Co-authored by Stephen Herron and Joe Barhoum
This is a first: a 7 inch tablet that acts as an HDTV receiver. Forget needing Wi-Fi or expensive 4G LTE to watch television on the go. With MJ Technology’s first tablet, you’re able to watch HDTV from anywhere there is a signal. This is not the only shining point for the tablet: out of the box it provides a lot of accessories making it’s $139.99 price point somewhat incomparable to competing devices. Simple put: you get a lot for your money.
Design
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It hits on all the necessary marks: 5-point multi-touch screen, dual core CPU architecture, front and rear cameras and an attractive design. Owning an MJ HDTV tablet is a solid experience right out of the box. And there is a huge surprise when you remove the tablet: lots of helpful accessories. For example, as someone who likes to game-on-the-go, it helps to have a microUSB to standard USB adapter. I’m able to use it to connect an Xbox 360 controller and fire up emulators or play new releases such as Hearthstone. The overall design of the MJ HDTV tablet has a sturdy feel and fits comfortably in your hands. It’s thin and light with a retractable HDTV antenna in the upper-left corner. On the left side of the tablet, there is a volume rocker and power button. On the top there is a port for the included 3G antenna, a micro-SD port (supports up to 64GB), microphone, headphone jack, and micro-USB port.
The color scheme is quite attractive. For testing, we had a grey tablet with a black bezel (shown below). It has a slick real panel that looks like refined steel. It’s smooth to the touch with the MJ Technology logo at it’s center. Although the images we were sent show what appears to be a flash next to the camera, our model did not include a flash. The tablet also comes in a white model that looks gorgeous.
The fact that this tablet comes with so many accessories, that you don’t have to shell out any extra cash for, mitigates the otherwise above-average price tag. The tablet was designed for both power users that want the capabilities of Android and a micro-SD port, children who would watch TV on the go (perhaps in the car or on a bus), and business professionals who need a device that looks the part.
Performance
The tablet is quite speedy and has a marathon battery. We were able to get roughly 4 hours and 35 minutes of HDTV time in before the battery died. From a full charge, without using the HDTV antenna, battery life was closer to 8 hours and 30 minutes for general use. We did not measure standby time, but we felt it was above average. We did find the back of the tablet was unusually warm during HDTV sessions of roughly 30 minutes or more. My test unit did not get uncomfortably hot, but it is something to point out for those who choose to not use a case for their tablet.
We played games such as Hearthstone and Hitman Go with excellent performance of battery and speed. The device did not get hot during these engagements, which leads me to believe the above-mentioned heat is caused by the HDTV controller. Regardless, other than being behind on the OS (Android 4.1 instead of 4.4 or 5), the MJHDTV tablet holds up to standard tests and rigors.
Specifications
- 7″ Diagonal 1024×600 HD (720P)
- Digital HDTV supported via Antenna (External plug-in antenna provided for even better reception)
- Android 4.1 (Jelly Bean)
- 1.5GHz Dual Cortex A9 Processor
- Built-in 8GB Storage
- 802.1 lb/g/n Wi-Fi Connection
- Support Micro TF/SD SDHC Card up to 64GB
- Built-in Dual Camera (Front 0.3/Rear 2M pixel)
Conclusion
Joe – I’ve tested and used a lot of tablets. Aside from differences between the operating systems, they all tend to be similar in capability and form factor. This tablet is different than the others. It very much stands out by it’s HDTV capabilities. All 7″ tablets need to be light, fast, and have a great screen. It does most of these quite well. The only thing I would change about this tablet is add a higher resolution screen.
Stephen – I have to admit something that may shock some of you, I have never used an android product or a product that ran on the android operating system. Now that that has been said I can tell you that it was not that difficult to navigate though, after about 30 minutes I felt like it had it nailed down. I noticed that after about an hour or so of learning the ropes, downloading games, and setting up the HDTV the tablet started getting a little warm to the touch. The heat did not effect the performance of the tablet and would not be noticed if you had the tablet in a case.
The MJHDTV Tablet is available for sale here.
