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Customer review from the Amazon Vine Program UPDATE 26 NOV 2012: Please note that the following review was for the Le Pan I and NOT the Le Pan II. Due to circumstances not under my control this review may actually appear under the latest Le Pan II which appears to be a good upgrade but I've never used it I am still happily using the first version tablet (Le Pan I) acquired in June, 2011 (so durability is good).
IMPORTANT UPDATE 11/30/2011: Please read B. Brinton's Amazon review (can't give the URL but it's one of the two star reviews here) regarding inability to update to new operating system. I stand by my original review as to the quality of the tablet, but recommend that you check out Brinton's review before actually buying.
Before I even start, I absolutely LOVE my Le Pan tablet. It's a blast to use, has a lot of upside for the things I want to do with it, and has a definite "wow" factor with bystanders. Typical quotes are, "wow," and "I want one" and "that is so cool!" This could be said about a lot of the better tablets (e.g., iPad) that have nice, high def, shiny screens showing video, but I appreciated the coveting looks (and I let people play with it extensively and had trouble getting it back a couple times).
I have never used a tablet (well, 10 minutes goofing with an iPad in the Apple Store a year ago) and have never used anything with the Android operating system.
A lot of my "cons" are probably pertinent to a lot of similar pieces of hardware, as well as shortcomings of the Android OS as it is currently implemented, rather than unique to the Le Pan.
I would NOT recommend this for someone looking for a turnkey, works perfectly out of the box solution. You will need either some experience, or a strong nerd compulsion (or a little of both). You'll have to overcome quirks of the hardware and software.
First, the "bad."
The power button sucks. After four days I STILL fumble with that sucker.
The fingerprints on the screen drive me nuts. I think it's worse in a tablet with a large screen than on an Android or Iphone with smaller screens. I'm already carrying around a microfiber cleaning cloth. A definite hazard of this entire class of machine. You might want to invest in some wet-dry LCD screen wipes for when you want to get it in pristine condition before you show off in front of the boss (e.g., Audiovox Surface SURF402 Wet/Dry Screen Wipes). Think of it as detailing your tablet.
Saying the speakers are "tinny" might be generous and there is absolutely no recognizable bass component. I'm ready to get a bluetooth headphone for this immediately.
Can't run Hulu to watch TV (yet) the hardware is probably perfectly capable, but Hulu sees "Android mobile device" and just serves up an annoying message. However YouTube (included app) looks and works better than I have ever seen it.
It's heavier than I thought, but not that bad. It's about the same weight as an iPad. I found that holding it in one hand I would cramp up after a couple of minutes. It is light enough to cradle, and propping it up on an ample paunch while in bed was ok. Sitting down with tablet on lap, no problem.
Next, the "weird."
The onboard camera only shoots pictures in a mirror mode (i.e., titles of books are reversed like in a mirror). In using Skype I found that for this version of Android, video calling is not supported. Otherwise, Skype works quite nicely on this platform.
In certain network environments (I'm on a University network half the time) you can easily purchase apps via the included Android Market, but downloading wouldn't commence probably some security feature of our network. Using my home wifi connection (DSL via AT&T) I had no problems downloading and installing Skype and some other navigation based stuff.
The included browser can't handle Ebsco databases (if that means anything to you). The browser handles most websites well, and the large screen means you don't need to access the specially configured mobile sites, which are still a lot cleaner. I ran this on our library catalog and most of our databases with no problem, but the Ebsco ones didn't allow any search entry. Weird. (NOTE ADDED June 2, 2011: Just installed the Opera Mobile Web Browser ver. 11 from the Apps for Android store on Amazon and the Ebsco databases work just fine).
Finally, the "good."
The screen is awesome (except in daylight where it is useless). Use this indoors, not at the beach.
The response time is lightning fast. Apps come up fast and operate fast. Scrolling, screen switching, etc. is ultra-smooth.
In the right network environment, getting, installing, and using apps is trivial.
The integration with web based Google apps is seamless. I didn't even notice my calendar and contacts were downloaded and synchronized (and continue to be synchronized). A very cool thing I discovered this morning was that when I was out of wifi range (on my bus and train commute) I could still do my Gmail offline. The Gmail app downloads and caches your email so you can use it offline, including replying to messages. The next time you get a wifi connection, synchronization will send all pending messages, and download new ones this was all done while sitting in my backback.
The GPS is useful, but not yet a substitute for a good stand-alone unit (I'm a TomTom user). But the connection to Google Maps is very cool. You have to wrestle to find it, but once you get into street view, it's obvious that high def simulated 3d is designed for tablets with big shiny screens. I'm still struggling with the interface (I think the GPS keeps wanting to tether me to Missouri), but I've taken friends to Florence and Rome on this tablet, and the fast and seamless "look around" on a tablet is very, very, nice.
Photos and video on this screen are gorgeous, without question. I haven't read anything yet that contests that I vouch for the visual impressiveness as well. Again, the screen WILL get covered in finger smudges, and if you're in any kind of daylight you're out of luck seeing anything.
So, take this review in stride. Think of my comments as caveats and warnings, and whether or not they're deal breakers is up to you and what you need. I'm not sure there is any tablet that can satisfy all the myriad details wanted by end users. I give this four stars for being an impressive work with some upside potential with upgrades (video calling with Skype, Hulu compatibility). Read the specs and decide if things like not having video output is important, or not.
ADDED June 2, 2011: To watch movies you might have to convert them to an appropriate format (and/or download some other video software). I've been able to take video and using VLC (free and available on PCs and Macs) and convert to MP4 format then view with no problem. Also, because of movie sizes, you're likely going to need to buy a bigger micro SD chip (or two). I have some DVDs from Orlando (wife and kids swimming with the dolphins) and was able to extract the unprotected "VOB" files. I converted to a couple of formats but the MP4 format seemed to universally work. Again, this is one of those areas you need a bit of a nerd compulsion to work out.
Regarding using wet/dry pads to clean the screen. Almost all of the standard pads should work fine, but in most cases you're going to waste a lot of pad. I've taken to opening the pouches and cutting the wet AND dry pads in half. Then I stuff them back in the pouches and fold it over to preserve the dampness. You can probably clean the screen 3 to 4 times with one set of pads (experiment on your own).
UPDATE AFTER SIX WEEKS (added July 15, 2011): I'm hooked. Durable, dependable, and now I've modded it with all sorts of useful and fun apps (hint: Amazon apps store gives a free app a day SUCH A DEAL!!!). I've been using for six weeks without a hitch and this has become my "go to" device for browsing the net and wasting time (playing games). Power button still sucks, but I've gotten used to the fingerprints.
UPDATE AFTER SEVEN MONTHS (added January 11, 2012): Le Pan has now come out with a successor, the Le Pan II, so this will be my final update. I received my Le Pan in early June, 2011. As of this date my TC970 is still running strong with no quirks or hardware faults whatsoever. Anecdote is not evidence, but my personal experience continues to be positive with this tablet. I even loaned it to my son for a couple of weeks as he took it to Budapest, Prague, and Vienna. Toting it around Europe in a backpack for two weeks, and it's back home, still humming along perfectly. This is still one fine machine.
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