Let me start by saying this is my very first android device and I am no expert of android. So much has already been written about the xoom already that I don't know what value my review will add. I have used the product for about 2 weeks now and am fairly comfortable about writing this review for the benefit of people still on the fence about buying one or not, so here are my 2 cents worth.
Things I like :
1) The notifications. This thing is amazing, it just sits in the background and does not interfere with the task you are doing.
2) The speed. Breathtakingly fast at installing/uninstalling apps. Also the apps and games like fruit ninja, file explorer, ezpdf reader, kindle, google sky map, google maps/earth, angry birds (amazing game play), moboplayer, quickoffice, skype, SBM etc etc are blazingly fast and all have worked so far without a single forced close.
3) The browser is fast. Rarely it does hang a bit, but it does provide a near desktop surfing experience. Flash works and it works well.
4) Skype though not yet available in video yet is perfect for voice calls. I have used it extensively and it just sits there in the notification ready to receive/make calls and does not use up too much of memory. Voice clarity seems same/better than my desktop version.
5) Market works well with plenty of apps to download and enjoy. I suggest do your research on a particular app via googling it first before downloading on your tablet. This works well for me.
6) GPS is accurate and works even when I am indoors. I tether my tablet via wifi to my mobile phone and can use this as an excellent navigation tool.
7) I love google sky map. I never used it on my desktop but decided to install it on the tablet just for fun. Glad I did. It seems google designed sky map just for tablets. It uses the gps and accelerometer to perfection to provide excellent basic info of the sky for anyone interested.
8) The rear camera is fairly good and is a very useful tool as a document scanner and barcode scanner.
9) Gmail and Gtalk work flawless and they are almost integrated into the system.
10) The tablet form factor is good and it feels great in your hands. Use a good silicone cover to prevent smudge marks of your finger on the back side cover.
11) Screen. This was the bit I was most apprehensive about before purchasing the tablet. It is not as good as the ipad 2 screen but it is higher resolution and brightness can be adjust to suit your comfort. The screen is especially brilliant for reading text even small text. The glass does indeed attract fingerprints a lot but daily wiping with a screen cleaning fluid takes care of this. I am not using a screen protector as installing one is a hassle. The glass appears to be scratch resistant but this I will find out only after prolonged usage. Overall though the screen is good.
12) The ability to add widgets like mail, favourites, news feeds, time etc and app shortcuts on the desktop (there are 5 of them) is an invaluable time saver.
13) No need to root it.
14) Battery life is pretty good and I can go through an entire day with extensive use without recharging.
15) Wifi connectivity is pretty good and wherever my laptop gets a signal so does my xoom. Speed of surfing is good even when it is showing 1 bar signal strength.
16) True multitasking.
Things I hate :
1) Video playback. I have tried players like the stock player, moboPlayer, Vplayer, QQPlayer, mVideoPlayer etc and all have a problem playing the non supported formats. This tablet fits into the ipad category when it comes to video playback. Specific baseline HD video plays back flawlessly, however most other video content does not play smoothly. This is most evident with panning shots. They look horrible. The formats that motorola says are supported play very well. Non-HD content which is not supported also has this stuttering problem. Non supported HD content plays like a presentation in frames. It is said this is a hardware issue and nvidia tegra 2 only supports baseline hd. If this is the case then this is a problem that will remain with this version of xoom forever. I am of the opinion if this is the case at least non-hd content should play flawlessly, and since it does not I have a feeling its more of an android issue rather than nvidia. Future updates of android and its video playback apps should take care of, if not the high profile HD, at least the regular non HD avi, mkv files. Anyone who wants to use the xoom primarily for video playback should avoid the xoom and other to be released android tablets like the toshiba tablet like a plague till this issue gets sorted out.
2) Some apps like the VPlayer force close so frequently they are unusable. I was looking forward to play Asphalt on my tablet but sadly it does not work yet. Surprising cause the xoom is out for 2 months now. Quite a few apps are not optimized for the android 3.0 platform and will not run or force close frequently. Some apps do run flawlessly but only in small phone sized 4' screens so that you find them annoyingly small and will uninstall them immediately. This problem should however disappear over time.
3) The video playback issue caused even googles own youtube app to crash the tablet sometimes when you try to play HD youtube content. 1 out of 10 times the app says can't play the youtube content. However on shutting the app and trying to play the same hd youtube video will work flawlessly the next time. Once the same youtube app has caused my Xoom to restart all by itself. See what I mean by the android platform needing more work while playing back video. It is not yet optimized for it.
4) I haven't yet got google voice to work accurately for me. Maybe its my accent but more than half the time it gets what I say wrong. However what I do like is that voice is ingrained into the tablet almost as if its an integral part of it. With some work on my part I hope to extensively use this feature. Updates from google will make it much more accurate in the future too I hope.
5) SD card yet to be enabled (for non rooted xoom) but I hope for an enabling update soon.
Overall I conclude that irrespective of all the flaws the pluses outweigh the negatives massively for me. Think about what you will primarily use your tablet for and make up your own minds. All I can say is that if you want to use this tablet for anything other than watching video, take the plunge and buy it. You will definitely be amazed with its capability.
Update (14 May 2011):
Yesterday google released the much anticipated android 3.1 update. Just as I expected I see a massive improvement in the video playback performance. A SD (non-HD) video that was playing stutteringly prior to the update now plays back flawlessly. Also with adobe flash update there is marked improvement in video playback stability. Youtube has still forced closed on me quite a few times while playing back HD content but it feels much better now than earlier and flash is much faster in streaming media from sites like bbc, comedy central etc and very stable. Also voice is much much more accurate and I get 85% correct translations without me having to change my accent much. This could improve further which I am sure it will. The app force close issues have also markedly gone down, but this is due to the fact that the apps are slowly optimizing for tablets and android 3 in general. I have also been able to seamlessly connect to my desktop pc via rdp using an ad free and totally free app called 2X and remote control my desktop from there (will try to upload a video). Network file sharing is a breeze with ES file explorer another free app. So network connectivity wise this tablet performs optimally. SD card has yet to be enabled so that is still a bit of an issue. However, usb host mode has now been enabled on xoom with the 3.1 update (a rooted xoom had this feature since march) but I have yet to try this out as I don't have an OTG cable yet. But I think flash drives and cameras should load up on the xoom, a big plus.
| Standing screen display size | 10.1 Inches |
|---|---|
| Screen Resolution | 1280 x 800 |
| Max Screen Resolution | 1280 x 800 Pixels |
| Processor | 1 GHz |
| RAM | 1 GB DRAM |
| Memory Speed | 1000 MHz |
| Hard Drive | 32 GB |
| Graphics Coprocessor | ULP GeForce |
| Chipset Brand | Nvidia |
| Wireless Type | 802.11bgn |
| Number of USB 2.0 Ports | 1 |
| Average Battery Life (in hours) | 10 Hours |
