Gigabyte Slate S1082-CF2 review

HITTING KEYS

Its USB keyboard slots neatly into the carry case so you can take it with you on the go. We’d have preferred a Bluetooth keyboard, though, as the supplied keyboard consumes one of the S1082’s two USB ports. The USB cable also makes the unit as whole look cheap. The keyboard feels a little cramped, but that didn’t prevent us using it effectively.

The carry case is made from leather, and has a classier feel than you’d expect from a bundled case. Sadly, it’s a little hard to get the tablet in and out of it, as its rigid, plastic clips are very difficult to move once the tablet’s locked in place. The S1082 is also compatible with the Gigabyte D1080 Docking Station (£129, www.camtechsystems.co.uk) which has a DVD optical drive, speakers and another three USB2 ports.

Sadly, we were very unimpressed with the S1082’s battery, which lasted a mere 3 hours and 26 minutes in our light use test, severely restricting its ability to be used away from the mains. It’s certainly much less than the nine to 10 hours usage we expect to get out of a tablet.

Ultimately, though, the S1082’s main problem is its price. It’s more expensive than the iPad 4 and Google Nexus 10, and it’s too underpowered to be a cheaper alternative to Windows 8 tablets such as the Acer Iconia W700. There’s a slightly cheaper model of the S1082 that has a 500GB hard disk instead of a 64GB SSD, but we’d still prefer to pay more for a good Windows 8 tablet such as the Iconia W700 or less for an iPad 4 or Google Nexus 10.