Lenovo Yoga Tablets to sell for as low as P14,999 in the Philippines
TechnoStorm Tech Trend – Tue, Dec 10, 2013
Whether or not newly named product engineer Ashton Kutcher actually had anything to do with the Lenovo Yoga Tablets 10 and 8, we're sure of one thing: The company knows how to integrate kickstands into its latest Android tablets. But more on that later.
As its name suggests, the Lenovo Yoga Tablet 10 has a 10-inch touch display. The screen uses IPS [in-plane switching] technology for better color fidelity and wider viewing angles. The resolution is 1,280 x 800 pixels, resulting in an average pixel density for a display of this size.
The tablet's most noticeable feature is the industrial design, which brings us to the built-in kickstand that resembles a laptop hinge to allow three modes of use: hold, stand, and tilt.
Each has its own advantages. Hold mode is best for reading books, lengthy emails, and viewing magazines. Stand mode is good for watching movies and video chatting. And tilt mode is for Web browsing, gaming, and typing. Of the three, we find hold mode the most convenient and useful.
Yet another clever use for the kickstand is that it houses the power/lock button and 3.5mm audio jack on opposite ends of the hardware. It also holds the huge 9,000mAh battery, which can supposedly go up to 18 hours of use on a single charge, almost twice the battery life of Apple iPads. But as always, we'll reserve judgment until we get our hands on a review unit.
The rest of the hardware is equally decent. The Yoga Tablet 10 has a unibody aluminum casing that is easily among the most attractive and well-made among Android devices. It's also relatively light, coming in at 603 grams.
Meet the Lenovo Yoga Tablets
Whether or not newly named product engineer Ashton Kutcher actually had anything to do with the Lenovo Yoga Tablets 10 and 8, we're sure of one thing: The company knows how to integrate kickstands into its latest Android tablets. More on the tablets here:
As for the specs, well, there's a 1.2GHz quad-core processor from MediaTek inside, 1GB of RAM, and 16GB of storage. Obviously, the Yoga Tablet doesn't hold a candle to Android devices that are specced out to the max, but it is adequate for bread-and-butter tasks like Web browsing and movie watching.
The Yoga Tablet 10 features a microSD expansion slot for cards up to 64GB in capacity, alongside a microSIM slot for mobile Internet access. It also ships with Android Jelly Bean on tap, with the usual "update to the next version of Android" caveat.
Optional accessories for the 10-inch slate include a form-fitting sleeve, a wireless display dongle for TVs with HDMI inputs, and a Bluetooth-powered detachable keyboard that doubles as a hard-shell protector for the screen. These accessories haven't been priced yet, but we do hope they'll be reasonable.
Up next is the Lenovo Yoga Tablet 8, which is a lighter (just 399 grams), more compact version of the 10-inch tab. You're looking at the same aluminum design; same kickstand; same 1,280 x 800 resolution, albeit on a smaller, 8-inch display; same quad-core internals; and same rated runtime of up to 18 hours.
It's a carbon copy of the bigger Yoga Tablet 10, except for one significant difference: full telephony features, which means you can make calls, send text messages, and access the Internet via 3G with the device.
Our hands-on time with both devices left us impressed, largely because of the clever kickstand design. Should you want to check the slates out for yourself, you'll find the Lenovo Yoga Tablet 10 and 8 on shelves at any time soon, retailing for P16,999 and P14,999, respectively.
