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HP Slate 7 review: Low price undone by absent features, dull screen

Sure, the HP Slate 7 costs only $170. But when a much better tablet is only $30 away, that price loses its appeal. Fast.

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Headshot of Eric Franklin
Eric Franklin Former Editorial Director
Eric Franklin led the CNET Tech team as Editorial Director. A 20-plus-year industry veteran, Eric began his tech journey testing computers in the CNET Labs. When not at work he can usually be found at the gym, chauffeuring his kids around town, or absorbing every motivational book he can get his hands on.
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Eric Franklin
6 min read

At $170, you'd expect the HP Slate 7 to be stripped of a few features; however, HP takes this a bit too far. The Slate 7 includes only 8GB of storage, and it has no gyroscope, no GPS hardware, poor camera quality, a slightly (but significantly) older version of Android, and a low-resolution screen.

6.0

HP Slate 7

The Good

The <b>HP Slate 7</b> is a durable 7-inch tablet, includes an expandable storage option, and has good gaming performance. Beats Audio effectively enhances bass-heavy music through headphones or earbuds.

The Bad

The screen’s resolution is eye-squintingly low, large apps take a long time to load, and its cameras produce washed-out, dull-looking shots. Also, there’s no GPS, and Android 4.1.1 can feel a bit archaic compared with newer versions of the OS.

The Bottom Line

The HP Slate 7 strips out way too much to make its low price, and what's left can't compare to the Nexus 7's offerings.

And even the unique features we do get have their drawbacks. MicroSD is great, but with so little storage to begin with, buying a storage card won't simply be an option but a necessity. And while Beats Audio enhancements work great on your headphones, it does little to improve the tinniness of the tablet's speakers.

All of this serves to clearly illustrate that a Nexus 7, with more storage, faster app loads, a better-looking screen, GPS, and the latest version of Android is only $30 away.

The HP Slate 7 is small, gray, and black (pictures)

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See all photos

Design
The HP Slate 7 features a 7-inch screen with a thick, thumb-accommodating black bezel, making it easy to hold without accidentally touching the screen. A silver metal spine encloses its entire body, reinforcing it over your typical fully plastic tablet.

On the bottom edge sits a Micro-USB port flanked by a narrow speaker grille on each side. The top edge sees a headphone jack, microphone pinhole, and microSD slot gathered on the left, with the power/sleep button on the right. Along the right edge is a slightly concave volume rocker. A silver embossed HP logo graces the gray rubberized back side, and in the top-left corner sits a 3-megapixel camera, sans LED flash. At the top of the bezel is a low-quality VGA front-facing camera.

The top edge features a headphone jack, microSD slot, mic, and power button. Josh Miller/CNET

6.0

HP Slate 7

Score Breakdown

Design 6Features 6Performance 6