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10.1 inches has become the de facto size for many larger tablets, and the Telstra 4G tablet is no exception. The 1280 x 800 resolution is pretty standard for a tablet this size, and in spite of the lower price tag the screen actually performs pretty well.
Colours are vibrant and the viewing angle is pretty good too. Ultimately it doesn't hold a candle to the Retina display on the latest iPad or the screen on the Nexus 10 by Samsung, but it certainly outshines the screen on the last Telstra tablet.
The screen's biggest drawback is its reflectiveness, making it nigh on impossible to use in direct sunlight.
Interface
The Telstra 4G tablet comes loaded with Ice Cream Sandwich, so it's a practical experience for tablet users. While it's disappointing that the device isn't running the latest Jelly Bean version of Android, Ice Cream Sandwich is still a solid operating system.
At this stage, there's no word on whether users can expect an upgrade to Jelly Bean in the future. Telstra generally does tend to roll out Android updates, so it's certainly possible, but at this stage there's no confirmation or timing information.
The best part of the tablet's inclusion of Ice Cream Sandwich is that Telstra has made very few tweaks to the vanilla version of the OS.
That means that the user experience is similar to that of Google's own Nexus devices, except with added Telstra services.
Links to BigPond, TelstraOne and your user account have all been added to the home page, but given the device is only available through the network, the "Telstrafication" of the device is actually quite minimal.
Telstra has also added a useful tool for accessing your favourite apps from the lock screen called EasyAccess. Instead of long-pressing the unlock button, you drag the icon with two fingers like zooming in on a photo, and you are presented with six different apps.
It's a nice addition, that is actually quite useful for anyone who uses the same apps regularly.
The tablet's dual-core 1.5GHz processor is far from groundbreaking, although it does let Telstra's device get the job done without too many issues.
There can be some slight lag when rapidly flicking between pages, or scrolling through long lists. Whether this is due to the tablet's hardware or the Ice Cream Sandwich version of Android is debatable though.
Hopefully a Jelly Bean upgrade will happen sooner than later to give us answers on those questions, but until then, some minor lagging is part and parcel with the tablet's purchase.
