Zoostorm PlayTab Q6010 review

I wasn't expecting anything particularly groundbreaking from the Zoostorm PlayTab Q6010, and while the tablet can do all the things you'd expect of an Android tablet, there are no exciting hidden extras to highlight.

The obvious justification for this? The price - £140. However, recent offerings such as the Advent Vega Tegra Note 7 prove that little extras such as a stylus can go a long way to make a tablet stand out in such a crowded market.

The 10.1-inch IPS screen is of HD resolution, though at 149ppi everything looks considerably more pixellated than I'm used to, thanks to the high resolution HD screens gracing most modern smartphones.

Viewing angles remain good thanks to the IPS technology, though as I previously mentioned, the separation between the screen and overlying glass is far more than any other modern tablet or smartphone I've seen of late.

Sound comes from a single speaker. Zoostorm claims it's a 2W unit, though I was disappointed at how quiet it was when trying to watch a video on YouTube, or listen to tracks on Google Music.

Due to its side positioning rather than front or rear, sound always feels like it's coming from the left which I found quite annoying.

Android 4.2.2 being the heart of this tablet means there's a familiar interface at hand, that hasn't been unnecessarily adulterated by any bloated extras.

The Play store is pre-loaded to give access to many thousands of applications and Google Now is available with a swipe up from the Home button, as well as all the other major Google Experience apps (although I did have to download YouTube).

The most obvious addition is welcome and isn't intrusive, and that's the on-screen volume controls that sit either side of the back, home and multi-tasking icons at the bottom of the screen.

I found I would sometimes hit the volume down key rather than the back button, but this is a habit you'd likely learn to avoid over time.

If you take a closer look and delve in to the settings menu you'll find a couple of little additions.

Firstly there's a menu that gives you control over the output from the PlayTab's mini-HDMI port. You can adjust the resolution from 480p all the way up to 1080p at 60hz, as well as adjusting the zoom level to ensure the picture fits nicely within the confines of the attached TV.

After testing the HDMI output I can report it worked well and full HD video was smooth.

A second extra menu gives control over screenshots, including adjustable delay time, a choice of storage locations and whether to display the screenshot icon in the status bar.

Nothing earth shattering, but all very handy extras that could easily have been left out.

Additional pre-installed apps include a file explorer app, Twitter, Skype and an app called Wi-Fi Display that allows you to connect the tablet wirelessly to Miracast enabled devices. A useful feature - if you can find a TV or display that supports it.