Ever since Fusion Garageâs last release, JooJoo tablet failed miserably, they have been working quietly on their next tablet Grid10. The tablet which has the potential to herald the era of budget tablet market is surely a paradigm shift from the usual Android-based tablets. The reason for this being the Grid OS developed indigenously By Fusion Garage, which is the highlight of the Grid10. What remains to be seen is that whether the tablet which is being offered at a throwaway price, is able to create a niche for itself in the Android-dominated tablet industry.
Features:
The most distinctive and talked-about feature of the Grid10 is its operating system, the Grid OS, developed entirely by Fusion Garage. The OS, which is built on the Android kernel, gives an interface that is very similar to the Honeycomb OS. Fusion Garage claim that they have developed from the scratch without any features of Googleâs iconic OS. The only exception being that it supports all Android-based apps. The difference from Android is evident from the moment you switch on the tablet. A unique feature of this tablet is that to unlock it, you have to sign-in with your fingers using a signature rather than the usual finger swapping or coding. Instead of a home screen, the Grid OS uses an infinite grid where you can place all your apps, individually or in a cluster. However, you need to be very aware about your device in order to access your apps, else, you might easily get lost. Another praiseworthy feature of the Grid OS is that it incorporates a feature called Intelligence which provides you with a lot of options related to any topic you want to search on the web. The Sync State feature of the operating system keeps all the apps suspended in the same state you were using it by the time you return. The Grid OS INTEGRATES social media into everything which means that you can post to Facebook or Twitter while enjoying your favorite movie or listening to music.
Specs:
The Grid10 tablet is equipped with a 10.1-inch TFT screen having a widescreen 16:9 aspect ratio. The screen packs an impressive 1366×768 pixel resolution with four-point multi-touch inputs which Fusion Garage claims to be the best in the 10.1-inch segment. The tablet is powered by Nvidia Tegra 2 1 GHz dual-core processor. However, the tablet falls flat when it comes to memory which is a meager 512 MB with internal storage capacity of 16 GB. The only ports which the Grid10 has to offer are a microSD card slot, a 3G port and a charging or docking port. Strangely, it has no HDMI or USB ports which can be added, if required, using an adapter connected to the charging port. The Grid10, which has just a front camera of 1.3 MP, measures 274x173x14mm and weighs 680g.
High points:
1. The Grid OS which, despite not being perfect, is a refreshing change from the regular Android based interface.
2. Fusion Garage has shed a mammoth $200 off the price of tablets which makes the Grid10 a very tempting investment to make.
3. The dirt cheap rate at which Fusion Garage is offering the Grid10 is, definitely, the USP of this tablet.
4. A host of great features offered by the Grid OS, Sync State, Heartbeat and Intelligence to name a few, have the potential to make this low budget tablet a killer.
Low points:
1. In terms of quality, the screen performs below-par as itâs not as bright and vivid as some other tabletsâ screens. Plus, the screen is extremely glossy and acts like a dirt and fingerprint magnet.
2. The gesture-sensitivity in the Grid10 is, unusually, high which can annoy many as the gestures seem to misfire with an alarming level of regularity.
3. Fusion Garage have stripped down the Grid10 of every remnant of Google and it is clearly illustrated by the presence of Bing as the default search engine (which canât be changed) and no access to Android market for apps which is a big let-down.
Price:
The Grid10 tablet is available at an enticing price of $299 (for the Wi-Fi version) while the 3G variant is going to cost you an additional $100.
