Time2® TC1050G 10 Inch Tablet Review

Not many Tablets that come in well under the hundred pound price range can claim to have features that are usually only available on the more expensive models. This Advanced Time2® 10" Tablet is one of the few, low-priced models that can boast such claims. Other than it's impressive additional features, which are discussed below, it is one of the best all-rounders for those on a budget. If you're looking for a Tablet that's fast, very responsive, with good build quality, strong WiFi, and an excellent battery life, the Time2 10" would make a great purchase.

The level of performance the Time2® TC1050G is capable of is such a big reason why this model is great value for money. For most people who are looking to buy a Tablet within this price range their main criteria is that it must be able to do the basics without causing them any annoyance. Thankfully, this Tablet is capable of that and a whole lot more. Browsing the Internet, playing games, downloading / installing Apps from Google Play, checking emails and using Google Maps are all done without a hitch. It's very smooth. Google Street View also works brilliantly.

This model is now sold out. A great alternative, which costs around the same price (but has a much better specification due to a recent upgrade), is the 2022 Edition Neocore E1. Review here. Or, if you want a tablet that has a Windows Operating System, the Fusion5 FWIN232 is a good choice.

However, where the Time2® TC1050G really seems to excel even more impressively is with anything involving video playback. And due to its powerful WiFi, it's also speedy when downloading. Streaming movies is very smooth, YouTube clips play without a stutter, and films stored on the device itself load fast and play with consistency. Most of the YouTube clips that were viewed on this device were done so while the Tablet was located upstairs on the other side of the house to where the router is situated downstairs. Never once did any of the clips fail to load or stop downloading at any point.

The Time 2's Quad Core MT8163 Processor is a good little workhorse. It's was first introduced this time last year, so it's not an outdated technology by any means. As a result it offers impressive versatility with multi tasking and is a good match for Lollipop 5.1. The MT8163 Processor also features full support for 1080p HD video playback so is capable of producing superb video quality. This device also supports multiple languages (up to 40) and is compatible with 3G (via external dongle). All connection ports are labeled for ease of use (HDMI, USB etc).

Time2® TC1050G 10.1 Inch Specification

• Quad Core MediaTek MT8163 64-bit Processor @ 4 x 1.50 GHz Cores
• 10.1" 1024 x 600 Screen Display
• Android 5.1 Lollipop Operating System
• 16GB Internal Storage Space (11.3GB free) (Upgradable via Micro SD)
• 1GB RAM (DDR3)
• 3.5mm Headphone jack
• Dual Cameras (Front and Rear)
• 1 x Micro USB
• 1 x Mini HDMI
• Micro SD Slot (Up to 32GB)
• Built-In Microphone
• Bluetooth 4.0
• GPS
• WiFi

Comes complete with mains charger, Micro USB lead, 2 Pin travel / Euro plug, user guide and a 12 month warranty.

In the hand it feels well-built and sturdy. The weight, which is well-distributed across the device, is a big contributor to this. The build quality is also good for the price. Once powered up, it's loaded and ready to go in under 1 minute. When turning on this Tablet for the first time the setup process is very straight forward. A few taps on the screen to set your preferences and the set up is complete. So it's a great Tablet for people new to this technology. And if you're familiar with Android from owning a Smartphone, even better.

Powering off the device is extremely fast, almost instant. Battery life is excellent. When unboxing the Time2 and turning it on for the first time it comes pre-charged to about 95%. The Tablet was used extensively during a period of 7 hours (Without using battery saving mode). After the seven hours had elapsed the remaining battery life was 24%.

The 10.1 Inch multi-touch screen is vibrant, portrays good colour and has a nice clear resolution. And while it does lack some of the sharpness and ability to be viewed with clarity from certain angles, if the overall quality of this display is compared to the screens on other budget models, it is basically equal in quality to the more "better" examples (With standard screens) that sit within the same category. They all have some glare.

The displays that are noticeably better are Tablets in the same price range which have IPS screens. Of course, if you want a Tablet with an IPS screen at this price point you will have to make a compromise somewhere else. Whether that be a smaller screen size, less RAM and internal storage, or an overall lower specification. A trade-off must be made.

This display offers some much-needed middle ground between IPS quality and the cheaper, more washed out screens that are not nice to look at for long durations. The Advanced Time2® TC1050G sits nicely in the middle of the spectrum. The added benefit of choosing the middle ground here is that the specification, coupled with the smooth performance and overall stability of the device, makes this model an attractive overall package.

Built-In GPS capability (Real GPS) is one of the most sought after features that buyers are looking for when purchasing a Tablet. However, when they find out that they will need to buy a more expensive model to have that privilege they usually end up doing without it. Thankfully, this model fills a rather big void within this price range and does have the added benefit of built-in GPS technology. And it works extremely well. But it doesn't stop there. This model has "normal" GPS which uses Satellite technology, and also A-GPS (Assisted GPS), which can potentially be used when the Satellite signal is weak (Internet connection required).

The Bluetooth 4.0 works very well. It was easy to connect this Tablet to numerous devices across a broad range of different brands. Some of those included an Apple iPhone 5 and a Samsung Galaxy S6. No issues what so ever. An external Bluetooth keyboard also worked with fault. But the best, and most entertaining device that was tested with the TC1050C was an external Sony SRS-X55 Speaker (Sony SRS-XB21 here). It was like these two were meant to be used together. A perfect match.

Watching a film on this Tablet while being paired via Bluetooth to the external speaker was a terrific experience. No lag at all between picture and sound transfer. Both were completely in sync and provided a superb user experience. On many instances, for testing purposes, while paired, the Tablet was kept downstairs with a YouTube video playing while the speaker was taken upstairs to the other side of the house, and they remained paired together just as well as when they were situated right next to each other.

A series of basic stress tests were done on this machine. Nothing too complex, just a resource overload using a variation of different features and programs running at the same time to see how "usable" the Tablet would remain while under a moderate to heavy workload. One test was a mix of multiple Apps, 30 browser windows (IMDB, Amazon, eBay, Facebook etc), Google Street view, and a 720p film all running at the same time. Different combinations were also used, such as 50 browser windows, a few small games (Tetris, Teeter Pro etc) and a 1080p movie (Streaming). The Time2 remained stable, with minimal lag, and everything was still accessible.

Out of all the tests that were performed, the browser that comes pre-installed never once crashed or became unresponsive and needed to be restarted. Given the amount of tests and sheer amount of browser windows that were opened, with the big majority of the websites being quite demanding on resources (Java script heavy, animated advertisements etc), those results are fantastic.

Room for improvement

Competition is fierce at this price point, and with their being some really good Tablets to choose from, only the best get chosen. If you see customer reviews where the negative ratings outweigh the positive, or its close to an even split each way, the Tablet in question is not very good and will most probably cause you more annoyance than it's worth. The Time2® TC1050G is on the opposite end of that scale and the positive reviews far outweigh the negative.

There really isn't much to fault it for the price. Time2 have made a nice product with the TC1050G. It possesses so many of those all important core features that make a computer pleasant to use. But, as with all Tablets hovering around this price range, they each have a few areas where improvements would be welcomed. None of them are immune from this. Some use cheaper internal components which reduces performance and reliability and others use a combination of cheaper displays, lower grade casings and lower overall specifications.

However, a compromise has to be made somewhere, or else Tablets within this price range wouldn't actually be purchased for the same money anymore. They would have to be sold at a higher price because they cost more to build. Which is only fair. With that said, the trade-off, or weaker points with the Time2 10" are the standard cameras that are used in many budget Tablets are used in this device. The front camera is 0.3MP and the rear is 2MP. Still borderline "acceptable" for using with programs like Skype, but the quality isn't much good for anything else.

The speaker, which has a fairly low maximum volume, is situated at the back of the device, and could / should have been placed in a better location for improved sound. On the side, or better still, at the front would have been much more suitable. Charging the device from 1% to fully charged takes around 5 ½ hours. For this reason it would be beneficial if the USB charging / data cable and mains charger lead were longer so that the user could comfortably use the device while it's charging. And an IPS screen wouldn't be a bad addition either.

All things considered, The Time2® TC1050G is definitely worthy of sitting along side the Fusion5 and Neocore models that cost the same to buy. The Fusion5 model that's around the same price has an IPS display but slightly less processing power, and the closest Neocore equivalent (released the same year as the TC1050G) has a lower all-round specification, a display of equal quality, but comes with a 2 year warranty instead of 1 year.

The choice you ultimately decide on is solely dependant on what is more important to you and what area you're prepared to make a compromise on. But no doubt, this Tablet offers great value for money. - SolarPixels