Acer Iconia Review – The Best Tablet PC?

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We recently took a look at the Le Pan TC 970, a cheap alternative to iPad. While doing some research we noticed another device called the Acer Iconia Tablet. Does this device deliver or is it just another poor quality iPad wannabe? Read our Acer iconia Tablet review below.

What is the Acer Iconia Tablet?

The Acer Iconia Tablet is a portable tablet running Android OS 3.0, an operating system designed exclusively for tablets. The Acer Iconia specifications are very similar to the Motorola Xoom though there is a key difference we will discuss later in the review. It is priced lower than the Apple iPad for those seeking an alternative to iPad. In this Acer Iconia review we will be looking at key features and weigh both the pros and cons of the device.

Build Quality

This tablet feels very solid thanks to the brushed aluminum case which gives the device a more premium feel. The Acer Iconia Tablet definitely has the “Wow” factor. It weighs around 1.69 pounds and is 13.3 mm thick, while portable, it is a bit thicker than both the Xoom and the iPad. Acer Iconia specifications (Model No. A500-10S16u) can be seen here.

How Does Android 3.0 Perform?

Android 3.0 as previously mentioned is designed exclusively for tablets. It represents a drastic shift in UI that will require a learning curve for many Android veterans. The OS is focused on giving the user information via user customizable widgets for services such as youtube, facebook etc. This allows the user to get up to date data feeds at a glance. While such customization is great it does require more user involvement to setup the home screens. The Apple iOS definitely has a simpler UI for those looking for a less customizable experience.

System Performance

The Acer Iconia Tablet has a dual-core 1GHZ Tegra 2 which makes Android very responsive. Also unlike many other tablets that use DDR2 memory, the Acer Iconia has one gigabyte of DDR3 memory which further improves performance. It was able to load up HD videos with ease as well as play the most resource intensive games we found on the Android Market.

Battery Life

The Acer Iconia Tablet has great battery life with 8 hours of HD video playback or 10 hours of web browsing between charges.

Summary

In this section of the Acer Iconia Review we wanted to give a breakdown of the Pros and Cons of the device.

Pros

• Micro SD slot allows you to easily increase memory (SD Cards are cheap)
• USB Port makes transferring files easier (*see note below)
• Android Honeycomb is more customizable than Apple iOS
• Google applications such as Gmail, Youtube etc. have excellent integration and sync really well
• The screen looks great with a resolution of 1280×800
• 2 cameras (rear camera with LED flash and front facing)
• Solid Build Quality
• Surprisingly good sound quality for a tablet
• Acer Iconia price is less than the iPad

*Note: We mentioned earlier that the Acer Iconia Tablet had one key difference compared to the Motorola Xoom. While the Acer Iconia has less built in storage it has a full sized USB host port meaning that you can plug in any usb flash drive/external usb hard drive. This gives you more options with file storage especially with large files such as movies; Neither the iPad nor the Xoom have this capability.

Cons

• Thicker and heavier than the iPad 2
• Power Cord is a bit short
• Screen is a little too reflective (Might want to buy an anti-glare screen protector)
• Device comes with Bloatware that should be uninstalled (Tegrazone, SocialJogger etc)
• Average camera quality

Wrap Up

Overall the Acer Iconia Tablet is a well-designed device. It’s lower price point compared to the Apple iPad makes it a good choice for those looking for an alternative to iPad. In a nutshell the Acer Iconia Tablet can be described as affordable, powerful, customizable and contract free.

Click Here for more information on the Acer Iconia Tablet.