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Tivax MiTraveler 3D-8 Review

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April 16, 2014 7 Min Read
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The MiTraveller 3D-8 is an 8-inch Android (JellyBean) based tablet which is able to display 3D videos and games via Parallax barrier 3D technology.



Product On Review: MiTraveler 3D-8
Manufacturer & Sponsor: Michley Tivax
Street Price: $369.99 USD

The tablet marketplace has become extremely buoyant in the last 3-4 years – so much so that it can almost be guaranteed that the average household will own at least one of these products. The bigger, well-known brands have mostly dominated the spotlight by being at the very forefront of innovation. Emerging from their shadows, a number of brands also want a slice of the pie and for consumers a competitive market place can bring down prices, which can only be a good thing.

Today we are to look at a new android-based tablet which boasts viewable 3D technology without the need to use 3D glasses. 3D-8 uses JellyBean for its Operating System and promises to deliver captivating visuals along with the usual plethora of mobile features.



Tivax on their MiTraveler 3D-8
Enjoy 3D movies in a whole new way! This revolutionary 8” tablet lets you view 3D images without glasses, along with all the familiar features you expect from an Android tablet.

Technical Specifications


• OS Android 4.1 Jelly Bean

• Dual-core CPU

• Flash 10.1 supported

• Parallax barrier 3D technology

• Capacitive multi-touch screen

• 8GB storage

• 1G RAM

• Resolution: 1280*800

• Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n

• Micro SD card port for storage expansion up to 32GB

• Micro USB port

• Mini HDMI output

• Built-in speaker & microphone

• 0.3M front camera and 2M rear camera

• 5000mAh Li-Polymer battery

• Supports Bluetooth

Packaging & Closer Look



Packaging for 3D-8 tablet


The 3D-8 tablet is presented in a small white box. This box has a depiction of the tablet on the front and technical specifications can be found on the sides.


Bundled items accompanying 3D-8


Opening the box up we have a number of items included which accompany the tablet itself. This bundle consists of the following:

– MiTraveler 3D-8 tablet
– DC power adapter
– USB cable
– User manual
– Warranty card

The tablet can be charged via a USB cable direct to the PC or via the wall socket provided.


The 3D-8 tablet


As its name suggests, 3D-8 is an 8-inch tablet which actually measures: 21cm X 14 cm X 1.2cm. The screen gracing this unit can output 1280*800 resolution and has 3D capabilities. The significant difference with the 3D options on this tablet are that you don’t have to use 3D glasses to take advantage of this experience. This is what Tivax have to say about this 3D tech:

The MITraveler 3D tablet uses state-of-the-art parallax barrier technology to make glasses-free 3D possible. This is the same technology used in the popular Nintendo 3DS mobile games device and it is the basis for the next generation of glasses-free 3D TV’s. Tivax’s proprietary 3D streaming technology is cloud-based which enables us to continually upgrade users’ software as new technologies and new sources of 3D content become available.


The front also features a 0.3M front camera but unfortunately the quality isn’t very good.


The reverse of the tablet with 2M camera


Flipping the tablet over there are two outlets for speakers and a number of symbols to help identify the buttons which are placed on the outer edge of the unit. Tivax have given 3D-8 another camera, this one is higher in specification (2M) but still lacks the quality when comparing to a modern smartphone or common tablet such as Samsung’s TAB 3. This is a particular area where the 3D-8 falls behind.


Various ports available on the edge


Along the edge of the tablet there are a number of ports available. These ports extend the functionality and allow you to interface with other devices. The ports consist of the following:

• Headphone mini jack
• Micro SD card port for storage expansion up to 32GB
• Micro USB port
• Mini HDMI output
• DC power port

Performance


General usage & Movies

3D-8 makes use of Android 4.1 aka JellyBean. With 4.4 (KitKat) now being available – the difference between these two Operating Systems is quite noticeable but thankfully the interface still retains the intuitive nation many have come to love.

Using 3D-8 for menial tasks such as checking email, web browsing or watching a movie is the ideal operation due to the hardware limitations of the tablet.

Watching movies is an enjoyable activity. The screen is clear and movements are fluid and the audio is decent – our only criticism comes with the resolution, we’d have liked to see full 1080p support. 3D does indeed work without the need of glasses but it doesn’t feel immersive enough, especially since this is touted as one of the fundamental features. We’d rather see higher specifications internally and higher resolutions for output than 3D technology.



Gaming

Since the advent of the tablet, gaming has become popular on such a platform because the larger screen is much easier to interface with when compared to a smartphone. 3D-8 is bundled with various software apps including Tridef® 3D which offers 3D stereoscopic games. Certain games can be quite demanding on the hardware requirements – 3D-8 handled some games very well, but others not so well. For example, the intensity of Clash of Clans really challenged the 1.5GHz dual core processor and 1GB DRAM, so much so that our Samsung Galaxy S4 handled this game better. By better, we mean no FPS drops, lag or stuttering – unfortunately 3D-8 suffered these characteristics frequently.

Battery Life

In our experience with 3D-8 we managed to squeeze over 5 hours of usage from the 5000mAh Li-Polymer battery. This was from a full charge and included some light gaming and web browsing with the screen set to “bright”. This amount of uptime is actually reasonable and means you can use it to occupy yourself whilst on a long flight. We expect some extra time when the unit is in the energy saving mode.

Conclusion


One of the biggest attractions about 3D-8 comes from its very name – the 3D capabilities. Tivax market this tablet as being able to offer 3D playback without the need to use 3D glasses. The technology is actually very similar to that used on the popular Nintendo 3DS. But whilst this particular feature does work, it isn’t exactly immersive.

We’d rather have a display which can accommodate 1080p or resolutions which are upwards of this, because the pursuit of high resolutions is a real focus within the industry at the moment. 3D has taken a backseat in the world of AV as 4K is presented to the consumer as the ultimate experience.

3D-8 performs well for basic, day-to-day tasks such as watching movies, surfing the web and indulging in light gaming but it does struggle with more demanding games due to the hardware specifications.



Having over 5 hours of usage from a tablet is very good especially if you are planning to use 3D-8 on long distance journeys for reading or other entertainment. The software suite which comes bundled with the tablet allows you to make full use of all the features and ports such as HDMI and SD card slot.

Being priced at $369, this tablet is much more expensive than prolific offerings from the bigger brands and thus it will naturally struggle to gain attention. The reasoning behind the price-tag is likely to be due to the 3D capabilities. The consumer has to foot the bill for the technology, but is it really worth it?

The MiTraveller 3D-8 is a well-designed 8-inch tablet which has numerous interesting features – some come as standard with Android’s JellyBean but others have been incorporated by Tivax. Unfortunately the 3D technology pushes the price of this product right up and we’re dubious as to the demand for such a feature on a tablet. Instead, we feel development should be spent on screen quality and hardware specification.

Pros
+ Good movie playback
+ Good battery life
+ Great software suite
+ Plenty of ports/functionality
+ Decent WiFi range

Cons
– Poor front and back cameras
– Lacks hi-definition
– Hardware spec could be better



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