Zync Z-990 — Budget tablet, dull screen

Android users are forever kept on tenterhooks when it comes to updates to the operating system (OS). They wait endlessly as manufacturers tinker the basic Android OS, putting their own skin on top of it, before releasing the update. The Zync Z-990 is one of the first tablets running on Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich) to hit the Indian market. It is also a budget tablet retailing for Rs8,990.

In one way, the cost-cutting has helped. Zync has retained the original interface, giving us a taste of Ice Cream Sandwich as it is meant to be. There’s also close to zero bloatware (useless software that comes pre-installed with devices). Only two apps were pre-installed — Astro file manager and Vortex video player, both are utility apps that will actually help you.

But in other areas, the cost-cutting reflects negatively. The all-plastic body doesn’t feel solid in your hands, and there is a noticeable flex as you hold the tablet. But the Z-990 does offer tons of connectivity options. There’s a USB slot, a micro-USB slot, and even an HDMI slot. According to Zync, the USB slot can be used to connect thumb drives as well as 3G dongles, so you can have high-speed internet connectivity all the time even on the WiFi-only device.

The low-res screen doesn’t do a good job of rendering text. Articles on news websites looked fuzzy. Colour reproduction of images too was disappointing. I downloaded Angry Birds Space. While there was nothing specific to complain about really, the game-play was not as smooth as I would like. The tablet groaned a bit while multi-tasking too — menus would open with a jerk when the music was playing. While 1.2GHz processor and 1GB RAM seem like respectable enough specs, it looks like the device needed a bit more juice, especially for multitasking.

The real disappointment though was when it came to audio and video playback. The sound was fine when put on speakers. But the moment I plugged my earphones in, the quality dropped considerably. I could hardly make out dialogues or lyrics in a closed environment let alone while travelling.

To sum up, when a tablet is priced for as little as `8,990, it is but expected that the manufacturer will cut corners. The construction may not be top-notch, but serves the purpose. The lycra sleeve and screen guard included within the package do help protecting the device. What is a little hard to digest is the poor sound quality. It is possible that this could have been a problem with the test device. Else, Zync needs to address this problem at the earliest.

In fine, here are the pros: low price; comes loaded with Ice Cream Sandwich. And cons: screen quality is not up to the mark; sound quality on the earphones is disappointing.