Will Cain do what Adam couldn’t?

There are a few great 10-inch Android tablets in the market, and then, of course, there’s the iPad Air. However, if you don’t want either, it’s a Windows device for you. We’ve seen a few new devices lately, but we weren’t really impressed by any, at least in the 10-inch segment. But Notion Ink, the Indian device manufacturer, has come out with the Cain, and it definitely looks like they’ve put all their love and hard work into the tablet.

In fact, after spending a good amount of time with this device, we at Technophile think that the Cain offers more value for money than any other 10-inch Windows or Android tablet at the moment.

At ₹19,990, Cain is probably the most affordable Windows 2-in-1 around. And for its price, it has a lot to offer in terms of design and ergonomics. For starters, the tablet weighs about 630 grams, which is not exactly very light, but the weight is distributed very well and it never feels heavy in your hands.

The back panel uses a mix of plastic and metal – the edges are textured plastic, offering a solid grip, and the main panel has a brushed metal finish that makes the Cain look quite beautiful. In tablet mode, the ergonomics are best in class.

The initial problem with 2-in-1 devices is that the keyboard dock usually makes the device slightly heavier and adds a significant amount of thickness. With Notion Ink’s Cain, this isn’t the case. The keyboard dock, which doubles up as a flip cover, as it comes in the box, is a very light and thin one. But that doesn’t affect its functional value at all. The keyboard’s bottom surface is a thin but hard plastic and coupled with a trackpad and good tactile feedback, it really feels like working on a netbook. The cover has a felt finish, which looks quite good, in a simple yet classy way.

The Cain comes with all the important ports, a USB 3.0, a microUSB OTG port, a microSD card port to expand the memory, a mini-HDMI and a 3.5mm audio port.

The Notion Ink Cain comes with Windows 8.1 out of the box, and this is powered by an Intel Atom Z3735D (quad-core, Baytrail) processor that is rated to clock at 1.33GHz base (up to 1.83GHz burst), integrated Intel HD Graphics and 2GB of RAM. This combination of specs works very well for fluidic performance for everyday computing and a bit more.

Sure, you don’t get the specs for massive gaming or using pro photo/video editing software, but it’s a very handy device if you need to work on documents, surf the internet, consume multimedia etc. on the go. The 10.1-inch WXVGA (1280x800 pixels) IPS LCD display is quite bright and we found it to be extremely good for watching even 1080p videos.

The speakers could have been better in terms of audio output and positioning. But what really made us happy was the battery life – we got up to 10 hours easily (As the company promises) on normal usage, and a healthy 7.5 hours on video usage.

There is absolutely no doubt that the Notion Ink Cain is probably the best Windows tablet, or 2-in-1, in the entry to mid-range segment. It’s light, powerful, looks good, comes with the dock/cover and a separate wireless mouse in the package and has extremely good battery life.

Does that mean there is absolutely no problem with the device? There are a few chinks, such as the fact that the screen doesn’t come with a proximity sensor to switch off the display when the cover is closed, and the cameras are good enough only for Skype calls. While you can buy the device on Snapdeal, there’s also the concern about a good service chain, but if the Bangalore-based company stays on its toes to help out customers, it shouldn’t be a problem.

But for now, we’d say that this is the device one must buy, for a good Windows experience without burning a hole in the pocket.

₹19,990

Love – Versatility; Value for money

Hate – Speakers; Camera resolution