Most of these laptops have certain specifications in terms of features. The main difference between them is the design. Typically the display size is 11.6 inches, although 14-inch models are also available. However, until now, there hasn’t been a single 14-inch Windows 10 laptop available under Rs 10,000.
Hyderabad-based RDP recently launched its first consumer laptop. It is called ThinBook (1430) and is priced at Rs 9,999. The specifications of the laptop are the same as those in this segment, although it comes with a 14.1-inch display. This is a great hardware feature to improve performance. On paper, this laptop looks like a great option, but its performance will be revealed later in the review.
RDP ThinBook Design and Build
The RDP ThinBook ticks all the boxes for an affordable laptop. This does not mean that the product looks cheaper than elsewhere. The truth is that the company has done a good job of creating on budget. The plastic fittings and finish are good. For this reason, the device becomes stronger. Its dimensions are the same as that of an ultrabook. The thickest part is 20 mm and weighs about 1.4 kg.
The 14.1-inch display has a resolution of 1366×768 pixels. Its color rendition is good. Due to the glossy panel, you will sometimes have to deal with glare, which can be annoying. Vertical viewing angles are bad, but horizontal ones are not so bad. The display part does not seem very durable. The display starts to shake even if you touch it lightly. If you use this laptop while driving in a car, you may experience the problem of the screen shaking frequently. Brightness is ok. However, there is no shortcut on the keyboard to adjust the brightness.
Talking about the connectivity options, it has USB 3.0, USB 2.0, Mini-HDMI, headphone jack, microSD card slot and charger port. The microSD card slot is good, but I wish the company would provide a full-size SD card slot. The bottom panel has plenty of room for a palm rest and also has a trackpad. However, the tracking quality is not good at all because the surface is not smooth. The buttons attached to the trackpad are not easy to press; To use them you have to press with great force.
The Chiclet’s buttons are well spaced, but the keyboard area is slightly curved. You will understand this while typing. We realized that its keys are not suitable for typing. At the top of the keyboard, you’ll see status LEDs for Power, Caps Lock, and Num Lock. After this, two holes are provided for the microphone.
The stereo speakers are located at the bottom and only produce sound from below. The lower part is completely sealed and has no holes for air to escape. The ThinBook’s lid rotates 180 degrees at the back. The laptop comes with a 12.5W power adapter, which is slightly larger than the charger that comes with a regular smartphone.
RDP ThinBook Specifications and Features
This laptop RDP used the powerful Intel Atom X5-Z8300 chipset. We’ve also seen this processor in the Notion Ink Able 10. This quad-core chip is typically clocked at 1.4GHz and is capable of speeds up to 1.8GHz when needed. It is manufactured using a manufacturing process that does not require refrigeration.
Like other laptops in this segment, you will get 2GB RAM, 32GB eMMC flash storage, Wi-Fi b/g/n and Bluetooth 4.0. The built-in storage can be expanded using a microSD card up to 128 GB. This laptop also comes with a VGA webcam, the quality of which is very average.
The ThinkBook runs on 32-bit Windows 10. By the way, the company sells the DOS version of this laptop for Rs 8,999. This laptop does not come with any useless apps pre-installed. You’ll only get the apps that typically come with Windows.
rdp analytics log performance
Overall Windows performance is fair, but not great. Sometimes the system would become sluggish even when performing basic tasks such as resizing and moving windows on the screen. The device we received for testing worked a little strangely. For example, the Start menu and search box would sometimes stop working on their own. We had no choice but to reboot the system. Many times, while copying a file, the connection between the USB port and the hard drive would be lost.
On the other hand, the system started very quickly. You press the power button and within a few seconds the laptop is at your service.
The weak results are also reflected in the test results. The results on various tests were very average.
The trackpad will be annoying at times. Because the cursor sometimes starts jumping around the screen on its own, especially when you use the left mouse button or drag to select something. The display is good for watching videos anywhere. However, the text looks too stuck together, making it difficult to read.
The speaker produces decent sound, but the sound quality is below average. At high volumes the sound becomes very harsh and thin. Additionally, in our review unit, the right speaker was louder than the left. For this reason, the feeling of the voice was a little strange.
RDP claims 8 hours of battery life with a thin laptop, which is quite possible. In the PC Mark 8 battery test, the battery lasted 7 hours and 57 minutes, which is as advertised.
our decision
Priced at Rs 9,999, the RDP ThinBook gives you the luxury of a large display laptop at an affordable price. This is a value for money product. However, the product made many compromises. But the truth is that this is not a bad product for the first time. Fit and finish are good. The device is quite thin and light. The display is ok. You can enjoy 4K media playback and perform small tasks at the same time.
RDP plans to release powerful variants of ThinBook. The company will soon be manufacturing its laptops only in India, due to which the price is likely to come down further. We hope that the shortcomings of this model will be eliminated in future versions. For example, we need a better trackpad because sometimes we don’t have a mouse. In addition, the internal flash memory should have better read and write speeds. This will affect Windows performance.
It is clear that the RDP ThinBook has increased competition in this segment. We expect more companies to launch products in this segment. Considering the purpose of this product, we think the ThinBook has a lot of potential and could be a great option for users looking to buy a cheap PC.
Price: 9999 rupees.
functions
Slim design and good build quality
accessible
good battery life
Equipped with Windows 10.
Good display for video playback
flaws
Poor read/write speed.
Trackpad and keyboard improvements
Windows performance shortcomings
Rating (out of 5)
Design: 3.5
Display: 3.5
Performance: 2.5
Software: 4
Price/quality ratio: 4.
Average: 3.5
