Lenovo IdeaTab A2107 tablet review

The Lenovo IdeaTab A2107 targets the same ultra-affordable, mini-tablet space currently dominated by Google's Asus-built Nexus 7.

However, with Lenovo's latest IdeaTab retailing for £150 and packing a less powerful processor than the quad-core Google tablet and featuring a much lower resolution screen, the question is whether it's not just worth shelling out of the extra £20 for the 16GB Nexus 7.

Design and build
Visually the IdeaTab A2107 looks fairly similar to its larger screened sibling the IdeaTab A2109, boasting the same boxy design and measuring in at 192x122x11.5mm.

The 7in IdeaTab's design isn't helped by its weight - it weighs a hefty 400g. That's nearly as heavy as some 10in tablets and a full 60g heavier than the Nexus 7. This meant that in hand we found using the IdeaTab A2107 to be fairly uncomfortable, particularly when using it one handed.

While the IdeaTab A2107 looks dull and feels heavy, it does at least have the redeeming feature of appearing well built - perhaps Lenovo values sturdiness over elegance.

The tablet's chassis is made entirely of polycarbonate and features a detachable top section on its rear that grants access to the devices SIM and microSD card slots. Testing the device on the move the tablet left us fairly confident that the IdeaTab A2107 could survive the odd bump and scrape unscathed.

Screen
Like the IdeaTab A2109 the IdeaTab A2107's screen is by far its most disappointing feature. The tablet features a 7.0in 1024x600 LED display.

Putting the tablet head to head with others in the same price bracket, the IdeaTab A2107's screen looks blurry and dull.

We also had issues using the IdeaTab A2107 outdoors, where we found its glass front is prone to glare, making it all but unusable in bright lighting conditions.

Things are made even worse by the fact that the screen isn't all that responsive and only boasts five-point not 10-point multitouch capabilities. This means that as well as not being that pleasant to look at the screen also isn't very pleasant to use.

Next: Operating system and performance.