Budget tablet with gyro and compass? ifive mini 4s?

[Barrett]

Hey all.  I’m on a quest to find the right tablet.  Cheaper is better, but I don’t want junk.  It seems the FNF ifive mini 4s would do, but I can’t seem to get an answer as to if it has a compass or not.  The sensors on the spec sheet say “Geomagnetic Field Sensor”  So is that for the compass or is it like a Hall sensor?  I would lean towards compass, but typically a compass is driven by a magnetometer.  Anybody out there have the ifive mini 4s that can verify if apps that require a compass work?  In particular, if you could see if the Star Spotter feature for Star Walk 2 works, that would be awesome! I want to primarily use this tablet for those types of apps along with light gaming, browsing, etc…

If it doesn’t have a compass, below is what I need.  I don’t really want to spend more than $150 US.  I’ve been looking at the Xiaomi Mi Pad 2 and 3, but they are a bit higher than my preferred budget.  Thanks for your time.

Necessary features:
Gyroscope
Compass
SD Card slot or 64GB onboard

Like to haves:
Retina Display
Decent Gaming performance
Good battery life
GPS
Good headphone audio

Not important:
Cellular connectivity
Camera
Looks/Design
Speakers

 

[Ian]

You may want to check out the Lenovo Tab3 8Plus.

This thread: https://techtablets.com/forum/topic/lenovo-tab3-8-plus/

I replaced my FNF iFive Mini 4s with the Lenovo after encountering problems with the iFive’s ability to handle DJI drone apps. The Lenovo handles it easily. The FNF does have a compass, but it’s almost useless twitching and turning constantly. By comparison the Lenovo’s is pretty good, settling well after the usual ‘Figure 8’ calibration.

[Barrett]

Thanks for the suggestion.  I’m not seeing a gyro in the Lenovo Tab3 8Plus.  Is it just not listed on the gsmarena page?  Can you verify the Star Spotter feature works in Star Walk 2?  Thanks again!

[Ian]

The Lenovo doesn’t have a gyroscope, but you’ll be very lucky to find a budget tablet with GPS, compass and gyroscope sensors.

The only tablets I’ve come across with all of those features are the Samsung Galaxy Tab S2 and S3, but they’re way out of the budget category.

[Barrett]

I don’t need GPS, it would just be nice to have.  The only must haves are gyro, compass, and storage.

[Ian]

OK. In that case the Xiaomi MiPad 2 could suit. http://www.gsmarena.com/xiaomi_mi_pad_2-7770.php

[Author]

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