Submitted by nbeam85 on
One of my favorite topics when reviewing any Android tablet is the design of the unit and the overall build quality. This is most often what separates an "acceptable" device from a "top notch" device. I will put a plug in here for FNF. They are doing a phenomenal job at present in this area. The Mini3 is the finest piece of mobile design to have come out of China to date and the X2 isn't far behind. Okay, enough of a plug for FNF. Let's discuss the M6!
When PiPo launched the M9 several months back it was the first RK3188 tablet to hit the market, and it was also a new direction for PiPo to take their tablet design. Some of those changes I liked a lot! Notably the inclusion of good stereo speakers, a metal backplate aesthetically and pragmatically accented by two "grippy" plastic back side panels. and a slimmer profile.
What I didn't like about the M9 design is that parts of it felt a bit gaudy.Like the large, square, plastic chrome accented rear camera, the slight creakiness of the casing, and the fact that those back plastic "grippy" panels were just a bit too wide and large for comfort. Oh yes, and the speakers on the M9 are fantastic but are rear firing.
The M6 is, simply put, an evolutionary improvement on the M9's design that pretty much fixed all of those complaints while keeping everything I liked. The rear plastic "grippy" panels were narrowed down, there is absolutely no "creak" in the casing at all (the PiPo M6 feels extremely well built) and that blasted camera design was toned down significantly. instead of being chromed and dead center, it is now off to the corner and rimmed in black. It is no longer an eyesore on what was an otherwise very pretty tablet. The speakers don't sound quite as loud as the M9's, granted, but they are no front firing which is great.
The M6 kept all the good stuff as well, it has a pretty slim profile, is well balanced, and feels good in your hands.
There is also a full array of physical keys, you get a power button, volume rocker, and back button as well as a recessed "reset" button. It also has all the ports you could want including HDMI, MicroSD, and of course micro USB.
It isn't all roses, but I really only have a couple of minor squabbles.
With the FNF devices I have grown accustomed to USB charging. PiPo only integrates this into a handful of devices and the M6 isn't one of them. It uses a dedicated 9v charging port. My other qualm, this tablet is heavy. Not like, "a bag of bricks" heavy, but it has some heft. However I won't complain about that at length because there is a very good reason for the heft I think and I approve...
So what is my conclusion on the aesthetics? If you are in the market for a 9.7" tablet, full steam ahead on the M6! It's pretty, unique, and feels extremely well-built.