HTC Jetstream vs Apple iPad 2

From a cursory look, it’s very difficult to point out the design differences between the two tablets, but if there’s one thing we love about them, it has to be their solid feeling brushed aluminum casings – it simply radiates quality! Looking at them head-on, their overall dimensions are relatively close to one another, however, the iPad 2 takes the mark of being the more refined of the two due to its razor thin construction and lighter weight feel. It’s not to say that the HTC Jetstream is a chubby one, but when the iPad 2 is able to confine itself within a small space, we’d only expect others to follow closely in the same footsteps. Naturally, HTC does a valiant effort on their part, but the kudos has to go to Apple’s team for engineering the more premium feeling tablet between the two.

On one hand, the Apple iPad 2 features a 9.7” IPS display with a resolution of 1024 x 768, which might seem slim in figure compared to the higher 1280 x 768 resolution found with the Jetstream’s 10.1” LCD display. Actually, details are comparatively the same with the two tablets – with neither one gaining the upper hand in this area. However, the iPad 2’s display produces colors that are more natural looking compared to the bland tones exhibited by the Jetstream. Furthermore, there’s a subtle yellow tinge seen with the Jetstream’s display when it’s tilted at various angles. And when it comes down to outdoor usage, the higher brightness output of the iPad 2 enables us to visibly see whatever is on-screen in direct sunlight.

In our experience, we constantly find ourselves accidentally pressing the Jetstream’s dedicated power button and volume rocker since they’re very sensitive to the touch – thus, causing us to press them by mistake too often than none. In contrast, the iPad 2’s physical buttons are more pronounced and require a good amount of force to activate.