There are a lot of factors that go into purchasing the perfect tablet. The size of its screen and how heavy it is to hold, a comfortable ecosystem whether it be iOS, Android or Windows, the right amount of storage space, and of course, the best price. Toshiba is gearing up to launch its REGZA AT501 tablet, but unfortunately only seems to nail a few of these crucial elements.
The company’s follow-up to its AT500 will come with a 10.1-inch IPS display with a resolution of 1,280 x 800, a 1.3GHz Tegra 3 processor, and 1GB of RAM. These are moderate specs that shouldn’t be overlooked, but the tablet is seriously lacking in the camera department, with just a 3-megapixel rear-facing camera—which is weak to say the least. Standard smartphones usually come with 8-megapixel rear cameras, and mid-range to low-end handsets have cameras with at least 5-megapixel image quality. Five megapixels is common among most tablets.
However, the REGZA AT501 does have some attractive selling points that work in its favor. The tablet comes with Android 4.1 Jelly Bean right out of the box and is packed with an adequate battery that boasts up to 10 hours of battery life. That’s way more than you can expect from Microsoft’s Surface Pro, and is just about on par with Apple’s iPad on a full charge.
But where Toshiba loses once again is with the tablet’s price. The REGZA AT501 will cost you 40,000 yen, or $425 in the U.S. This is more expensive than Google’s $400 Nexus 10 tablet, which promises more RAM, a lighter design, a sharper display, a better camera and Android 4.2 out of the box.
Toshiba has a mixed background with tablet launches, but has yet to release a stellar slate that can compete with the likes of Apple, Google or Samsung. Its 13-inch Excite came with a whopping $749 price tag that far outweighed its allures, but we did give Toshiba’s Thrive 10-inch an 84/100 rating for its full-sized USB and HDMI ports and an attractive design. The REGZA AT501 has potential to succeed, but would have fared better at a cheaper price.
