Sourcing an OEM Android Tablet from China: Specs, Approvals, Samples

OEM, ODM or white label: what does an Android tablet project involve?

A white-label or OEM tablet usually means an existing factory design that you brand: your logo, your box, your accessories. An ODM project goes further and changes the design with the factory's engineers. That decides what you inherit: a rebranded platform brings its own chip, software and test reports, while a changed design needs its own tests. Definitions are in the sourcing glossary and in OEM vs ODM.

What should you specify before you ask for a quotation?

Write the specification into the quotation, not only onto a data sheet. The right-hand column shows published lines from LYBAM's INNOVA 10.95-inch range on the tablet category page as an example of the detail to ask for. This guide makes no certification claim for any INNOVA model.

Then freeze the configuration. A different Wi-Fi module, antenna or battery can make a test report or an FCC authorisation inapplicable: the Radio Equipment Directive requires the assessment to cover every configuration the equipment can take (Article 17), and FCC certification attaches only to units identical to the sample tested (47 CFR 2.907).

Google services or an open-source build: what is the difference?

Android's source code is open, but Google's apps and services are not part of it. Google Mobile Services (GMS) are available only through a licence from Google (android.com/gms), and the device must first be Android-compatible: it follows the Compatibility Definition Document and passes the Compatibility Test Suite (Android Open Source Project). Only Play Protect certified devices may include Google apps such as the Play Store, and uncertified devices may miss updates and may not be secure (Google Play Help).

Ask the factory three questions:

1. Is the GMS licence held for this exact model and software build, and will your brand and model name appear as certified?
2. Does the sample show certified status? In the Play Store open the profile menu, Settings, About, and read the Play Protect certification line.
3. If the build has no Google services, which app store and update service does it use, and who maintains them?

In the EEA the Google app and Chrome need a separate licence, so ask what a unit for your market will carry.

Which approvals and documents does a tablet need in the EU?

A Wi-Fi Android tablet is radio equipment, so several EU acts apply at once. Under the Radio Equipment Directive (RED) the 'manufacturer' is anyone who has radio equipment designed or manufactured and markets it under their own name or trade mark. A brand owner who rebrands a factory's tablet therefore takes the manufacturer's duties: technical documentation, an EU declaration of conformity and CE marking, kept for 10 years (RED, Articles 2 and 10). An EU importer separately checks that all of this exists and keeps a copy of the declaration for 10 years (Article 12).

Expect on the product and box a type, batch or serial number, the manufacturer's name and address, the CE marking, instructions in the user's language, and a copy of the declaration of conformity or a simplified one with a web address for the full text (RED, Article 10). The mains charger is separate equipment: ask for its own declaration and test reports, because the Low Voltage Directive covers equipment rated 50 to 1,000 V AC while the tablet itself is assessed under the RED.

What do the UK, the US and Israel expect?

United Kingdom. Radio equipment in Great Britain is regulated by the Radio Equipment Regulations 2017. GOV.UK guidance last updated on 17 May 2024 says legislation was laid to keep recognising the CE marking indefinitely for a range of product rules including these, so UKCA or CE can be used to sell in Great Britain (GOV.UK); Northern Ireland differs. Confirm the live position, as it has changed several times. Also:

• UK RoHS uses the same substances and limits, and an importer that uses its own name takes the manufacturer's duties (GOV.UK). Importers also count as producers under the UK WEEE rules (GOV.UK) and the battery producer rules (GOV.UK).
• Under the UK product security regime, in force since 29 April 2024, tablets that cannot connect to cellular networks are excepted unless designed exclusively for children under 14; tablets with cellular capability are not (GOV.UK, Schedule 3).

United States. The FCC rules (47 CFR) set the route:

• Wi-Fi and Bluetooth transmitters must be certified by a Telecommunication Certification Body before marketing (§15.201); the other digital circuitry can use a supplier's declaration or certification (§15.101).
• Certification must rest on tests at a laboratory accredited to ISO/IEC 17025 and recognised by the FCC (§2.948). Newer rules restrict test facilities owned or controlled by 'prohibited entities' (§2.906) and bar devices with certain covered components (§2.903); both were amended in 2025 and 2026, so ask for the current position.
• The product carries an FCC ID label (§2.925) and the Part 15 statement (§15.19); under the declaration route the responsible party must be in the United States (§2.909).

Israel. The Ministry of Communications says wireless equipment may be imported only if it meets the Wireless Telegraph (Conformity Approvals) Regulations 2021, and importers apply online for personal or commercial import approval (FAQ, updated 25 May 2025; service page). Confirm the route for your tablet with the Ministry and your customs broker. The FAQ adds:

• A one-time commercial approval covers up to 50 units of the same product, and a commercial importer needs a smart card. An approval on a declaration comes within three business days for equipment covered by the Ministry's order, but a false or incomplete declaration is a criminal offence.
• In the 5 GHz range, 5150 to 5350 MHz and 5470 to 5725 MHz are indoor only; 5725 to 5875 MHz is also allowed outdoors. Ask which Wi-Fi channels the tablet enables for Israel.

A Ministry notice of 5 February 2026 says a test certificate may carry the ILAC logo, or a statement that testing was accredited with a link to the certificate (notice). The Ministry of Economy also lists SI 62368 part 1 (safety of audio, video, information and communication equipment) and SI 62133 parts 1 and 2 (safety of portable rechargeable cells and batteries) as official standards assigned to import groups (SI 62368; SI 62133). Importers in group 2 or 3 keep a laboratory model approval or test certificate in the product file (import groups); your customs broker should confirm the group for the tablet, charger and battery.

What does UN 38.3 mean for shipping a tablet?

Lithium cells and batteries must pass the UN transport tests in sub-section 38.3 of the UN Manual of Tests and Criteria, and for equipment that contains batteries the manufacturer and later distributors must make a test summary available on request (IATA guidance). The UN Manual itself could not be opened for this guide, so these statements rest on IATA's guidance.

A valid summary names the manufacturer and test laboratory, gives a report number and date, the battery's mass, Watt-hour rating and model numbers, the tests with pass or fail results and a responsible person. IATA says there is no mandated format and no expiry unless a design change needs retesting. Compare the Wh rating and model number with the battery label; Wh is nominal voltage times capacity in amp-hours, so mAh alone does not give it.

A lithium-ion battery inside a tablet ships as 'contained in equipment' (UN 3481, packing instruction 967 by air); a spare battery packed beside it is 'packed with equipment' (packing instruction 966). IATA splits the packing instructions at 20 Wh per cell and 100 Wh per battery. From 1 January 2026, lithium-ion batteries packed with equipment must go by air at no more than 30% state of charge; for batteries contained in equipment, 30% (or 25% indicated capacity) is recommended, not mandatory (IATA). Sea freight falls under the IMDG Code (IMO), which this guide does not restate. Ask your forwarder what the carrier needs.

How do you read a supplier's test reports and certificates?

Suppliers often send pictures of certificates. Treat them as a lead, not proof.

Run four checks on every report:

1. The model name is the same on the report, the declaration, the label and your order.
2. The tested configuration (chip, Wi-Fi module, antenna, battery, software version) is the one you will receive; RED technical documentation must list the software versions that affect compliance (Annex V).
3. The standards were current at the test date. Ask which harmonised standards the declaration relies on: the RED allows self-declaration without a notified body only where they were applied (Article 17).
4. The laboratory's name and accreditation are shown: the ILAC logo or an accreditation statement for Israel, accreditation and FCC recognition for the US. Every page is present, with a report number, a date and a signature.

What is negotiable, and what is not?

If a supplier offers to obtain certificates after the order, treat that as a project of its own: price it, schedule it, name who pays if a test fails, and tie the deposit to the documents.

What should be on your sample-approval checklist?

1. Model, configuration and software build match the quotation: Android version, build number, RAM and usable storage in the settings.
2. Google services: the Play Protect certification line, or what the open-source build uses instead.
3. Display and radios: dead pixels, touch accuracy including the edges, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth stability on each band, reconnection after sleep, an hour of video streaming.
4. Battery and charging: run-down and charge time, temperature while charging, charger rating against the label, and the port type your market requires.
5. Labelling: CE marking, model, batch or serial number, manufacturer and importer details, FCC ID and statement for the US, battery and waste-equipment marks, compared with the declaration.
6. Documents in hand before production: declaration of conformity, test reports for the exact model, charger documents, the UN 38.3 test summary and the EU energy-label data.
7. Keep the signed sample, require a matching production sample from the real line, with photographs, before shipment, and retest after any firmware change that touches the radios.
8. Ruggedness or ingress claims: test only against a standard you named in the brief.

LYBAM coordinates samples and agreed inspection steps before production or shipment. For the wider process see China electronics sourcing and supplier verification.

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