Is There Any Way ViewSonic’s $US170 Ice Cream Sandwich Tablet Isn’t Terrible?


It’s not that I don’t believe in miracles. I once knew a man who sat through the entirety of Jack & Jill without trying to set fire to the theatre. It’s a crazy world. But if ViewSonic made a $US170 Ice Cream Sandwich tablet that isn’t excruciatingly painful to use, I’ll buy a hat and eat it.

The specs that ViewSonic has shared on its e70 slate aren’t enough to damn it, but they’re not necessarily inspiring: a 1GHz processor, 4GB onboard storage, 800×480 display, micro HDMI and a micro SD slot. The 7-incher forgoes the Android Market for the Amazon Appstore, which is an interesting move and actually probably really smart? And maybe an interesting harbinger of Amazon app dominance?

But the only spec that matters on the e70 is the price: $US170, the cheapest cover around for entry into Club ICS. You don’t charge little without making some big sacrifices, and it’s not like ViewSonic has the most sterling track record to begin with. So odds are you’re looking at a Professor X situation here: terrific brain trapped in a useless body. We’ll find out soon, assuming they’ve brought the thing to CES.


The Cheapest NBN 50 Plans

It’s the most popular NBN speed in Australia for a reason. Here are the cheapest plans available.

At Gizmodo, we independently select and write about stuff we love and think you'll like too. We have affiliate and advertising partnerships, which means we may collect a share of sales or other compensation from the links on this page. BTW – prices are accurate and items in stock at the time of posting.