When Windows 8 was unveiled, there were different kinds of devices and form factors were unveiled which give way to affordable Windows tablets and laptops and last year, different local companies has decided to join the Windows race with their own Windows devices. Today, we’re gonna review Starmobile’s Windows laptop, the Starmobile Engage 10 Pro. And oh, it’s running on Windows 10 now.

Design

The Starmobile Engage 10 Pro is a convertible Windows 10 tablet. So what does that mean? It means that you can remove the tablet from the keyboard dock and still use the device. Actually, there are already a lot of devices like this in the market so I’m pretty sure that if you’re checking out the latest gadgets at the nearest mall, you probably have seen a device like this.

The Starmobile Engage 10 Pro is thick and heavy but I like its solid build and the non-squeaky construction. At the back, you could easily recognize that it’s a tablet from Starmobile if you’ve seen or use a Starmobile tablet before. There are different ports and different buttons on the Starmobile Engage 10 Pro. One thing that I like is that the Starmobile Engage 10 Pro comes with a full USB port on the tablet itself and you don’t have to use a USB OTG for that anymore.

However, if you feel that a single USB port isn’t enough for you then you might be happy to know that there’s another USB port on the keyboard dock of the Starmobile Engage 10 Pro. Speaking of the dock, the Starmobile Engage 10 Pro works similar to other convertibles. You just have to dock the tablet to the keyboard and to remove it, all you have to do is to slide the slider and remove the tablet from the dock. Unfortunately on my use, the slider stuck sometimes and it’s really hard to remove the tablet from the keyboard dock.

The keys on the keyboard features an isolated design however, I noticed that the keys are too isolated and which it make it smaller. But don’t worry guys, because it won’t take too much time before you’ll get used to the keyboard. Since the device is small, don’t expect that trackpad would be big and spacious. It’s okay for basic browsing and web tasks but it won’t be good for gaming. But c’mon guys, who play  FPS games on a trackpad?

If you’re planning on using this device for presentations, you’ll have to use a Mini HDMI and it works pretty well without problems or bugs. If you feel that the 32GB of storage is not enough for you then you might want to install a MicroSD card on the laptop. Yes, you could put that on the tablet and install your games or some applications there.

Compared to other Windows 10 tablets, the Starmobile Engage 10 Pro packs a front and rear camera that you can use for video calls such as Skype. However, the software and implementation of it is too buggy and it takes some time before it loads. Probably, a software update could fix this problem.

Display

The Starmobile Engage 10 Pro got a 10.1-inch IPS display with a resolution of 1280×800. The display is common to most local-branded Windows devices and in the case of Starmobile Engage 10 Pro, I could use the tablet outside without hiccups and too much problems. The display is good and I’m very satisfied with its touchscreen’s responsiveness.

Software and Performance

The Starmobile Engage 10 Pro packs a 1.8GHz Intel Atom Z3735F Quad-core processor with Intel HD Graphics Gen 7. This processor and GPU can mostly be found on affordable Windows devices especially on 10-inch convertible Windows tablets. As expected, there’s a 2GB DDR3L of RAM too and 32GB of storage for your storage needs.

However, even if there’s a 32GB storage on the laptop, you could only use around 20GB of it. But that’s expected and if you’ve already use a Windows tablet before you won’t be shocked by this. But don’t worry because just like Android tablets, you can now expand the storage Starmobile Engage 10 Pro via MicroSD

Out of the box, the Starmobile Engage 10 Pro runs on Windows 8.1 but you can now upgrade it to Windows 10. The one that I’m using is already running on Windows 10 and unfortunately, there are a lot of bugs and sometimes the keyboard and the trackpad doesn’t function that well.

When it comes to battery life, I was able to use the laptop for 5-6 hours at average use which isn’t that bad. Unfortunately, the keyboard dock doesn’t have an extra storage or extra battery that’s why it’ll be okay if you’ll just using the tablet alone.

When it comes to gaming, the Starmobile Engage 10 Pro doesn’t shine but in the first place, you should expect that it would happen. Why? There’s only a 32GB of storage which will be just enough for your basic apps and games like Microsoft Office and the processing power is really for portability and power. The Starmobile Engage 10 Pro can play some basic games such as CS:GO but don’t expect it at the higher settings. For basic tasks and light applications, the Starmobile Engage 10 Pro won’t be a problem. It’s a tablet that you would love to use

Verdict

It’s not the perfect laptop that you can get in the market. Sure, there are more powerful laptops than this one but some of the things that you might like in here is its convertible form factor and its affordable price. The Starmobile Engage 10 Pro might have some annoying bugs but I believe than an update could fix those things. The Starmobile Engage 10 Pro is now available for P11,995 and I believe that this convertible Windows device is best for students or people who are looking for an affordable laptop.