While Intel Atom X5 mini PCs such as Tronsmart Ara X5 are selling well above $100, you can now pickup Cube iwork8 Ultimate tablet for just under $90 on GearBest [Update: Coupon IWORK8HI save a dollar more or so] with the same processor, memory, and storage, and adding an 8″ touchscreen, two cameras, and a battery, while losing Ethernet, and the convenience of full-sized USB and HDMI ports.
Cube iwork8 Ultimate tablet specifications:
- SoC – Intel Atom x5-Z8300 “Cherry Trail” quad core processor @ 1.44 GHz / 1.84 GHz with Intel Gen8 HD graphics.
- System Memory – 2 GB RAM
- Storage – 32 GB eMMC flash + micro SD slot up to 32 GB
- Display – 8.0″ touchscreen display; 1280×800 resolution; 5-point multitouch
- Video Output – micro HDMI port
- Audio – HDMI, built-in microphone and dual speakers (although I can only see one speaker on the picture), 3.5mm headphone jack
- Connectivity – 802.11 b/g/n Wi-Fi, and Bluetooth 4.0
- USB – 1x micro USB port
- Camera – 1x 2.0MP rear camera, 1x 2.0MP front-facing camera
- Sensors – Gravity sensor
- Misc – Power, Home and volume buttons; charging indicator
- Battery – 3,300mAh battery
- Power Supply – 5V via micro USB port
- Dimensions – 213.38 x 127.09 x 9.8mm
- Weight – 339g
The tablet comes pre-loaded with Windows 10 with English and Chinese languages, and other languages can be downloaded from the operating system as needed. It ships with a USB cable and charger. I have not found any independent reviews of the tablet yet, but you could still have a look at GearBest presentation video.
So how come there’s such a big price difference? First, tablets with screens smaller than 9″ get a free Windows 10 license, while mini PCs will have to pay an extra $15 to $25 extra to get this privilege. Of course, if you buy an Intel mini PC with an unlicensed version of Windows, FreeDOS or Linux distributions (not fully working), price will drop by the same amount. I’ve also read that Intel is keen on gaining market share in the tablet market, so they offer better deals or even to some extend sponsor Windows 10 tablets. Finally, it’s quite possible the tablet are sold in much higher volumes, leading to lower prices.
Beside GearBest, the tablet can also be found for less than $90 on Banggood and GeekBuying, with Aliexpress sellers being a little more expensive for now.
Thank you Ian!
Jean-Luc started CNX Software in 2010 as a part-time endeavor, before quitting his job as a software engineering manager, and starting to write daily news, and reviews full time later in 2011.
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Like to buy I cube
Hi all,
does this table have two separate port for power and USB? I ask this because it those function goes on only one port, you can’t power/recharge the tablet while you use one/more USB peripherals (Internet Key, pendrive, USB HUB, etc.) … 🙁
@Gaetano
I can only see one USB port. A Y OTG cable might work as in http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00CXAC1ZW?ref_=cm_sw_r_awd_3.djwbQZKQ7XM, but people have reported issues @ https://forums.geforce.com/default/topic/886360/shield-tablet/otg-cable-and-power-tablet-at-same-time-/
So it would be something to study first…