Granted, these results are below-par for the tablet category, but they’re excellent for a small device with an Intel Core processor. The light-load Reader’s Test extended life to 8 hours and 23 minutes, and the Peacekeeper browser test returned a result of 5 hours and 51 minutes. Battery Eater did all it could, yet it still needed 3 hours and 24 minutes to drain the Iconia. We were worried that the tablet’s small 3-cell battery would make all this irrelevant, but the system proved we had no cause for concern. Acer even includes a surprisingly luxurious leather case with the tablet. Though heavy for a tablet, the Iconia W700 remains light enough to easily carry in a backpack, messenger bag, or even a large purse. Docking the tablet improves quality through clever use of sound ports, but this only puts the device on par with an average laptop. There’s simply not enough volume to satisfy and what audio does comes through has a tinny quality. Applications like Paint and WordPad can be frustrating to use.Īudio quality is poor when the tablet is used without the dock. Microsoft’s built-in scaling solves this problem in some areas, but not all, and scaled icons are often blurry and unattractive. Windows renders graphics by pixel, so if the pixels are small, so too is the user interface. Cramming this many pixels into a small screen causes an issue of scale. Praise aside, we did encounter a problem. This tablet’s panel puts most laptops available today to shame. Though not the best display we’ve tested, we’re impressed by what Acer has managed to cram in this tiny device. Our tests revealed excellent contrast, deep black levels, a wide color gamut, and respectable maximum brightness. We’re pleased by the Iconia’s 11.6-inch 1080p display. We were able to write several long articles, including this review, without complaint or discomfort. Keys are properly sized and their feel is excellent. Its flat surface would normally annoy us but meshes with the Iconia’s semi-portable vibe. No! Stop! We were using that app!Īcer executed the keyboard with more thought. We were also frustrated by how the device automatically switches to the desktop view when the tablet is docked, even if software is open. The tablet can’t be easily inserted or removed with one hand, its three USB 3.0 ports are hidden around the back instead of placed along the side, and the stand, which is solid white plastic, can’t adjust for tilt. Acer appears to have placed them so they are easy to use with the dock – but isn’t the Iconia a tablet first, and PC second?Īs for the dock, well, it’s all beauty and no brains. This is preferable when reading documents or browsing the Web because more content can be displayed at once. They are all positioned for use in landscape orientation, yet our past experience with tablets has found us mostly holding them in portrait. We’re less impressed by where the tablet’s buttons are located. Its metal body feels sturdy and looks handsome. Still, we can’t knock the tablet’s quality. The result is a blocky, uninspiring design that already looks a few years old. Its two-pound weight adds notable heft relative to an iPad or Android tablet, and the bulky back cover is half an inch thick.Īcer could have hidden these facts with a rounded back or tapered edges, yet no such effort was made. Unfortunately, the Iconia suffers from the heaviness its powerful processor demands. At 11.6 inches by 7.5 inches, it’s not much wider or longer than the Google Nexus 10. Has Acer managed to create a wonderful hybrid, or does the Iconia sacrifice too much in its attempt to be everything to everyone? A different kind of dockable PCĪll of the Iconia’s hardware sits inside the meaty silver tablet. Our review unit, which arrived with a Core i5-3317U, offers specifications on par with any convertible or Ultrabook on the market. This keeps the device portable but doesn’t sacrifice performance. Instead of building a laptop that can also be used as a tablet, the company has shipped a tablet that just happens to have a keyboard. The tablets are often hefty, and those that aren’t pack a lackluster Intel Atom processor.Īcer is taking a different approach with the Iconia W700. The problem with convertibles is that the tablets on most of them aren’t usually great. Most of them are focusing their efforts on convertible laptops. Now Windows 8 is giving PC manufacturers a chance to be a part of the action. Often, these third-party docks or keyboard cases have been of questionable quality and utility, but that hasn’t stopped consumers from buying them. Users have tried adding keyboards to tablets ever since the release of the original iPad.
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