<p dir="ltr">We received text messages about it on our Haitian cell phone numbers several times a day when it first came out (Digicel, the group selling it, is Haiti's most popular cell company). </p>
<p dir="ltr">It's great to see electronics being manufactured there. The idea that it can be dropped off at the factory for repairs is appealing. </p>
<p dir="ltr">But, low battery life and the nonstandard charger make this much less suitable for the majority of Haitians. You don't buy your cell phone from a store. You buy it from the street. Most people charge their cell phones on the street too. </p>
<p dir="ltr">As far as WiFi goes, most Internet users purchase USB dongles, and it sounds like they won't work in this port. </p>
<div class="gmail_quot<blockquote class=" style="margin:0 0 0 .8ex;border-left:1px #ccc solid;padding-left:1ex">
<div bgcolor="#FFFFFF" text="#000000">
<br>
<div>ever heard of this?<br>
<br>
-------- Original Message --------
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<th align="RIGHT" nowrap valign="BASELINE">Subject:
</th>
<td>How Does the New Haitian Sūrtab Tablet Measure Up?</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<th align="RIGHT" nowrap valign="BASELINE">Date: </th>
<td>Mon, 5 May 2014 16:00:36 +0000</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<th align="RIGHT" nowrap valign="BASELINE">From: </th>
<td>Inveneo <a href="mailto:jana@inveneo.org" target="_blank"><jana@inveneo.org></a></td>
</tr>
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<th align="RIGHT" nowrap valign="BASELINE">Reply-To:
</th>
<td><a href="mailto:us4-6589affec7-f2ed88c099@conversation01.mailchimpapp.com" target="_blank"><us4-6589affec7-f2ed88c099@conversation01.mailchimpapp.com></a></td>
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<th align="RIGHT" nowrap valign="BASELINE">To: </th>
<td>Yamandu <a href="mailto:yamaplos@gmail.com" target="_blank"><yamaplos@gmail.com></a></td>
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<div style="color:#333333;font-size:30px;font-family:Verdana;font-weight:normal;text-align:left"><a href="http://ictworks.us4.list-manage1.com/track/click?u=84e9f392a668e74df589375c7&id=768f5c8039&e=486ae1ca5b" style="color:#800000;text-decoration:underline;font-weight:normal" target="_blank"><img src="http://gallery.mailchimp.com/84e9f392a668e74df589375c7/images/inveneo_header_600px.png" alt="Inveneo: Connecting Those Who
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<div>
<div>
<div style="font-size:24px;font-weight:bold;color:#8b0000;font-family:Georgia;line-height:110%"><span style="font-size:24px"><a href="http://ictworks.us4.list-manage1.com/track/click?u=84e9f392a668e74df589375c7&id=174c7a38a3&e=486ae1ca5b" style="color:#800000;text-decoration:underline;font-weight:normal" target="_blank">How
Does the New Haitian Sūrtab
Tablet<br>
Measure Up?</a></span></div>
<div style="font-size:14px;font-weight:bold;color:#000000;font-style:normal;font-family:Georgia">By Sam
Perales, Inveneo Senior Field
Engineer</div>
<div style="float:right;margin-left:10px;margin-bottom:10px"><img alt="" src="http://www.ictworks.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/sur7_2a1.png" border="0" height="265" width="265"></div>
<p>Since 2013, consumers have had
their eye on a new Haitian-made
tablet, known as the Sūrtab. It’s
price and weight may seem ideal, but
how does it measure up in terms of
durability? With all of <a href="http://ictworks.us4.list-manage1.com/track/click?u=84e9f392a668e74df589375c7&id=5dd5f30e1d&e=486ae1ca5b" style="color:#800000;text-decoration:underline;font-weight:normal" target="_blank">Inveneo’s work in
Haiti</a>, the team wanted to run
the Sūrtab7 WIFI through the paces
using <a href="http://ictworks.us4.list-manage.com/track/click?u=84e9f392a668e74df589375c7&id=a6c0df4915&e=486ae1ca5b" style="color:#800000;text-decoration:underline;font-weight:normal" target="_blank">Inveneo’s standard
testing process</a> to see how
well the Sūrtab performs.</p>
<p dir="ltr">What were the results?</p>
<p dir="ltr"><strong>Product
Description</strong></p>
<p dir="ltr">Sūrtab tablet manufacture
is producing lightweight and
affordable tablets made in Port au
Prince, Haiti. This is a new
company, and availability is limited
as they ramp up operations. They are
currently offering three models:
Sūrtab7 3GHD, Sūrtab7 3G, and
Sūrtab7 WIFI.</p>
<p dir="ltr">Inveneo decided to review
the lowest-cost touchscreen Sūrtab7
WIFI model.</p>
<p dir="ltr">Sūrtab7 WIFI comes at an
affordable price of ($100 USD +/-)
making it attractive for consumers
(especially those in developing
countries). The Sūrtab7 WIFI comes
with Android 4.1 and access to the
Google Play store which has over
600,000 apps and games. The Sūrtab7
WIFI is a 7-inch device with a
resolution of 1024 x 600 pixels.</p>
<p>In addition, the tablet:</p>
<ul>
<li>
<p dir="ltr">Runs on a Dual Core
Allwinner 1.2GHz processor.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p dir="ltr">Comes with 512MB of
RAM.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p dir="ltr">Has 8GB of storage
expandable to 32GB via the
microSD card.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p dir="ltr">Features an HDMI port
and two cameras (0.3MP in front
and 2MP on the back).</p>
</li>
<li>
<p dir="ltr">Is very lightweight,
weighing in at 287 g / 0.63 lbs
which makes it easy for travel
and transport.</p>
</li>
</ul>
<p dir="ltr">A warranty is available,
and in Haiti, tablets will be
repaired at the factory. Inveno’s
Sūrtab representative explains
further. “The local support/warranty
is huge when used in Haiti. The
tablet can just be dropped off at
the Sūrtab production facilities and
will get repaired.”</p>
<p dir="ltr"><strong>Inveneo’s Quick
Thoughts</strong></p>
<p dir="ltr"><strong>Pros:</strong></p>
<ul>
<li>Budget friendly</li>
<li>A protective rubber case for
harsh environments is included
with tablet</li>
<li>Lightweight</li>
<li>Front and back camera</li>
<li>SD card expansion and HDMI port</li>
</ul>
<p dir="ltr"><strong>Cons:</strong></p>
<ul>
<li>Screen can be hard to see
depending on angle of view and its
display is not very bright making
it hard to see at times.</li>
<li>Battery life is limited, 2-4
hours under stress conditions.</li>
<li>Has a special power port and
adapter (not the common micro-USB)
which may be difficult to replace
if lost or stolen.</li>
<li>Limited availability for the
time being although surtab will be
launching an online sales platform
making it easy for international
customers to easily purchase
tablets.</li>
</ul>
<p dir="ltr"><strong>Since the Sūrtab7
WIFI Is Cheaper, Does That Mean
Lower Quality?</strong></p>
<p dir="ltr">Since the Sūrtab7 WIFI is
nearly half the price of its
competitors, it is natural that the
overall performance and hardware
specifications would be lower than
those of its rivals, for example:</p>
<ul>
<li>The battery life is poor,
surviving only 2.5 hours under cpu
stressed conditions.</li>
<li>The display is not as sharp nor
bright as other tablets in its
class, and depending on what angle
you view the display, it could
limit visibility.</li>
<li>The non-standard barrel
connector power port makes it
difficult to find a replacement,
especially in developing
countries. This means you’ll have
more equipment to handle and
maintain.</li>
<li>The micro-usb adapter is only
used to connect it directly to a
computer for data transfers. In
tough environments it may be more
vulnerable to the elements since
there are more ports/openings than
are found on other tablets.</li>
<li>Last but not least, the Sūrtab7
WIFI is currently under limited
availability as operations and
distribution channel ramp up.</li>
</ul>
<p dir="ltr"><strong>Final Thoughts</strong></p>
<p dir="ltr">Don’t get the wrong idea
though, this Haitian-made tablet
will give you a great overall tablet
experience for a great value. It
physically performs well with its
lightweight design, a responsive
touch screen and an included
protective rubber sleeve.</p>
<p dir="ltr">The system does have a
HDMI slot that can be used to expand
your display to an external monitor
or projector (which is great for
educators). An SD Card expansion
slot can be really useful to expand
storage space on your tablet. This
feature is rarely seen on competitor
devices.</p>
<p dir="ltr">The dual camera
capability also makes it nice to
capture forward facing pictures and
videos while also conducting front
facing video calls.</p>
<p dir="ltr">Overall the Sūrtab7 WIFI
is worth its price. Since it runs
the industry standard Android OS,
you can have access to all the
settings one is familiar with while
enjoying good hardware features and
expandability options.</p>
<p dir="ltr">It may have some weak
points in hardware, but it will more
than get the job done for half the
price.</p>
<p dir="ltr"><strong>Where Can You Get
One?</strong></p>
<p dir="ltr">Currently the Sūrtab is
easily available in Haiti at all
Digicel outlets. However, online
sales are set to begin soon so
international consumers can easily
purchase the tablet. For more
information visit the <a href="http://ictworks.us4.list-manage2.com/track/click?u=84e9f392a668e74df589375c7&id=d0a6c5a2ac&e=486ae1ca5b" style="color:#800000;text-decoration:underline;font-weight:normal" target="_blank">Sūrtab website</a>.<span style="color:rgb(255,255,255);font-size:10px;line-height:10px">|LIST:DESCRIPTION|*</span></p>
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