Lava QPAD e704 voice-calling tablet launched at Rs. 9,999

Lava, expanding its tablet portfolio in India, has launched the QPAD e704 at Rs. 9,999. The domestic manufacturer has announced that the Lava QPAD e704 will be exclusively available at the e-commerce website, Flipkart for the first two weeks.

The Lava QPAD e704 is a dual-SIM tablet and supports voice-calling functionality. It comes with a 7-inch display with a resolution of 1024x600 pixels. The tablet runs on the dated Android 4.2 Jelly Bean operating system, with no word on software update.

The QPAD e704 tablet is powered by a quad-core Broadcom processor clocked at 1.2GHz, along with 1GB of RAM. Other specifications include a 3.2-megapixel rear camera, VGA front-facing camera and 4GB of inbuilt storage, which can be expanded up to 32GB with the help of microSD card.

The Lava QPAD e704 tablet is backed by a 3500mAh battery and weighs 280 grams. Connectivity options on the tablet include Wi-Fi, EDGE, GPRS, Micro-USB, HDMI and 3G.

Commenting on the launch, S.N. Rai, Co-founder and Director, Lava International said, "Lava International is aiming to expand its tablet portfolio with the launch of new tablets and our latest offering, QPAD is a step in that direction. QPAD e704 is a perfect device not only for young professionals, but also for the enterprise segment. Enterprises can arm their employees with this powerful next generation Tab with latest features at a very low cost. By virtue of its fast processor, better graphics, IPS display and longer battery QPAD e704 can be perfect replacement for Notebooks used for presentations, demo videos, catalogues, and enterprise specific applications."

Tablet shipment growth to slow in 2014

Tablet shipments will increase this year but at a much slower pace than in 2013 as consumers remain content with the devices they already own, market research firm IDC said on Thursday.

Global tablet shipments are set to expand 19.4 per cent this year, compared to 51.6 per cent in 2013, it said.

IDC's prediction for tablet growth in 2014 is 3.6 percentage points less than its previous forecast for the year.

Consumers in mature markets such as the United States are increasingly holding onto the high-end tablets they previously bought, IDC said.

"Few are feeling compelled to upgrade the same way they did in years past, and that's having an impact on growth rates," IDC analyst Tom Mainelli said in a report.

Since Apple dazzled consumers with its first iPad in 2010, manufacturers have increasingly focused on making fewer expensive tablets.

But a decline in the average selling prices for tablets of all price levels appeared to be bottoming out as consumers move from "ultra-low cost" products toward devices that last longer, IDC said.

Average selling prices are expected decline 3.6 percent this year, compared to a 14.6 per cent drop in 2013