1020 10-Inch Tablet with Keyboard (Intel Atom, 2 GB Ram, 32 GB Storage, Windows 10)

I purchased this tablet as Christmas gift for my mom, with the intention being that it's something simple she can use for web browsing, email, video/music etc.So far I have only used it for around half an hour or so to set things up so it can be used right away at Christmas, but I am already incredibly impressed with it. First of all, the build quality is excellent. The tablet feels very sturdy in the hands and the volume/power buttons have a nice tactile click when pressed. The Keyboard keys have decent travel and the mouse pad does what you need it to. The only issue is how cramped it all feels, but at the end of the day it's a 10" tablet so I can't really hold that against it.One thing that did surprise me however was the fact there is no locking mechanism attaching the keyboard to the table, just two "Prongs" that slot into the tablet either side of the electrical contact. I could potentially see these wearing out eventually under heavy use, so maybe something to consider.On the software side, there really is nothing to fault. The tablet is fast and responsive performing all the basic tasks you would expect something like this to be used for. The first thing I did after setting the tablet up was open Control Panel to see what bloatware was installed. To my surprise there were a total of three items on the list, and all were sound/graphics drivers. On a tablet with only 32GB of storage this is a big plus for me as storage really will be at a premium. Speaking of storage, for anyone wondering how much of the 32GB is taken up by the OS, there is around 20GB of free space when you first turn the tablet on. I have not finished installing all the current windows updates however so I expect this may change slightly by the time it's finished.For the price this is currently selling for (£140) it's an absolute steal and would be an excellent first computer for a child or a great for someone who is less technically minded and just wants something to do the basics.

Mine was delivered this morning and I've spent a few hours messing around with it.It's responsive and easy to use, although the it's not the powerful machine out there. Managed to get a few, low spec games going on it and they run fine. The screen is well lit, sharp and and responsive to touch input. The camera works fine too.The keyboard dock is mostly great; it feels good to type with and the keys are spaced out well. However, the mouse pad is absolutely dreadful. It's unresponsive and jittery and will drive you crazy after just a few minutes, the touch screen is great but it can't beat the accuracy and versatility of a mouse pointer. Of course you can just plug in a USB mouse but the device doesn't come packaged with one so one the merits of the device itself, this is a major black mark for me.Also as a minor gripe, the enter key is just a little bit small for my big hands.Windows 10 is great so no qualms about the software.Overall it's a great machine for day to day browsing and typing. An absolute bargin at this price as long as you have a spare mouse kicking around.And it arrived a full week earlier then expected!

The tablet itself is great and after 24 hours I'm enjoying it. However the charger sent with the tablet didn't work so I have had to use another that I have from one of the many other devices in my house. When I contacted Amazon they insisted I sent back the tablet as well as the charger to get the problem resolved. As I had just spent a few hours getting all the updates and sorted out all the apps I wanted I didn't want to go through all that again. So now I'm left without a working charger for this nice new tablet.The answer is simple, just get Amazon to send a new charger, but no luck so far.

Revised: I have just returned the second example of Linx 1020 because it also self-discharged to zero when powered off overnight (so now lowest stars), it was otherwise brilliant, and please see further down for comments about the first one...Tablet - What's the point?The point is that, as a 10" tablet, this is small enough to take around, and large enough to see the screen and control with a finger tip. I was new to this but find it is quite manageable once you can get used to where your finger will touch, and the screen responds beautifully. The settings can be adjusted to suit Tablet or Desktop layout or to have this changed automatically but first impressions are very good all round, although I have never used a mobile phone. It feels heavy but small and durable.Laptop - what's the point?Again, it is small but still usable. The keyboard is quite excellent in operation and fits positively both by magnets and a couple of prongs in a tough carrier. Well balanced, and the touchpad moves the cursor steadily and smoothly, neither being far behind my very expensive Dell XPS laptop. A replacement battery pack for that would have cost half the price of a Linx, so I just use the mains for that. I believe the free program 'Touchfreeze' helps to prevent interference from the touchpad when typing and the two full size USB ports on the Linx are a godsend, so that a memory stick and USB mouse can be attached at the same time.Tablet-Laptop combo - what's the point?I just finished writing a simple database program with JustBasic (as easy as Spectrum or Amiga Basic but much better screen functions) which needs to be taken out to be used. I can operate it with the Linx touchscreen when out and about, and edit the program itself with the keyboard and a mouse back at home. It's just the ticket.Not enough memory?Of course that depends, but with Winzip, Irfanview, JustBasic, and all the great built in Win10 accessory programs like MS Paint, and OneDrive for file transfer and access to all the stuff on my other laptop, there is still 17.5GB free, but installed a 64GB micro SD card anyway and just in case have a 1000GB usb drive for things like videos or photos which try to eat up a lot of space. No problem, at least for me.Entertainment?I have only used YouTube and BBC IPlayer, but the results on good quality nature progs on iPlayer still looked breathtaking, yes because 1280 x 800 is plenty for a 10" screen! and colours looked very natural. Sound through the speakers is a bit reedy but earphones sound fine.WiFi?No problems even with our home setup which is pretty marginal most of the time and connection is quick.What was the first example like?Terrible but in retrospect that might have been due to problems thrown up by installation and updating. Would not switch on predictably, battery lost all its charge overnight, and touchpad was jittery. After much fiddling around I could not get it right and returned it. The second one played up after first installation of Windows10 and the update and I was about to send that back too but glad I tried again by resetting it and going through the rigmarole once more. Didn't understand all of it but gathered that the reset did not go right back to the original Windows version, whatever that was, and the update required manual restarts because 'we will restart for you' did not do that.It's not just a case of 'cheapo laptops' because my gaming laptop at fifteen times the price needed rescue by a Microsoft technician to get Win10 updated.Problems due to the manual:-Re. Keyboard driverIt might be because the tablet part was once sold on its own, with the keyboard as an accessory, but page 15 "Connecting to your laptop - Important" should probably be read first. I think it is so that the drivers can install correctly.Re. Operating the power button:Nor is it explained properly how the Sleep/Power button really works, which the user needs to understand because there is no feedback as to what is happening, or not, until the screen eventually shows a "Linx" logo, or nothing happens at all. From much trial and error I believe the power button needs to be pressed and held for up to 20 seconds, and that the logo does not necessarily appear for up to another 15 or 20 seconds after releasing the button (while the user might think it had not worked). If the button really doesn't work, it is probably necessary to give it a rest for 15 seconds before trying it again. The overall start up time seems fairly good, or at least reasonable, but the procedure is confusing.For the second example, after doing a full reset and reinstalling everything, it was so far so good, but next morning the battery had also discharged itself to zero!Exertis Support replied within a day with details of how to reset the device again using the Recovery Media which they will send, and: "Devices powering themselves on, discharging when shut-down or not holding a charge and/or experiencing difficulties with powering on is a now-known Windows issue. Please follow the steps below to disable ‘fast startup’ and resolve the issue", but not sure if I want to order another one.