Benchmarks and Performance

The Axpad was able to handle most of the basic benchmarks, but as with other lower-specced Android devices, it stuttered during the 3D-intensive tests. Both Angry Birds and Temple Run ran without issues, but Fruit Ninja had its fair share of slowdowns when there were a lot of items on screen.

Because it doesn’t necessarily have the most amazing specifications, there will be times when the Axpad falters just a little bit. It could be when you’re trying to type something in the web browser, or using Google voice commands, or just rotating the tablet around to view a video in full screen. The Axpad also had a few issues rendering some web sites with a few Flash banners on it, but had no problems quickly zooming in and out of webpages.

UI and Apps

The UI on the Axpad is the stock Ice Cream Sandwich one, so you get the general Google apps as well as apps such as Skype and QuickOffice. There are also widgets for weather, news, Twitter, and many more, though I found that placing too many widgets on the main screen caused a delay when rotating the screen around.

Screen and Camera

The 7” capacitive screen has a resolution of 800×480, and is comfortable enough to watch video on and maybe read an eBook or two. Colors do at times appear a bit faded depending on the quality of what you’re viewing (either video or photos), but again given the low price point and specifications of the Axpad, you can’t expect much better.

The camera on the Axpad is a front-facing one only, so you’ll only be able to use it for apps like Skype, or for taking group photos by awkwardly holding the tablet at arm’s length. You don’t have any options or control over the image settings, apart from switching between photo, video, and panorama modes. Given the low resolution of the camera, photos do have a considerable amount of noise added to them, so it’s best just using the camera for video chats.

Sound & Battery Life

Audio on the Axpad is courtesy of the small speaker at the back of the device. The audio produced by this speaker is quite loud, though if you lay the tablet on a table or flat surface, the audio is immediately muffled, so it’s best to prop the tablet up if you’re watching video content or listening to music.

Battery life on the Axpad was acceptable, with the tablet lasting about two days on a full charge with emails on sync, a few gaming sessions, and Wi-fi always on. The tablet did get a bit warm to touch after some continuous use, but not too uncomfortable to keep holding it.

Conclusion

It’s easy to look at the Axtrom Axpad V1 and dismiss it for more powerful and faster tablets on the market. But while the Axpad may not blow you away with its performance, its comfortable price point means that people can afford to buy it and enjoy a tablet experience for the very first time. Yes, the build quality could have been sleeker and less plastic, or the screen could have been more responsive, but all of these additions would most certainly make the Axpad more expensive. The Axpad comfortably sits in the realm of affordability and performance, where you get pretty much what you pay for. It’s great for running most of the popular Android games, watching videos or listening to music – it might not be the snappiest tablet around, but it’s an honorable effort at producing a tablet that is both affordable and accessible to new users.