Acer Iconia Tab A700 Review, Specs, and Price Note: This article was republished from http://www.squidoo.com/acer-iconia-tab-a700-review We recommend viewing the article from there for better image resolution and formatting
Android fans were very excited when the Acer Iconia Tab A700 was announced early 2012 as it was the first tablet that has a full HD screen resolution. But a couple months later to its release date, the buzz it generated somehow fizzled out as other tablet makers released their own HD tabs ahead of Acer, including Apple's iPad 3. But is the Acer A700 still worth a look despite the release of tablets with similar specs? And while the price does make it competitive, is it worth it for an HD tablet? Check out the full review below to find out.
Pros Features and Specs of the Acer Iconia A700
1. Full HD 1080p resolution, responsive touchscreen This is actually the biggest upgrade from the Acer Iconia Tab A500 and is a really nice feature, especially if you plan to do a lot of movie watching and photo viewing. Even for just casual web browsing, the A700 does the job better with its brighter, sharper display and vibrant colors. In fact, there may not even be a lot of games and apps for now that will take advantage of the Iconia A700's 1920 x 1200 pixels resolution and faster processor. But as with other glossy tablets like the new iPad, the Iconia A700 reflects a little more light on a bright surrounding and is a fingerprint magnet. Aside from the higher resolution, Acer is also using IPS technology for the LCD, which means the Iconia Tab A700 has higher viewing angle than other tablets using conventional LCD. This is especially useful for using apps or doing other activities that require rotating the tablet, or even just sharing movies with others around you. The touch panel responds very well too, though not always so direct and precise as the new iPad, but the sensitivity is still acceptable for most users. 2. Tegra 3 quad core 1.3 Gigahertz processor, 1 Gigabyte DDR2 memory These specs make for a quicker boot up, smoother browsing, and faster running of apps and games. Along with the 12-core NVIDIA GeForce GPU, the A700's hardware are more than capable of handling a 1080p movie load and displaying it at its native resolution. I even tried playing a 4 GB HD movie and the tablet decoded it just fine. 3. Longer battery life Rated 9-10 hours of video playback, the 9800mAh battery gives a fair amount of time away from the power plug. I played a number of movies on it and still the battery indicator showed more than 50% charge. However, Acer notes that the A700 does consume more power than the Iconia A510 due to its high resolution display that requires a little more processing power. <a href="http://www.squidoo.com/acer-iconia-tab-a700-review">Acer Iconia Tab A700</a>
4. Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich For all its processing power and memory, the Acer A700 ships with the latest Android Ice Cream Sandwich installed. Acer's Ring UI is also a very intuitive circular menu system that is customizable to allow quick access to important apps directly from the lock screen. It's also a good thing that Acer didn't pre-install too much unwanted software offerings.
5. Robust yet elegant form factor While the A700 is not the slimmest tablet in the market, it didn't really feel too heavy or too thick either. It's got a chic glossy design too and a matte black casing with a back panel that evokes carbon fiber styling (silver version is available too). Measuring 10.2 x 0.4 x 6.9 inches and weighing 1.5 pounds, it is thicker than other tablets mainly due to the high performance battery inside it. It is also much more comfortable than last year's A500 with the improved ergonomics.
6. Other features - 32GB internal storage - MicroSD card slot to increase storage up to 32GB - Built-in Dolby speakers that are moderately loud and very well balanced - 1 MP front camera good enough for video calls - 5 MP back camera that takes good colors, but only moderately sharp when you zoom the image - Good connectivity, with WiFi and Bluetooth connecting quickly upon testing (no 3G though) - HDMI port
Cons Possible Dealbreakers I'm really impressed with what the A700 can do. But aside from a few minor issues already mentioned above, I wasn't a fan of the lack of a standard USB port in exchange of a microUSB port. Acer does provide a free adapter though.
Acer A700 vs Acer A510 vs Asus Transformer TF300
The Verdict If you are looking for a 10-inch tablet with good battery life, a nice HD screen, and decent speed and performance, the A700 might just be the tablet for you as Acer has done many things right with this product. The price will probably be the deciding factor for many, as compared with other similar best selling tablets.
Click here to check the price of Acer Iconia A700