MID so kindly advice me a chinese tablet on following attributes.
micrsoft office doc (ppt,doc,exl) can run)
games
internet
3g support
good batery
plzx do advice me as i really don't have any idea regarding which to buy
thank you very much for your time
regards
I indeed own an Original ZT-180 (No camera, Ruby mobo w/Zenithink branded infotmx 1GMHz processor -- that's meant to be funny GMHz is in many of the spec sheets.)
I am happy with my Chinese tablet. It has good battery life, has firmware updates to Android 2.2 . I am currently running the Zenithink 0503 Froyo / Android 2.2 firmware. Flash does work via a third-party .apk .
I use it mostly as an ebook reader with Adobe Reader, for navigation with MapDroyd, and occasional internet access via Dolphin HD or Opera Mini. Very sparingly I watch video on it, but I have yet for a video format to fail. Even in the event of video format non-compatibility, I imagine converting to a known compatible video format would solve the issue.
What I like about this tablet most is the ADB support which is phenomenal. You can choose Ethernet, WiFi, or USB to connect. Step one is to install the Eclipse/Android SDK then with just a few tweaks I was able to have complete control over the file system on my tablet from my laptop.
I have been shopping around for a 2nd Generation ZT-180 that has a 'Jade' motherboard that supports a camera and is slightly faster (supposedly).
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