While most domestic manufacturer seem to have put their R&D team on developing new designs and features for phablets, Swipe have come up with the Halo Value+ tablet that packs a dual core processor underneath a 7 inch screen. There’s a plethora of such devices already available in the country, will Swipe be anywhere near successful with the Halo Value+?
Camera and Internal Storage
One of the most overlooked features on a tablet is the camera, especially the rear. This is because most of us already own smartphones that boast much better imaging hardware. Coming back to the Halo Value+, the device comes with a 2MP shooter at the rear along with a VGA one at the front. The 2MP will probably disappoint, and we’re not sure but we would like to assume that it is an FF (Fixed Focus) unit. You will hardly find any use for this unit. On the other hand, the VGA unit at the front will come to good use if you are a frequent video-caller. Again, quality from the VGA unit will probably be unusable during dark situations.
The device comes with a disappointing 4GB of ROM, which can thankfully be expanded by another 32GB via a microSD card. You will inevitably have to head back to the market in search of a microSD card.
Processor and Battery
The tablet packs a rather modest and uninteresting 1.2GHz dual core processor. Honestly, we would like to see more of quad-core tablets if not anything else. Again, the price point is something very important, and the Halo Value+ perhaps does impress on that. Swipe offer you a choice of 2 variants based on different RAM amounts – one comes with 512MB (Priced 6,699 INR) while the other comes with 1GB of RAM (Priced 6,999 INR). Considering you are reading this, we are pretty certain you will not go for the 512MB RAM variant, or for that matter we don’t think anyone will go for the 512MB RAM one.
The device comes with a rather disappointing battery, even for the price, rated just 3000mAh. We’re living in an age where smartphones (even budget ones) feature 2000mAh+ batteries, and a 3000mAh unit on a 7 inch device is not something that you can not expect to last. We would have liked to see 4000mAh or greater on the device, which would translate into some good handful of usable hours.
Display and Features
The Halo Value+ comes with a 7 inch screen which features a WVGA resolution of 800 x 480 pixels. Again, we aren’t very impressed with the screen here. A WVGA resolution on a 7 inch display will make for a very hard to enjoy time that you spend with the tablet. Most low cost phones that come with this resolution have a 4 inch screen. You should definitely consider your options before you go for the Halo Value+.
The device comes with voice calling and data via SIM card, which is something which can be very handy at times. You do not have to look for a WiFi hotspot or create one of your own using your Android smartphone and lose on precious battery.
Looks and Connectivity
The device looks like any other 7 inch domestic device on the market with a very non-radical design that is easy on the eyes, and which looks good too.
On the connectivity front, the device has 2G data, voice calling, WiFi and Bluetooth features.
Comparison
Other devices like Micromax Funbook Mini P410, Mercury mTab Star and iBall Slide 7334i will pose as serious threats to this device which will already have a hard time selling itself in the market.
Key Specs
| Model | Swipe Halo Value+ |
| Display | 7 inches WVGA |
| Processor | 1.2 GHz dual core |
| RAM | 512MB/1GB |
| Internal Storage | 4GB |
| OS | Android v4.2 |
| Cameras | 2MP/VGA |
| Battery | 3000mAh |
| Price | 6,699 and 6,999 INR |
Conclusion
As you would’ve felt throughout this post, the Swipe Halo Value+ hasn’t won a fan in us. The device doesn’t really have it in it to sell in this overcrowded market. However, the voice calling and data features of the device are impressive at the price point. Just that the dual core processor and 1GB of RAM paired with a teensy 3000mAh battery won’t do you good for long. A better idea would be to invest a little more and go for something like the Funbook Mini from Micromax.
