Review: Dragon Touch MAX10 Plus – a solid, affordable 10″ tablet

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The world of tablets has grown exponentially since the launch of the original GridPad in 1989. A little more recently we’ve seen the explosion of tablets thanks, in part, to the original Apple iPad which was launched in 2010. Since then, all of the big players have entered the tablet scene. Samsung has various tablet options and ecommerce mega-giant Amazon has their Kindle e-book reader series. But these options just begin to scrape the surface of the different tablet options available. Today, we’ll be taking a look at 10″ tablet from Dragon Touch, the Dragon Touch MAX10 Plus.

At the price of $169.99, the MAX10 Plus comes in as a relatively affordable tablet when compared to industry leaders. Though this tablet comes at a relatively affordable price, its performance is actually pleasantly surprising. Let’s dive in and see what the Dragon Touch MAX10 Plus is all about.

Screen and build quality

Even though the MAX10 Plus is more affordable option as far as tablets go, it does come with a Full-HD 1080p screen. I found that the overall screen quality is very good. Colors are sharp and bright, and the integrated quantum dot technology makes the screen stay crisp no matter what angle you are looking from. I used the tablet mainly for watching videos and game streams, and the picture quality maintains a high level even when I’m watching from an angle with the tablet on my desk.

The MAX10 Plus seems to be, by design, meant to be used mostly in landscape mode. It has two matching speakers that are on the bottom when holding the device in landscape. The speakers are nothing to really write home about. While they are just loud enough, they could be a little bit louder. Also, they lack a bit of bass, but that’s not a huge deal on a tablet and the speakers were sufficient for what the tablet is designed for.

I found that the overall build quality was pretty good. Though the entire device, except for the screen, is made of plastic, it still felt very sturdy and a little heavier than I expected. The MAX10 Plus weighs about 1.25 lbs., which is a little heavier than most comparable tablets, but this doesn’t make the tablet feel to heavy at all. The edges have a textured design, which makes holding and gripping the MAX10 Plus a little easier.

Specs and performance

Although the MAX10 Plus is not quite as powerful as some industry leading tablets and smartphones, the tablet’s performance was actually pleasantly surprising. The tablet runs on a pretty bare bones version of Android 10, so there’s not a lot of bloatware to be found from out of the package. Aside from a few Google apps, like Maps and Gmail, there’s not really a lot more that comes on the MAX10 Plus that has the potential to slow it down.

That being said, I did find that having multiple applications open and running at one time would slow down the device a little more quickly than some of the more expensive options. The device had no problems at all running one or two applications in the background while watching a YouTube video, but I could certainly tell pretty quickly if I needed to end some background applications. Thankfully, the OS has a built-in memory tracker that allows you to see how much of the device’s three gigabytes of memory you are currently using.

As for gaming on this tablet, it’s probably not the best experience that you’ll find. I did try a couple of less demanding mobile games, and they seemed to run okay for the most part. However, mobile games are becoming more and more demanding, and some of the more resource heavy games would definitely struggle on the MAX10 Plus.

The tablet has a decently sized 32 GB internal hard drive, but if that’s not enough storage for you, it is also capable of taking an additional 128 GB of storage via MicroSD storage device. The MicroSD slot is hidden behind a small, plastic cap and is easily accessible without being in the way.

The MAX10 Plus has a very formidable 5,000 mAh battery. The device does claim to have a battery that will last 10 plus hours, but I found that with relatively heavy use, like watching multiple Minecraft speed runs back-to-back, the battery would drain in closer to 4-5 hours. However, this is to be expected, and even my phone battery drains quickly when I go on my usual YouTube tears. I found that the tablet would, surprisingly, hold a charge for 10-12 hours during days of much more moderate usage consisting of Twitter scrolling instead of YouTube rabbit-holing.

Another thing that points to the landscape design of the MAX10 Plus is the positioning of the cameras. The tablet has a front-facing 5-megapixel camera with a matching 8-megapixel camera on the back. The cameras are both located on the side, making them better positioned for landscape use. After thinking more about it, this could make the device more beneficial during Zoom calls or Google Meets sessions.

The MAX10 Plus contains some pretty decent hardware that leads to some pretty good performance. Though the device is definitely not as responsive and smooth as more expensive, higher-end options, the performance of this tablet does not disappoint in the slightest. As long as you’re not trying to do too many things at one time, this device won’t disappoint.

So, should you buy the Dragon Touch MAX10 Plus?

Overall, the Dragon Touch MAX10 Plus is a very solid tablet for the price range. It has a beautiful display and runs surprisingly well to be as cheap as it is. Although the speakers could probably be a little better, they get the job done well enough. With expandable storage as well as both rear and front facing cameras, the MAX10 Plus has just about everything you might need in a sub $200 device.

You won’t get a competitor to the Apple iPad or the Samsung Galaxy Tab with this device, but you also won’t pay nearly as much for it. If an affordable but dependable tablet is what you’re looking for, the Dragon Touch MAX10 Plus is perfect for you.

Have any thoughts on this? Let us know down below in the comments or carry the discussion over to our Twitter or Facebook.

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Just a heads up, if you buy something through our links, we may get a small share of the sale. It’s one of the ways we keep the lights on here. Click here for more. A sample unit was provided for the purpose of this review.