[REVIEW] Teclast F7S is an affordable aluminum laptop with a 14″ Full HD IPS display

Teclast impresses with its product portfolio, which is especially characterized by a very low price and solid specs. Today we’ll take a look at a new notebook called Teclast F7S, featuring a 14″ IPS display, an Intel N3350 processor, and a 38 Wh battery.

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We decided to test this notebook thoroughly in the editorial office to find out its pros and cons. Part of the testing for office work on the laptop was also writing this newly starting review.

Teclast F7S: Where to buy?

If you’re considering buying a 14″ Teclast F7S notebook, we recommend purchasing it through the popular e-shop Banggood.com. You can also use our beneficial discount coupon when you order.

Buy Teclast F7S at the best price

We placed our order on August 7, 2020, with availability from a European warehouse, and the order was delivered to us as early as August 20, 2020. So the entire shipping only took 13 calendar days.

Packaging: Practical accessories that will make you happy

The notebook arrives at your place in a simple cardboard box that matches the dimensions of the computer itself. After you open it, you’ll find a paper compartment with accessories right on the top.

In addition to a brief Chinese user manual, the accessories include a charging cable with a specific round connector. The connection to the mains is standard—our unit is plugged into a 230 V outlet with a European plug.

A good thing is also the universal plug adapter you may know from several other products, especially from Chinese manufacturers. So you need to click the appropriate adapter onto the plug depending on which country you’re using the device in.

The manufacturer chose this approach mainly to make distribution from China easier to practically all countries worldwide. It wouldn’t be such an exceptional step if the package didn’t also include additional plugs for some other countries.

This accessory can especially please owners who travel abroad more often and need to change the plug depending on the country they’re in.

Below, the box contains only the notebook itself, wrapped in protective film and also in soft polystyrene material. So you could say the packaging is simple, practical, and also safe in terms of demanding shipping.

Design and layout of the device elements

Right from the start, it looks like a rather bulky 14″ notebook. The Teclast F7S model offers dimensions of 33.40 x 22.40 x 1.17 cm, and its weight comes in at 1.57 kg. Most of that weight is due to the metal construction and the 5000 mAh battery.

The laptop comes from the factory with a protective film installed on the top and bottom surfaces of the device. The metal body is smooth and matte gray, and on the top part of the lid you can also find the Teclast logo.

The bottom side is also made of metal and includes screws for accessing the inside of the laptop, the manufacturer’s logo, recycling information, and non-slip rubber feet for comfortable and secure placement on a desk or other surface. There are also a pair of openings that serve as the speakers.

The left side edge offers a USB 3.0 connector, a dedicated charging connector, as well as an HDMI connector for video output. However, this port is smaller than standard HDMI connectors, so to connect an external display you’ll most likely need an adapter.

The right side contains additional ports: a second USB 3.0 connector, a 3.5 mm audio jack, and a microSD memory card slot.

Let’s move on to the open laptop, which has a very stiff hinge and opening it is really difficult. You can’t open the hinge with one hand, and it’s also challenging with both hands due to the lack of any cut-out or height difference on the front edge.

Once opened, you’ll find a 14″ display on the top with black bezels. This screen border isn’t entirely thin, but it’s a standard feature of budget-friendly laptops and doesn’t look too distracting.

Above the display there’s also a front camera, and below it you’ll find the manufacturer’s logo. The bottom part of the laptop is metal and features plastic keys that aren’t backlit. The keyboard has fairly large keys with enough travel (21 mm).

Above the keyboard there are three LED indicators signaling that the device is powered on and showing selected functions. The keyboard has minimal edging around the sides (6 mm), and underneath it there’s a fairly large but plastic capacitive trackpad (125 x 78 mm). Pressing it is available mainly in the lower half, which is also typical of cheaper laptop models.

Display: 14″ IPS with Full HD resolution

When it comes to how content is displayed, the screen is one of the most important features of any laptop. In this case, the manufacturer includes a very solid technology even at this low price.

You get a 14″ IPS display with a resolution of 1920 x 1080 pixels and a 16:9 aspect ratio. The screen has 2.5D protective glass, very good viewing angles, and thin side bezels measuring 8 mm.

The display offers standard colors—you could say nothing exceptional: the black shade is more gray, and what the manufacturer could improve is the screen brightness. The minimum brightness is fine in our view, and you can work even in a darker room; the downside is the maximum brightness and the almost non-existent text visibility in direct sunlight.

Performance: Intel Apollo Lake

When it comes to the device’s performance, you should keep in mind that Teclast F7S is a classic ultrabook designed for office work or as a student laptop for secondary or university studies.

That’s also matched by the specs in the form of a dual-core processor lntel Apollo Lake N3350, clocked at 1.1 GHz (with the option to overclock up to 2.4 GHz). The CPU is built using an older 14 nm technology and is primarily intended for simple online tasks with minimal multitasking.

The processor is also paired with an integrated graphics chip Intel HD Graphics 500. In terms of gaming, the focus is almost exclusively on simple and graphically undemanding 2D titles from the Microsoft Store.

Memory: Slow eMMC storage

Even at this low price, the laptop comes with up to 8 GB RAM. The RAM type is also LPDDR4, which is definitely a positive. However, when it comes to internal storage, there’s only 128 GB available, and the eMMC storage is rather slow. After the first boot, you’ll have about 81 GB of storage available.

This technology was mainly used in older and cheaper laptops, and the manufacturer clearly cut corners in this case. The good news, however, is at least a free M.2 slot 2880, which lets you install a modern SSD up to 1 TB.

Another universal option is using an external HDD/SSD drive, which you can use with a faster USB 3.0 connector—and you’ll appreciate it even more when carrying it between different computers. However, this is already an accessory that needs to be bought separately, so it’s an extra investment, which is a downside in this case.

Keyboard and trackpad

Just as important is the keyboard and the trackpad, which are usually the thorn in the eye with cheap devices. In this case, a keyboard with a fairly high key travel is available, along with a good key size and decent spacing.

Text input was trouble-free; it takes a little getting used to a smaller Enter. Of course, there’s no backlighting, and there’s also no Czech or Slovak diacritics (US layout). Still, a welcome feature is the unusual NumPad—a numeric keypad placed vertically on the keys with letters. This keypad can be enabled with the corresponding Fn button.

The trackpad is also decent. Yes, using a mouse is probably more comfortable, but given the device’s price and the plastic build, the trackpad offers good responsiveness for occasional use. Still, keep in mind that the buttons integrated into the trackpad can only be pressed in roughly the lower half.

A comfortable keyboard and a spacious (125 x 78 mm) trackpad are a very good combination for typing characters and controlling the system. So the laptop will handle your work not only in the office, but also at your school desk.

Operating system Windows 10

In terms of software, you get the operating system Windows 10 Home (64-bit) in its global version. The OS is preinstalled—you need to activate it (license included in the device price). This is a full-featured system, including the Microsoft Store and the ability to install standard .exe files.

Unlike the Windows 10S version, which does not support .exe files, the full Windows on such a budget device only underlines its versatile use, whether for an employee or a student. This use is also supported by the preinstalled Office suite with popular apps like Word and Excel, and updates are included as well.

One area where the manufacturer could improve is optimization. The combination of weaker hardware and less optimized software results in slower response from the laptop itself. So the computer is mainly intended for online work, web browsing, emails, and similar so-called office tasks. Still, you can make the work more pleasant with Cortana, Microsoft’s intelligent assistant, which is ready for your commands in English.

Even simple multitasking when launching multiple apps from the system causes the laptop to feel out of breath. At least the Teclast manufacturer worked on suitable cooling, since we didn’t notice extremely hot parts of the laptop even when installing apps and playing simple games from the Microsoft Store.

Connectivity + Audio

As for connectivity, the equipment includes dual-band Wi‑Fi 802.11 b/g/n with support for 2.4 / 5 GHz connections. This is solid equipment and practically the only way to connect to the internet, considering there’s no Ethernet port available.

It also doesn’t lack the older Bluetooth 4.2, which is enough for connecting accessories like headphones or a mouse. For the video calls that are popular these days, we also have one front camera with basic 2 MP resolution at your disposal.

It also includes one speaker and a microphone. However, for phone calls, we recommend using a headset, given that the quality of these components is rather below average. Additional equipment includes a microSD card slot, 2 x USB 3.0, a smaller HDMI connector, 3.5 mm audio connector, and a charging port.

Battery life

According to the manufacturer’s specifications, this device contains a battery with a total capacity of 38 Wh, or 5000 mAh. It’s a Li-Ion battery with standard power input from a household electrical outlet with a voltage range of 100 to 240V. Charging is possible with a charger that uses a dedicated connector and delivers 4A power.

Based on the paper specifications, the notebook should last for approximately 7 hours on a single charge when used in a combined mode. However, we couldn’t achieve this. Our battery life was around 4 – 5 hours.

The testing included online work in a browser, including writing this review, watching YouTube videos, emails, playing music via Spotify, and occasional gaming. Throughout the whole time, we were connected to the internet, and we used the screen brightness at roughly 75%.

The battery life claimed by the manufacturer is therefore very optimistic, and reaching it requires a more offline, low-stress working environment without running multiple applications at once.

Price and availability

Currently, the Teclast F7S notebook is available from international sellers in a silver or “Silver” color version. Its price is currently around €203 / 238 USD, with availability via EU Priority Line shipping. With this shipping method, you won’t have to deal with any surprises in the form of taxes or customs duties. Right now, this offer is the most cost-effective.

Final rating: Teclast F7S

Teclast F7S is a very affordable notebook, but it’s likely that corners were cut a bit too much. A good IPS display is a plus, but a weaker processor, eMMC storage, and sluggish system response are probably the result of insufficient optimization.

Still, we can recommend the notebook to users with modest needs, whose main tasks involve simple offline document work and online work in a web browser. For more demanding users, it’s worth looking for a more powerful configuration, which understandably also comes with a higher device price.