Micromax launched the Canvas Tab P650, the company’s first tablet in the Canvas series last month. We brought you the unboxing last week, here we have the complete review of the tablet. This is one of the first Android tablet to feature a 4:3 display. This is also the first tablet from Micromax to pack a 1.2 GHz quad-core MediaTek MT8389 processor. The tablet runs on Android 4.2.1 (Jelly Bean), similar to the Canvas 4 and the Canvas Doodle 2, the company’s latest flagship devices. Is the tablet worth the price ? Let’s find it out in the review.
Unboxing
We unboxed the Micromax Canvas Tab recently. Check out the unboxing below.
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eZAbsPeJ1fw
Box Contents
The box contents include:
- Micromax Canvas Tab P650 Tablet
- 2-pin Charger
- Tangle-free in-ear earphones
- USB Cable
- User Guide
- Warranty Card
- Snap Cover
Video Review
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HWMPF7_kq5Q
Hardware
The tablet has a 8-inch display at a resolution of 1024 by 768 pixels at a pixel density of just 160 ppi. Even last year’s Nexus 7 had a 216 ppi screen. The display is very glossy and is prone to fingerprints. Since the display is glossy, the sunlight legibility is poor, but the viewing angles are decent. Since the display has an aspect ratio of 4:3, instead of 16:9, the tablet is too wide and is not easy hold it in a single hand.
Above the display there is an ear piece. Next to it a 2-megapixel camera is present. It can record videos at 640 x 480 (VGA) resolution. The tablet doesn’t have any hardware keys below the display, so you need to use the on-screen touch buttons for back, home and multitasking.
A chrome rim runs on the sides of the tablet, which gives it a premium look. It is 9.6 mm thick. The tablet feels quite heavy, but the weight of the tablet is not mentioned on the official website or on the box. Looks like the tablet might weigh over 400 grams.
The volume rocker is present on the right side. There is a tiny microphone hole just above the volume rocker.
There is a flap below the volume rocker, which opens up to reveal the micro SD card slot and the SIM card slot. This uses a standard / mini SIM card and not a micro SIM card. The plastic cover that protects these slots is connected by a thin rubber string, so there are chances that it might wear out easily on frequent use.
The power button is awkwardly placed on the top, which makes it hard to access it using a single hand. The 3.5mm audio jack and a micro USB slot are also present on the top.
On the back there is a 5-megapixel camera. There is a RESET hole on the top center in case of emergency. The loudspeaker grill is present below that.
Even though the tablet has a Black bezel on the front, it has a blue shade on the back. There is a Micromax logo in the center and the Canvas tab logo is present below that. IMEI is mentioned on a sticker. The tablet also comes in white color with a white bezel. The build quality is quite good.
The Canvas tablet also comes with a free snap cover, similar to the Doodle 2.
The cover has ridges that lets you fold it and make it as a stand for the tablet.
The flip cover stand enables you to place the device in landscape mode easily and enjoy videos or movies.
Camera
The 5-megapixel auto focus camera is decent, but not impressive. Macro shots are decent, but noise is clearly visible. Since it lacks an LED flash, low-light shots are below average. The camera UI is simple. You get the image or video preview on the right corner. You can swipe to the right to view the previous photos or videos you have captured. On the left side there are different options including option to take HDR image. Since the tablet is too heavy and large, it is hard to capture and HDR image without shake. There are just three scene modes (Auto, Night and Sunset) and different color effects (Mono, Sepia, Negative, Aqua, Blackboard, Whiteboard). You can change the Exposure, White Balance, Anti-flicker (50 Hz or Auto ) from the settings. You can toggle between the rear and front cameras from the top right corner, just above the zoom feature. Other options include continuous shot (40 shots or 99 shots), option to adjust the image size and Face beauty. You can also capture normal panorama, MAV and sweep panorama.
Check out few camera samples below.
The tablet is capable of recording videos at 1080p full HD resolution, but the video quality is average without much details. The camera takes a log of time to focus. Check out the video sample below.
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OGrZuFiieWc
Software
The tablet runs on Android 4.2.1 (Jelly Bean). The UI pretty much stock and is similar to what you see on most of the smartphones from local OEMs.
There is a notification shade on the left side and Quick settings on the right side. There are 5 homescreens and it supports folders. It has Quick toggles for auto screen rotation, WiFi, Bluetooth, Data Connection and more. You can also adjust the brightness using the slider. Since the tablet doesn’t have an ambient light sensor auto brightness features is not available.
Since the tablet runs on Jelly Bean, you get Google Now feature and lock screen widgets. You can’t launch the camera or Google Now directly from the lock screen. Apart from Slide unlock, you have Face, Pattern, PIN and Password unlock options.
The tablet has 16GB of internal memory out of which 11.07GB is free for storage. 1.73GB of memory is available for app storage. Out of 1GB RAM, 972MB of RAM is usable and about 530 MB is available when the tablet is idle.
You can also move the apps to the SD card and set the default write disk to USB storage or memory card.
Apps
The tablet comes with the usual set of pre-loaded apps and Google Apps. The Utility apps include, Calculator, Calendar, Clock, File Manager, ToDo note taking app, Email and Sound Recorder. Other apps include, Opera mini, Kingsoft Office (to view and edit documents), and Spuul (to view free movies). It also comes pre-loaded with games such as The Dark Man and Fruit Devil. The M! Security app powered by NQmobile is an antivirus app with built-in features including privacy advisor, Anti-theft, anti-span and option to backup contacts. The M! Live apps lets you purchase apps and games.
Music Player and FM Radio
The music player has a new user interface similar to the Canvas 4 and the Doodle 2 smartphones. It plays different audio formats. The slide-out bar shows lists the songs in the music library under different categories and the Micromax Online Music lets you purchase songs. You can enable the equalizer for Bass boost and 3D effect features when you are listening using earphones. Audio from the bundled ear phones with tangle-free wire is decent and loudspeaker is also good.
It also has FM Radio surprisingly with RDS and recording capabilities. The Video player is similar to Canvas 4 and the Doodle 2 that is created by Micromax. It can can handle full HD 1080p video of different formats and has a lot of features including video pinning, option to preview a video when other video playing and pause on look away. You can also adjust the brightness and volume by swiping on the left and right side of the screen respectively, while the video is playing. Since this is 4:3 screen you get black bars on top and bottom of the screen in the landscape mode.
Calls and Messaging
The tablet has single SIM support. It uses a standard (mini) SIM card. You can make calls and send SMS, just like a phone. Since the tablet is too heavy and wide, it is impossible to use it as a smartphone. However you can use the bundled headset to make calls. It has a standard Android keyboard.
Connectivity
The connectivity features include, 3G (HSDPA: 7.2 Mbps ; HSUPA: 5.76 Mbps), WiFi 802.11 b/g/n, Bluetooth 3.0, GPS. It doesn’t have USB On the Go (OTG) support.
Performance and Benchmarks
The tablet is powered by a 1.2 GHz quad-core MediaTek MT8389 Cortex A7 processor with PowerVR SGX544 MP2 GPU. The performance of the tablet is good, and it did not lag. We tried out few games like Asphalt 8, Dead Trigger, Prince of Persia, Riptide GP2 and Shadow Gun. Even though the gaming was smooth the graphics were average in most of the games.
Check out the Riptide GP2 gameplay on the Canvas Tab
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7U4zsZJThsA
Overall, gaming experience on Micromax Canvas Tab is average.
We also ran some benchmarks on the tablet.
Quadrant Benchmark
The Canvas Tab easily beats most of the competing tablets including the last year’s Nexus 7 in the Quadrant benchmark, but the Tab 3 311 powered by a 1.5GHz dual-core Exynos 4212 SoC tops the chart.
AnTuTu Benchmark 3.3
The Canvas Tab tops the AnTuTu Benchmark 3.3. We also ran the latest AnTuTu Benchmark 4.0, in which the tablet managed to score 10234 points.
Vellamo 2.0 HTML5
The tablet scored 1454 points in the Vellamo 2 HTML5 browser benchmark and lies behind the Galaxy Tab 3. Check out the complete set of Micromax Canvas Tab P650 benchmarks here.
Battery Life
The tablet packs a 4800 mAh non-removable battery. The battery life is average. It lasts about 6 hours on mixed usage such as photos, video recording, few voice calls, some gaming and videos. If you use if mainly for games and watching videos battery would run out quickly.
Conclusion
Overall the Canvas Tab is a decent tablet, but not impressive. It has good build, comes with 3G connectivity, but the tablet is not suitable for voice calling since it is heavy. Even though the viewing angles are decent, the display resolution is low and is is glossy. At a market price of Rs. 15,999, if you need a tablet running Android 4.2, 3G connectivity and 16GB of internal memory with expansion slot, but can compromise on the display and weight, go for it.
Pros
- 3G support via SIM card slot
- 16GB of internal memory with expandable memory
- Good build
Cons
- Too wide and heavy for voice calling
- Glossy low-resolution display
- No proximity and ambient light sensors
- Slightly on the expensive side