March 11, 2013 at 08:37ONDA V972 - a new generation of Chinese tablets
With leaps and bounds, Chinese products are approaching the quality of world-famous brands. In this review, I will tell you about one of the representatives of the new generation of Chinese tablets, the key feature of which is the presence of a new quad-core processor based on the Cortex A7 architecture and a screen with a high pixel density - ONDA V972.
9.7-inch IPS screen with a resolution of 2048x1536
Dual-core PowerVR SGX544MP2 video accelerator (8 stream processors) Allwiner A31
quad-core processor on the Cortex A7 architecture 2 GB of RAM Android JB 4.1.1 operating system
16/32 GB user memory + microSD card slot
2 cameras: rear 5 MP and front 2 MP
Communications: Wi-Fi (802.11 b / g / n)
Optional:
8000 mAh USB OTG Li-pol battery
Dimensions, weight: 242.6x187.5x9.8 mm, 649 grams
On the market, the tablet is presented in two colors - black and white. Versions with 16 and 32 GB of internal memory are also available, the price for the youngest starts at $ 240.
Inside is the tablet itself and a rather meager bundle: charger, USB cable and documentation in Chinese.
The power supply is 2.5 A. There are cases of failure of this unit during the first charge, so it is advised on the forums to replace it with something more reliable. My copy has been working for 3 weeks, charging the smartphone and tablet in turn 24/7 and, I hope, is not going to die. For complete happiness, there is not enough OTG cable, but for the fact that they did not put the headset “for ejection” I can only say thank you.
On the front panel there is a touch screen framed by a white frame and a front camera. There is no light sensor.
On the upper edge (while holding the tablet in portrait orientation) there are two buttons: power and home.
The bottom edge contains (from left to right): a 3.5 mm mini-jack, an HDMI output, a microSD card slot, a microUSB connector that charges the tablet and connects it to a computer, a microphone hole and a speaker. The latter, unfortunately, is terribly inconvenient, because when you hold the tablet in landscape orientation, it closes with your hand.
The back panel and beveled sides of the tablet are made in the form of a single aluminum part with an engraved logo in the center. Sidewalls are empty.
At the back there is also a peephole of the main camera and additional information about the tablet (model, serial number, amount of user memory). All cables come fully, do not stick out. High build quality and excellent appearance cause only positive emotions. No creaks and backlashes were noticed. Grieving only far from the most successful speaker location.
Once again, I note a 4: 3 aspect ratio, which I personally consider ideal for a tablet, which is why I have long put an end to Android tablets with an aspect ratio of 16: 9 or 16:10. The front panel is glass, but the usual one, not protected, and from the factory the tablet comes with a protective film glued on, which I do not recommend removing, since it is glued well, without distortions and bubbles.
Of the shortcomings in terms of the display, I would note the overestimated value of the minimum brightness, but most likely this is an error in the firmware than in the hardware.
Armed with a plastic card or pick, we pry and push the front of the case, not forgetting the latches.
The aluminum of the lid is quite thick, in the photo below one of the grooves for the latches on the main part is also noticeable.
Let's move on to the main part. The internal layout looks high quality, all wires and cables are additionally fixed with tape. Chips of constant and random access memory made by Hynix (the company is one of the five leading manufacturers of random access memory).
The layout around the processor is quite tight. There are 8 RAM chips soldered on the board, 256 MB each (2 GB in total) and 2 ROM chips of 8 GB each. In close proximity to the processor is a PMIC chip designed specifically for the Allwinner A31, a characteristic feature of which is the ability to minimize the number of LDO stabilizers. And finally, the heart of the device is the processor. No thermal pads are provided to the rear aluminum cover, which is not surprising, since the Cortex A7 is an economical architecture.
To summarize. It is not difficult to disassemble the tablet, the main thing is not to be similar to the iPad, because in this case the front panel is not glued to the case, moreover, it acts as the supporting part here, i.e. on it are all the components of the tablet and you need to remove the back metal cover. Build quality, looks reliable.
But the whole charm of this CPU lies in its video accelerator, because without exaggeration, I can say that this solution, at the moment, is the most productive in the Chinese tablet market. Moreover, the graphics performance is significantly higher than that of the iPad 2 and slightly falls short of the iPad 3. I also note that this version of the GPU supports “desktop” versions of DirectX (9.0L3) and OpenGL (2.1).
We proceed directly to testing. The device scores 11101 points in the Antutu test and 3064 in Quadrant: The multi-touch in the tablet supports up to 10 simultaneous touches. Of the sensors, only an accelerometer is available.
The operation of the Wi-Fi module is only pleasing, because -60 dBm at a distance of 5 meters and an obstacle in the form of a brick wall is an excellent indicator (second screenshot). The first screenshot shows the signal level in close proximity to the router. Browsing The standard browser proved to be the best in this mode of use. It's nice to surf, the average page loading time is 3-4 seconds, scrolling is smooth. In the new Epic Citadel (Unreal Engine 3) test, the device also shows itself on the good side, and the graphics, gentlemen, for a mobile device, are simply amazing.
NenaMark 2.4 test:
Graphics performance is more than enough for 2D games. Moreover, you can safely play NFS: Most Wanted at maximum graphics settings, where FPS is within 25 units. The test for video playback was successful, since even video in 4K resolution did not become an obstacle for the tablet, to say nothing of ordinary 1080p and below.
Even despite the Retina display, the tablet has excellent performance that covers all everyday tasks. The main thing is to properly manage this performance, and ONDA has done little to improve this, which slightly spoils the overall impression, and I will discuss this in more detail below.
Out of the box, we get a terribly slowdown launcher, which spoils the first impression of the tablet. Part of the problem is solved by installing a third-party launcher, such as Nova, but the tablet is still sometimes thoughtful. Android standard interest also slows down, which is what I talked about in the previous chapter. Additionally, we get a mountain of unnecessary Chinese software, from which you can leave only 4K VideoPlayer.
For 3 weeks of use, I got 5 full freezes, which can be cured only by rebooting. Once the tablet completely turned into a brick, and I had to reflash it again, and it happened all of a sudden, without any preliminary manipulations. In the case of ONDA V972, the operating system should be attributed to the greatest drawback of the device, as having sufficient performance, the device launcher manages to seriously "stupid".
By the way, rumors are circulating on the Internet that the French manufacturer of mobile devices Archos intends to sell the ONDA V972 tablet under its own brand, which gives us hope for additional and, possibly, better software.
Various tests for the duration of work are collected in the table below.
Based on the data obtained, we again state the fact of the failure of Chinese programmers. After all, the powerful hardware video decoder inherent in the video accelerator installed in the tablet should decode any video with a minimum processor load (respectively, and minimal energy consumption), as a result of which, in this mode, the device should work much more, which we, unfortunately, do not observe.
Low cost
High resolution IPS display
High build quality and materials
Support USB-OTG, an HDMI port and a slot for microSD memory cards
A new hardware platform with a quad-core processor, video adapter with two graphic cores and 2 GB of RAM
Raw firmware
Not the best speaker location
Small battery life
High value of minimum brightness
No Bluetooth
Topic on w3bsit3-dns.com
Page on the official site
If you do not have an account on Habrahabr, you can read and comment on our articles on BoxOverview.com
9.7-inch IPS screen with a resolution of 2048x1536 Dual-core PowerVR SGX544MP2 video accelerator (8 stream processors) Allwiner A31 quad-core processor on the Cortex A7 architecture 2 GB of RAM Android JB 4.1.1 operating system16/32 GB user memory + microSD card slot 2 cameras: rear 5 MP and front 2 MP Communications: Wi-Fi (802.11 b / g / n) Optional: 8000 mAh USB OTG Li-pol battery Dimensions, weight: 242.6x187.5x9.8 mm, 649 grams On the market, the tablet is presented in two colors - black and white. Versions with 16 and 32 GB of internal memory are also available, the price for the youngest starts at $ 240.
Packaging and equipment
The tablet comes in a white box made of cardboard. On the top of the box is an image of the tablet itself. Everything is simple and concise, like the "big" brands.Inside is the tablet itself and a rather meager bundle: charger, USB cable and documentation in Chinese.
The power supply is 2.5 A. There are cases of failure of this unit during the first charge, so it is advised on the forums to replace it with something more reliable. My copy has been working for 3 weeks, charging the smartphone and tablet in turn 24/7 and, I hope, is not going to die. For complete happiness, there is not enough OTG cable, but for the fact that they did not put the headset “for ejection” I can only say thank you.
Design, build quality
ONDA V972 in appearance is very similar to the Apple iPad.On the front panel there is a touch screen framed by a white frame and a front camera. There is no light sensor.
On the upper edge (while holding the tablet in portrait orientation) there are two buttons: power and home.
The bottom edge contains (from left to right): a 3.5 mm mini-jack, an HDMI output, a microSD card slot, a microUSB connector that charges the tablet and connects it to a computer, a microphone hole and a speaker. The latter, unfortunately, is terribly inconvenient, because when you hold the tablet in landscape orientation, it closes with your hand.
The back panel and beveled sides of the tablet are made in the form of a single aluminum part with an engraved logo in the center. Sidewalls are empty.
At the back there is also a peephole of the main camera and additional information about the tablet (model, serial number, amount of user memory). All cables come fully, do not stick out. High build quality and excellent appearance cause only positive emotions. No creaks and backlashes were noticed. Grieving only far from the most successful speaker location.
Display
The ONDA V972 has a superb 9.7-inch IPS display. The tablet is equipped with a matrix of production by LG (LG097QX1-SPA1) the same as in the iPad 3, respectively, the display characteristics are at the highest level and I will not focus on the latter.Once again, I note a 4: 3 aspect ratio, which I personally consider ideal for a tablet, which is why I have long put an end to Android tablets with an aspect ratio of 16: 9 or 16:10. The front panel is glass, but the usual one, not protected, and from the factory the tablet comes with a protective film glued on, which I do not recommend removing, since it is glued well, without distortions and bubbles.
Of the shortcomings in terms of the display, I would note the overestimated value of the minimum brightness, but most likely this is an error in the firmware than in the hardware.
Inside and maintainability
Unscrew the 4 screws on the upper and lower ends of the tablet.Armed with a plastic card or pick, we pry and push the front of the case, not forgetting the latches.
The aluminum of the lid is quite thick, in the photo below one of the grooves for the latches on the main part is also noticeable.
Let's move on to the main part. The internal layout looks high quality, all wires and cables are additionally fixed with tape. Chips of constant and random access memory made by Hynix (the company is one of the five leading manufacturers of random access memory).
The layout around the processor is quite tight. There are 8 RAM chips soldered on the board, 256 MB each (2 GB in total) and 2 ROM chips of 8 GB each. In close proximity to the processor is a PMIC chip designed specifically for the Allwinner A31, a characteristic feature of which is the ability to minimize the number of LDO stabilizers. And finally, the heart of the device is the processor. No thermal pads are provided to the rear aluminum cover, which is not surprising, since the Cortex A7 is an economical architecture.
To summarize. It is not difficult to disassemble the tablet, the main thing is not to be similar to the iPad, because in this case the front panel is not glued to the case, moreover, it acts as the supporting part here, i.e. on it are all the components of the tablet and you need to remove the back metal cover. Build quality, looks reliable.
Hardware platform performance
The ONDA V972 tablet is based on the Allwinner A31 quad-core processor with a clock frequency of 1 GHz (overclocking up to 1.2 GHz is possible) and PowerVR SGX544MP2 graphic core. This relatively new processor is manufactured using the 40 nm process technology and is based on the Cortex A7 architecture, which is primarily aimed at saving energy, so you should not expect extreme performance from the processor. To be more precise, the performance of the Allwinner A31 slightly exceeds the best Chinese chip of the last year, Rockhip RK3066, let me remind you, these are 2 Cortex A9 cores operating at 1.6 GHz.But the whole charm of this CPU lies in its video accelerator, because without exaggeration, I can say that this solution, at the moment, is the most productive in the Chinese tablet market. Moreover, the graphics performance is significantly higher than that of the iPad 2 and slightly falls short of the iPad 3. I also note that this version of the GPU supports “desktop” versions of DirectX (9.0L3) and OpenGL (2.1).
We proceed directly to testing. The device scores 11101 points in the Antutu test and 3064 in Quadrant: The multi-touch in the tablet supports up to 10 simultaneous touches. Of the sensors, only an accelerometer is available.
The operation of the Wi-Fi module is only pleasing, because -60 dBm at a distance of 5 meters and an obstacle in the form of a brick wall is an excellent indicator (second screenshot). The first screenshot shows the signal level in close proximity to the router. Browsing The standard browser proved to be the best in this mode of use. It's nice to surf, the average page loading time is 3-4 seconds, scrolling is smooth. In the new Epic Citadel (Unreal Engine 3) test, the device also shows itself on the good side, and the graphics, gentlemen, for a mobile device, are simply amazing.
Additional screenshots from the Epic Citadel test
NenaMark 2.4 test:
Graphics performance is more than enough for 2D games. Moreover, you can safely play NFS: Most Wanted at maximum graphics settings, where FPS is within 25 units. The test for video playback was successful, since even video in 4K resolution did not become an obstacle for the tablet, to say nothing of ordinary 1080p and below.
| No. | Video file specifications | Results in native 4K VideoPlayer | Results in MX Video Player |
| 1 | MPEG-4 / XviD / 640 × 346 / 1.0 Mbps / 24.0 fps / AAC | Plays normally | Plays normally |
| 2 | MPEG-4 / H.264 / 1280 × 720 / 3.0 Mbps / 29.970 fps / AAC | Plays normally | Plays normally |
| 3 | MKV / H.264 / 1280 × 720 / 6.0 Mbps / 24.0 fps / AC-3 | Plays normally | Plays normally |
| 4 | MKV / H.264 / 1920 × 1080 / 10.0 Mbps / 24.0 fps / DTS | Plays normally | Plays normally |
| 5 | MKV / H.264 / 1920 × 1080 / 40.0 Mbps / 24.0 fps / none | Plays normally | Plays normally |
| 6 | MPEG-4 / H.264 / 3840 × 2160 / 30.0 Mbps / 29.970 fps / AAC | Plays normally | Plays normally |
| 7 | MPEG-4 / H.264 / 3840 × 2160 / 50.0 Mbps / 29.970 fps / AAC | Plays with barely noticeable delays | Plays with barely noticeable delays |
Operating system and software
The device comes preloaded with Android OS 4.1.1, also known as Jelly Bean. Last at the time of writing the review, the firmware of the communication module 1.35. The system already has support for Root access and OTA.Out of the box, we get a terribly slowdown launcher, which spoils the first impression of the tablet. Part of the problem is solved by installing a third-party launcher, such as Nova, but the tablet is still sometimes thoughtful. Android standard interest also slows down, which is what I talked about in the previous chapter. Additionally, we get a mountain of unnecessary Chinese software, from which you can leave only 4K VideoPlayer.
For 3 weeks of use, I got 5 full freezes, which can be cured only by rebooting. Once the tablet completely turned into a brick, and I had to reflash it again, and it happened all of a sudden, without any preliminary manipulations. In the case of ONDA V972, the operating system should be attributed to the greatest drawback of the device, as having sufficient performance, the device launcher manages to seriously "stupid".
By the way, rumors are circulating on the Internet that the French manufacturer of mobile devices Archos intends to sell the ONDA V972 tablet under its own brand, which gives us hope for additional and, possibly, better software.
Offline work
The battery life of the "tablet" in the combined cycle is about 5 hours. Which is small enough for a modern tablet. The device scores 538 points in Antutu Tester:Various tests for the duration of work are collected in the table below.
| Mode (40% brightness) | Time |
| Play 1080p YouTube videos | 5 h |
| Playing 1080p video (Wi-Fi off) | 5.3 h |
| Playing 480p video (Wi-Fi off) | 6 h |
| Active browsing | 5.5 h |
| 3D games | 3.7 h |
Camera
We have 2 cameras: a front camera of 2 megapixels and a 5-megapixel rear camera. Both shoot as lower than average, and if the front camera is enough for video calls, the back quality is depressing. In bright daylight, you can get a more or less good photo, but in artificial lighting, the quality of the photo is just disgusting. You can shoot video in 720p. Though “with a creak”, the camera passes the test with a sheet of text. Do you like taking pictures of hamsters with a tablet? - This device is not for you.
Summary
ONDA V972 is an excellent 10-inch tablet with a high resolution display, which is ideal for “flattened” use due to the short battery life. And the new productive platform will cover all everyday tasks, whether browsing, watching videos or heavy games. Of the minuses, it is worth noting a rather crude firmware, as a result of which we have a short battery life and insignificant braking of the interface. The main thing is not to forget about the price, since it starts from the mark of $ 240, and yet I dare to recommend this device to anyone who wants to get a high-quality device at minimal cost.Advantages and disadvantages
Low cost High resolution IPS display High build quality and materials Support USB-OTG, an HDMI port and a slot for microSD memory cards A new hardware platform with a quad-core processor, video adapter with two graphic cores and 2 GB of RAM Raw firmware Not the best speaker location Small battery life High value of minimum brightness No BluetoothCost
The tablet costs $ 263 in the BuySKU store for the white version . Near the catalog there is the same, but in black and 7 dollars more expensive. The ONDA V971 tablet , the twin brother of the hero of this review, but without a rear camera and $ 10 less, is also on sale .Related Links
Topic on w3bsit3-dns.com Page on the official siteIf you do not have an account on Habrahabr, you can read and comment on our articles on BoxOverview.com