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Lenovo IdeaTab S2109

Editor's rating (1-5): Carrier: N/A (WiFi only) Manufacturer: Lenovo Discuss this product Where to Buy

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What's hot: Sharp and bright IPS display, great speakers.

What's not: Unimpressive CPU.

Reviewed July 29, 2012 by Lisa Gade, Editor in Chief (twitter: @lisagade)

This is a Video Review.

Lenovo's not afraid of the low end, and they're one of the few Android tablet makers willing to try a 4:3 aspect ratio 9.7" display. Yes, that's the same aspect ratio and screen size as the ever-popular iPad line, but somehow it's never caught on among Android tablet buyers.

And the IdeaTab S2109 has an excellent display. It's an IPS panel with 178 degree wide viewing angles and an impressive 420 nits of brightness. It's simply a pleasure to look at, even if the resolution can't compete with the high density New iPad's (it's the same 1024 x 768 as the iPad 2).

Since this is a home multimedia oriented tablet, it has full and loud speakers with SRS TruMedia Sound. Not just stereo speakers: this tablet has 4 speakers. Nice. It has micro HDMI port with HDCP copy protection support, should you wish to watch movies on your HD TV or monitor rather than the 9.7" panel, and the usual WiFi 802.11b/g/n, Bluetooth 3.0 and a GPS. The tablet has a gyro sensor and an ambient light sensor. The IdeaTab has a front 1.3MP camera but no rear camera.

The dual core TI OMAP 4430 CPU running at 1.0 GHz is the disappointment here. That CPU, more commonly clocked at 1.2 GHz, saw its heyday in the summer of 2011, and it just doesn't impress us, despite the tablet's relatively low $349 to $399 average selling price for the 16 gig model. The IdeaPad S2109 has a gig of DDR2 RAM and it's available with 16 or 32 gigs of internal storage. There's a microSD card slot to expand storage. Android OS 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich is on board with relatively little UI customization from Lenovo.

Above: the Lenovo IdeaTab S2109 and the New iPad.

Benchmarks

Lenovo IdeaTab S2109 Video Review

Conclusion

The Lenovo IdeaTab S2109 is a well made tablet with a lovely IPS display (even if it isn't full HD), great quad speakers and solid build quality. At 1.3 pounds and 0.35" it's portable for a 10" class tablet. But the older and slower CPU doesn't impress us and performance could be snappier.

List price: $449 for 16 gigs, but usually discounted to $350

Website: www.lenovo.com

Display: 9.7" capacitive IPS display, 420 nits brightness. Resolution: 1024 x 768, supports both portrait and landscape modes via accelerometer, has an ambient light sensor and gyro. Has micro HDMI port.

Battery: Lithium Ion rechargeable. Battery is not user replaceable. Claimed battery life: up to 10 hours.

Performance: 1.0 GHz TI OMAP 4430 dual core CPU with PowerVR SGX 540 graphics. 1 gig DDR2 RAM and 16 or 32 gigs internal storage.

Size: 4.47 x 2.78 x 0.53 inches. Weight: 4.67 ounces.

Camera: 1.3MP front camera. No rear camera.

GPS: Has GPS.

Audio: 4 speakers, mic and 3.5mm standard stereo headphone jack. SRS TruMedia Sound.

Networking: Integrated WiFi 802.11b/g/n and Bluetooth 3.0.

Software: Android OS 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich. Standard suite of Google Android applications including web browser, email, gmail, YouTube, Maps, Navigation, Gtalk, Search and the Android Market. Other software: Docs to Go, Evernote, Lenovo App Store, News Republic, Norton Tablet Security, Sugarsync, Zinio and Accuweather.

Expansion: 1 SDHC microSD card slot.

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