Product Listing

HTC Flyer - First HTC Tablet Takes Off

By Sidney Wong - 16 Jun 2011
Launch SRP: S$1068

Multimedia and Battery Performance

On-board Entertainment 

With a screen resolution of 1024 x 600 pixels, the experience was good when reading and watching multimedia content on the Flyer. Speaking of multimedia, the pair of stereo speakers at the back of the Flyer is ample for watching movies and listening to music. The 7-inch display is perfect for reading e-books as it fits each page nicely. We cannot say the same for internet browsing as a bigger screen would lend its hand in more comfortable viewing of each web page. On the Flyer and most other devices smaller than 10-inches, you would typically have to zoom in to have a clearer view of web pages.

The HTC Flyer comes equipped with a 5-megapixel auto-focus rear camera and a 1.3-megapixel front camera. Let's see how the Flyer's rear camera fare in our camera tests below.

Camera performance is definitely not a strength of the HTC Flyer. Colors appeared washed out.

The camera struggles to capture details well, evident in the lack of sharpness in the image.

We put the HTC Flyer through our last round of testing - battery life. We use a 720p video with screen brightness and volume turned up to 100%. Wi-Fi and Bluetooth connections are turned on as well, allowing regular data to stream through email and Twitter. We compare the HTC Flyer with the likes of Apple iPad 2, BlackBerry PlayBook and Motorola Xoom in a test of battery stamina.

Specifications/Device HTC Flyer  BlackBerry PlayBook Apple iPad 2 Motorola Xoom
Processor
  • Single-core 1.5GHz
  • Dual-core 1GHz
  • Dual-core 1GHz
  • Dual-core 1GHz
Display Size
  • 7-inch
  • 7-inch
  • 9.7-inch
  • 10.1-inch
Display Type
  • LCD
  • TFT LCD
  • LED-backlit IPS TFT LCD
  • TFT LCD
Display Resolution
  • 1024 x 600 pixels
  • 1024 x 600 pixels
  • 1024 x 768 pixels
  • 1280 x 800 pixels
Dimensions
  • 195.4 x 122 x 13.2mm
  • 194 x 130 x 10mm
  • 241.2 x 185.7 x 8.8mm
  • 249.1 x 167.8 x 12.9mm
Weight
  • 420g
  • 425g
  • 613g
  • 708g

The HTC Flyer has a poorer battery life compared to the BlackBerry PlayBook, which is equipped with a similar screen size but running a dual-core processor. As the BlackBerry PlayBook carries a 5300mAh battery, it will definitely last longer than the 4000mAh battery of the HTC Flyer. Nevertheless, we feel the battery life is average and could be better.

Due to the above battery life findings, the HTC Flyer doesn't fare too well in the Portability Index, even though it matched up well against the iPad 2 and the Xoom. However, the rightful comparison is with the PlayBook since it has a similar form factor. Taking into account the longer battery life of the PlayBook, its weight and diementions, you can see the Flyer's predicament. Putting it in a different comparison, while the Flyer is lighter than the iPad 2, it doesn't give you its battery stamina and you get a smaller screen.

Our battery test above is geared towards simulating intensive usage conditions on the device, hence for average users, the battery life of the HTC Flyer will be better than the results seen here. The battery life actually differs from individual to individual as it depends on usage patterns.

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7.5
The Good
Attractive HTC Sense 3.0
Portable form factor
Unique and handy HTC Pen
The Bad
Average battery life
Expensive
Poor camera performance
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