Ainol has been one of the better known Chinese manufacturers of entry level Android tablets. The company has released a new model called the Myth (or Venus) which is essentially a more affordable version of the Google Nexus 7 with which it shares a number of points.

It is powered by a quad-core SoC, the ATM7029 which is clocked at 1.5GHz and is based on the Cortex A9 architecture. There’s a quad-core Vivante GC1000+ GPU, 1GB of RAM, 16GB onboard storage, a 7in 1,280 x 800 IPS display (like the Nexus 7), a rear 2-megapixel camera, a front facing VGA one, a 4,000mAh battery, a microSD card slot, a HDMI out port, Wi-Fi and Android 4.1Jelly Bean.

At 10.8mm and with a weight of only 320g, it is fairly portable and is likely to be a decent seller when it reaches out shores via Amazon or other online retailers. The Novo 7 Myth is currently available from Ainol for $149.90 which is roughly equivalent to $100.

The tablet is likely to be the first of a number of quad-core models to hit the £100 with a HD ready display. Watch out for those who will sneakily try to get a quad-core Cortex-A7 or even a quad-core Cortex-A5 into their products.