AfterDawn: News

The Vizio Tablet is cheap

After announcing the tablet at this year's CES, Vizio has launched its Vizio Tablet (formerly Vizio Via Plus).

The tablet will be cheap, with an MSRP of just $299, well under rival tablets which normally price at $500.



Amazon, Costco, Sam's Club, Vizio and Walmart each have the tablet in stock now.

The tablet runs on Android 2.3 Gingerbread, weighs 1.2 pounds, has an 8-inch screen with 1024x768 resolution, Wi-Fi only, 1GHz processor, 4GB storage, MicroSD slot, HDMI slot, three speakers and a front-facing video camera for video chat.

Vizio's main selling point on the tablet outside of the price is its integration with VIA, which will control not only all Vizio devices in the house but also "up to 95 percent of all home theater accessories, including televisions and sound systems" with its IR controller.

Written by: Andre Yoskowitz @ 10 Aug 2011 0:32

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• 16 comments

• DXR88

  this is good, maybe it will help drive those name branded tablets down in price. we will see.
  
  VIA is one hell of a chip maker one of the few 3rd party chipmakers to actually drive a steak in midranged equipment an succeed where other have failed, the partnership is not a bad thing.
  

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  10.8.2011 00:48 #1

• KillerBug

  VIA makes decent chips (they were once on top in a few specialized categories)...but it seems like their big contribution to the thing will be an IR LED?
  

  
  

  10.8.2011 02:47 #2

• DXR88

  Originally posted by KillerBug: VIA makes decent chips (they were once on top in a few specialized categories)...but it seems like their big contribution to the thing will be an IR LED? kinda makes you wonder.

  10.8.2011 02:54 #3

• dEwMe

  Ya know I still ask myself why a tablet (of any kind)? Just don't see the point of having one (or a smart phone for that matter).
  
  

  Just my $0.02,
  
  dEwMe

  10.8.2011 13:42 #4

• LordRuss

  I could see using this thing as a glorified remote control for my man-cave. Would be nice to have all kinds of control over wireless devices 'and' check your email between commercial breaks. Not to mention I don't have to pay for the extra cellular functionality; something I am definitely not interested in, so why pay extra for that hardware.
  
  I'll definitely be looking into this gadget.
  

  http://onlyinrussellsworld.blogspot.com

  10.8.2011 14:18 #5

• ThePastor

  I like this pricepoint. This actually may make me not wait for Ice Cream Sandwich.
  It seems to be fully functional, Honeycomb, 1Ghz, 4Gigs, Micro SD slot, HDMI port.
  What's missing?
  

  Unfortunately for them, all Blu-ray protections have been broken and BD rips can be found around the Internet, usually before the retail even hits shelves.

  10.8.2011 14:32 #6

• klassic

  Originally posted by ThePastor: I like this pricepoint. This actually may make me not wait for Ice Cream Sandwich.
  It seems to be fully functional, Honeycomb, 1Ghz, 4Gigs, Micro SD slot, HDMI port.
  What's missing? It's missing Honeycomb.
  

  I wanna devise a virus and bring dire straights to your environments. Crush your corporations with a mild touch, trash the whole computer systems and revert you to papyrus - Deltron 3030

  10.8.2011 15:37 #7

• ThePastor

  Ahh, yeah, I missread... thanks
  

  Unfortunately for them, all Blu-ray protections have been broken and BD rips can be found around the Internet, usually before the retail even hits shelves.

  10.8.2011 15:51 #8

• harhumph

  Hmmm, low storage space, no honeycomb, no 720p screen resolution, not standard 10" screen, I could go on and on but I am more than happy with my Acer Iconia at it's $450.00 price point (may be even cheaper now that it's been out a few months). In other words... PASS! Oh no dual core either, but for a budget tab it might be worth it to the right consumer.

  10.8.2011 17:29 #9

• dali

  As I may have mentioned before, I have a Toshiba Folio 100, now discontinued, yet not "obsolete" at all. 1024x600 resolution, 10.1" screen, front-facing camera, multi-touch, motion sensors, nVidia Tegra 2, 16 GB, SDHC slot, HDMI, USB port... And, once jailbroken and udated with a custom ROM, it runs Honeycomb pretty fast but, because of some missing functions, I kept it running Gingerbread.
  
  My price? About 300 $. Why was it discontinued? Hell, I don't know. Sometimes, I have the weird feeling we're stepping backwards... :/
  

  “You know, it seems that quotes on the internet are becoming less and less reliable.” -Abraham Lincoln.

  11.8.2011 14:22 #10

• sheri1983

  Originally posted by dali: Why was it discontinued? Hell, I don't know. Sometimes, I have the weird feeling we're stepping backwards... :/ According the Toshiba press release, the Folio 100 was discontinued because they could not keep up with the demand. Both Folio 100s sold within hours of their release (one of my friends bought the other one).

  12.8.2011 08:09 #11

• baxter00

  Originally posted by sheri1983: Originally posted by dali: Why was it discontinued? Hell, I don't know. Sometimes, I have the weird feeling we're stepping backwards... :/ According the Toshiba press release, the Folio 100 was discontinued because they could not keep up with the demand. Both Folio 100s sold within hours of their release (one of my friends bought the other one). ROFL

  12.8.2011 09:03 #12

• buxtahuda

  I'll be checking in to it more. I've been resisting the whole tablet craze especially because I'm still new to having a smartphone and the usual price tag. And I don't think this will be the one to convert me although its features and price are exactly what I need, the single core is definitely a letdown. My phone OC's to 1.5GHz, I'm sure you could root/customize like with the phones so long as someone is dev'ing for the device, but still.
  
  It would be just fine for what it'd get used for, which is what it's being advertised for. Glorified remote for the home theatre and just another device with which to easily access our collection of movies/music and just show off to people.

  12.8.2011 09:23 #13

• dagobaker

  i might buy 1 at sams club and give it a test drive.......if it sucks or they come out with something really upgraded while im trying ill just return and get the newer product...300$ isnt bad though
  
  

  Dagobaker

  12.8.2011 10:50 #14

• dali

  Originally posted by baxter00: Originally posted by sheri1983: According the Toshiba press release, the Folio 100 was discontinued because they could not keep up with the demand. Both Folio 100s sold within hours of their release (one of my friends bought the other one).
  ROFL
  Yes, that was a funny joke, I'm laughing too. But I still can't get why the Folio 100 was such a fail, and that was why I posted about it, talking about my own experience with the actual deal. I insist: Its specs weren't (and aren't) bad at all, but now Vizio announces a tablet in the same price line which is clearly inferior and that's hot news? Will it grant access to the Android Market out of the box, while Toshiba's tab didn't, because it allegedly didn't fullfill some Google standard? And, if so, why? Please, explain. Anyone?
  

  “You know, it seems that quotes on the internet are becoming less and less reliable.” -Abraham Lincoln.

  12.8.2011 12:32 #15

• sheri1983

  Seriously, maybe it was TOO nice, in the sense that Toshiba didn't make (or worse, lost) money on it.

  12.8.2011 17:35 #16