Even though the Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich version on the MediaPad was clearly pre-production, I did note--with some surprise--that the tablet did a better job at handling my personal high-resolution test photos than many of its already-shipping competition could muster.

While there was some slight sharpening and color shift as images fully rendered within the Google Gallery app, the affect wasn't nearly as pronounced as on the litany of 7-inch and 10-inch Android 4.0 tablets I've seen recently. Whether this is attributable to the MediaPad 10's processor, 2GB of memory--unique among tablets currently announced or shipping--or something else remains unknown.

What was clear is that MediaPad 10 remains as attractive as it did before, physically and in execution. Its case is primarily brushed aluminum, with white plastic accents and a pleasing weight of 1.28 pounds, 0.16-of-a-pound lighter than the 2012 third-generation iPad Wi-Fi, and 0.18-of-a-pound lighter than the iPad with 4G LTE. That weight difference is palpable when holding a tablet in one hand; I found the MediaPad reasonable to hold, unlike the current Apple iPad.