Vodafone Smart Tab 4G Tablet Review

1. Introduction2. Packaging and Bundle3. Design4. Display5. Software6. Performance7. Camera8. Battery9. Closing Thoughts10. View All Pages

In recent years, more and more mobile network operators have started releasing their own mobile devices. EE have released the Kestrel phone and the Eagle tablet, for instance. Today we look at a tablet from Vodafone, the Smart Tab 4G. Competitively priced at £125, it is aimed at consumers looking to avoid the biggest price tags but still get a decent – if not phenomenal – device.

Vodafone's Smart Tab 4G is certainly inexpensive, but there has been significant growth in the lower end of the tablet market over the last couple of years. This means the Smart Tab 4G is up against a slew of cheaper tablets – including Amazon's Fire HD tablet, the Tesco Hudl 2, and the ASUS Memopad, to name but a few.

Features

• 8-inch, WXGA display
• Quad-core Snapdragon 410 processor, 1.2GHz
• 1GB RAM
• 8GB internal storage, microSD cards up to 64GB supported
• Android 4.4.4
• 5MP primary camera, 2MP secondary camera
• 4060 mAh battery capacity

 
The Smart Tab 4G comes in a fairly standard white and red box – traditional Vodafone colours.

On the front, product branding and a product photo is visible. Basic specifications can be found on the back of the box.

Inside, we find a microUSB cable, charger and quick start guide. Nothing showy to be seen, just a simple box to house the tablet and accessories.
On first look, the Smart Tab 4G seems very similar to the iPad Mini in terms of its design. The Smart Tab 4G uses a 16:10 aspect ratio as opposed to the 4:3 ratio used by the iPad, so it is less square.

However, the uncomplicated face of the Smart Tab 4G, populated by only a ‘selfie' camera – as well as the black finish to the tablet – does draw comparisons between the two products.

Granted, the Vodafone is much less of a premium device – as it costs a fraction of what you would pay for an iPad. This made clear by the plastic construction, as opposed to the aluminium and glass of the iPad. However, it is textured plastic, meaning it is satisfying to hold, and does not slip.

On the back of the device, we find a camera that protrudes by a millimeter or two – something we prefer not to have, but at this price we can understand the reasons behind it.

The standard on/off button and volume rocker can be found atop the right hand edge, with a microSD/SIM card tray on the left hand side. At the bottom is the typical microUSB port.

There are no surprises to the design, but the Smart Tab 4G does feel good to hold and does not feel cheap or flimsy.
On to the display of the tablet, we find the first area where corners have been cut to achieve the low price point.

The Smart Tab 4G features a WXGA resolution – 800*1280. This is essentially an HD display but stretched to fit a 16:10 aspect ratio, as opposed to the widescreen standard of 16:9. The WXGA resolution, then, equates to a pixel density of 184 PPI.

This is certainly at the lowest end of what we would expect for a modern day device. Pixels are very visible and text is not crystal clear. Video playback is passable, but you will not be marveling at the eye-popping detail the screen features. For the money, it is reasonable, but it is not a hugely pleasurable screen to use.

The tablet does use an IPS panel, though, and viewing angles are very good. We did not notice any colour shift, which partially makes up for the modest resolution.

Brightness, too, is decent. Though there is no auto-brightness feature – which is annoying – taking the Smart Tab 4G outside is not impossible as the full brightness setting is certainly usable.
Included with the Smart Tab 4G is Android KitKat 4.4.4 – and the great thing is, Vodafone have left it well alone.

We did find a few apps such as ‘Smart Weather' and ‘100% Games' which the tablet could have done without, but other than that, this is very close to stock Android.

The launcher is essentially ‘Google Now' but without the branding, as it features the familiar, large icons and standard widget options. It looks clean, though, and has not been cluttered by swathes of unnecessary weather and news widgets, which many other manufacturers often include for mysterious reasons.

We find the standard notification panel by swiping down from the top left of the screen, while swiping down from the top right brings the familiar, 'tiled' quick settings.

The settings menu is also unchanged, featuring the simple white-on-black colour scheme that first launched with the KitKat OS back in 2013.

There's not a lot to comment on with the included OS here – which is definitely a good thing. It is, practically speaking, stock Android KitKat, which most of our readers are probably familiar with. Again, it's always nice to see a manufacturer leave Android alone, rather than adding a heap of bloatware and unnecessary features.
A quad-core Snapdragon 410 provides the grunt for the Smart Tab 4G, which is alongside 1GB of RAM. This towards the lower end of things for modern devices – but that is exactly what we'd expect for a £125 tablet.

In real word terms, performance was admirable. The Snapdragon CPU kept the system moving at a reasonable pace, though there was the occasional laggy moment where an app took that bit longer to load, for instance. This was often the case with the Chrome browser – perhaps explained by the relatively small amount of RAM, and that Chrome uses lots of memory.

Still, performance was mostly decent and we were not left frustrated by any unresponsiveness. At this price level, and for many consumers, the performance is definitely good enough.

The benchmarks followed a similar pattern. In Geekbench 3, the Smart Tab 4G scored 466 for single-core performance, and 1376 for multi-score performance. This is quite impressive for a cheaper tablet, but it is some way behind the Hudl 2 – which posted 792 and 2147 respectively.

In 3DMark's Ice Storm Unlimited, the Smart Tab 4G scored 4338 – which also seems very decent for the price. That is until we compare with the Hudl 2 again, which scored 12987. At a very similar price, the Hudl 2 is clearly considerably more powerful than the Smart Tab 4G.
The Smart Tab 4G features a 5MP primary camera, which shoots at a native resolution of 2560*1684. There is also a 2MP secondary camera.

The included Vodafone camera app is very limited, but it will take standard photos, as well as panoramas. A night mode is also included, which is certainly appreciated given the price of the Smart Tab 4G.

The photos themselves are surprisingly decent. Tablets tend not to prioritise their camera capabilities, and this is especially evident with cheaper devices.

However, the Smart Tab 4G takes good all-round photos. The auto-exposure is smart, meaning images are well lit. Colour reproduction is also fairly rich, but the level of detail is lacking. We would not expect more than 5MP on a tablet, and certainly not at this price, but as it is, photos are not very crisp.

Still, it is a decent shooter for the money and will take acceptable photos.
Battery life is actually strong point for the Smart Tab 4G. With a 4060 mAh unit, it does not sound too impressive – but it is worth remembering the lesser screen resolution and Snapdragon 410 CPU are not very power-hungry.

We found the Smart Tab 4G could comfortably last at least a full day with normal usage. As we used it, the tablet managed all our benchmarks, word processing, browsing and gaming on a single charge over two days.

This is with our usual connectivity settings – a comfortable brightness level at all times, with WiFi and auto-sync always on.

If you are going to be using the Smart Tab 4G as your main portable device – that is, you'll be using it more than your phone – you'll probably get a full day out of it, but it will comfortably last a day. Other users should expect to get two or more days from a single charge.The Vodafone Smart Tab 4G seems an interesting option to go with if you are looking for a tablet at the cheaper end of the market.

Its simple design draws comparisons with the iPad Mini, but is not as premium as the iPad due to the plastic construction. Still, the tablet does not feel cheap, and the textured finish means it is satisfying to hold.

The display is perhaps the weakest point, with the resolution meaning the Smart Tab 4G has just 184 PPI – meaning the display is not very crisp. This is partially remedied by strong viewing angles though, and the brightness levels are decent.

Android KitKat has been left well alone, which is something we always like to see. The OS is clean and snappy, giving you the full Android experience on a budget.

Performance, too, is solid. It works just fine with everyday use, though the Smart Tab 4G does pale in comparison to the Hudl 2 when it comes to the benchmarks.

The included 5MP camera is another nice surprise – we did not have high hopes. However, colours and lighting are good, with only the lack of detail letting the images down. However, for the price it is hard to ask for more from this camera unit.

Battery life is also very good, lasting us two full days before needing a recharge. More regular users may just get one full day, but that is almost guaranteed.

The question does remain, though, if this is the best option to go with. The Hudl 2 may be a better bet – as it has a faster processor and a FHD display. However, it lacks the 4G connectivity, and the design is not as clean looking as the Vodafone model. Substance or style? you have a choice…

You can buy the Smart Tab 4G directly from Vodafone for £125 inc VAT – and this even includes 6GB of mobile data with the tablet.

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Pros

• Clean design.
• Good battery life.
• Decent camera.
• Affordable.

Cons

• Poor screen resolution.
• Performance lacking when compared to the Hudl 2.

KitGuru says: The Vodafone Smart Tab 4G seems good value and is a decent all-round tablet. You may want to think about the Tesco Hudl 2 at this price point, but the Smart Tab is not a bad choice.

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