Getting to Know the Maylong M-150 and Augen GenTouch 78

The market is definitely ready for the invasion of tablet PCs. We all know that it can be attributed to the iPad, which started it all. It was the iPad that paved the way for the acceptance of the tablet PC in the market. Now, you can find a lot of people who sell old iPads or even exchange cash for iPads. After its success, other computer manufacturers followed suit and have built their own tablet PC to compete with the iPad.

The only downside that people can see with the iPad is its price. Not everyone can afford even the most basic of the models, which is priced at around $500. This is where the other companies built up their product. They emphasize that their product is more affordable than the iPad but can still perform all the things that the iPad can. However, not all of these more affordable tablet PCs even come close to the specifications of the iPad or what it can do. Two examples of cheap tablet PCs are the Maylong M-150 and the Augen GenTouch 78.

Maylong M-150 

Let’s start with the Maylong M-150. This 7-inch tablet PC was sold at Walgreens for only $99. Of course, who could resist the price? It was declared sold out online and you could not find it at any of their branches after it was launched. This product was made available a few months after Apple released the iPad. This was an Android-based tablet that was run by an ARM9 533MHz CPU with 256MB of memory. By the looks of it, this product was way slower than the first generation iPad. It had most of the features that a tablet PC should have like the pre-requisite camera, Wi-Fi connectivity, speakers, a micro SD card slot, as well as a USB port. It only had 2GB of internal memory, but could be increased with the micro SD and external peripherals attached via USB. Battery standby time was only 2 to 3 hours and actual usage lasted only an hour.

Augen GenTouch 78 

Another one of those not so known tablet PCs launched after the iPad was the Augen GenTouch 78. This $150 7-inch tablet PC was available in all Kmart stores nationwide. However, there was a shortage of the units all because those looking for a cheaper iPad alternative were initially enamored with this product, only to be disappointed in the end. It only had an 800MHz processor with 256MB of memory. The screen resolution was low and it was unresponsive most of the time because it did not support a multi-touch gesture. The unit also easily heated up when in use which made it uncomfortable to use. Its only saving grace was probably its price, as well as the fact that it came installed with an Android operating system.

It is true that these tablets cost way lower than the iPad. However, if you are looking for an iPad alternative that is not only affordable but also of good quality, then you should continue searching. These two tablet PCs will just disappoint you and the affordable price tag is not enough to compensate for the usabilty of these units. It might be better for you to go buy from those who sell used iPad.