A little over a year ago, we reviewed the iBall Compbook Exemplaire[1], a 14-inch notebook that cost less than Rs. 15,000. We found it to be underpowered and flimsy, but ultimately worthwhile, because there really isn't a lot of choice at this price level, and at least you could get basic work done. There still isn't much choice - and we still feel that there's a gap in the market where netbooks used to reign. Sure, tablets can be fun to use and easy to watch movies on, but typing, browsing the Web, and multitasking are still largely off the table. iBall[2] was smart enough to take the guts of a tablet and put them into a clamshell with a usable keyboard and screen, without pushing costs up too high.
Now, we have with us the successor to that product, the new iBall Compbook Marvel 6[3]. It looks very similar, but benefits from newer technology. The price is still the same, so we hope that iBall has managed to iron out some of the problems with the Exemplaire and give us a machine that's even better value for money.
iBall Compbook Marvel 6 look and feel
At first glance, you wouldn't be able to tell that this is an ultra-low-cost laptop just by looking at it. The shell is made of a glossy blue-grey plastic with a textured finish, which actually looks quite slick. The only thing giving away this device's true nature is the iBall logo on the lid, which is printed on and looks just a little tacky. The finish even carries over to the bottom, which is free of vents because of the low-power CPU which doesn't need a fan....