Last week I was invited to the W1 Hotel at London’s Leicester Square to review the Acer Iconia A1 Tablet.
With the tablet measuring 7.9 inches it enters the market up against the likes of the Nexus 7 and Galaxy Note 8.0. According to Acer it’s aimed at “modern day explorers, adventurers, digital freaks and busy mobile executives requiring an all-day mobile companion”, so for regular travellers it could be a tablet worth considering.
The Iconia A1 is priced starting at about £149 for the 8Gb wifi model which is slightly cheaper than the cheapest Nexus 7, although the Nexus has 16Gb memory.
Tablet Size
The Iconia A1 doesn’t feel like the thinnest tablet but it is quite comfortable in the hand, I found the plastic backing to have a cheap Kindle like feel. Having said that, when taking a tablet device travelling you might not want the most delicate and expensive feeling device.
Thicker than the iPad mini at 11.1 mm compared to 7.2mm, the Iconia A1 feels much more substantial in your hands.
Iconia A1 Hardware
Acer Iconia A1 side on, I tested the non 3G version
The Iconia A1 has a 1.2Ghz quad core processor that performs pretty well for general use and I haven’t yet noticed any slow down at all even when running games.
Like the Apple iPad Mini the Iconia A1’s 4:3 aspect ratio is quite different to that of the Nexus 7 (16:9). I’ve enjoyed the extra screen space whilst browsing the web or using chat apps on the couch watching TV.
The stand out extra that the Iconia A1 has over the Nexus 7 is the 5MP front facing camera, this is actually quite important for making use of Google Hangouts or Skype. The device makes use of a micro USB 2.0 and microHDMI for transfering data and files.
Battery life has been pretty good so far with Acer stating a 7 hour battery life. I haven’t had enough time to fully test this myself but if the device gets anywhere near 7 hours then it is pretty good going for a budget tablet.
Software
Iconia A1 with Cover
Being the owner of a Nexus 7 and Nexus 4 I was quite relieved to find the Iconia A1 has a stock Android Jelly Bean 4.2.2 install and hasn’t overlaid extra UI. Although there are some stock widgets and apps that I quickly removed.
When holding the tablet horizontally the display switches and so does the volume rocker, this is a nice touch and seems quite logical as a user watching video or playing games.
Acer has also added a new touch feature called “Touch WakeApp” that gives users one-touch access to apps from waking the tablet from sleep. The user taps five fingers on the screen when the tablet is in sleep, it will wake and take you to an app that you’ve selected in its settings. This seemed like a nice feature until I turned on the lock screen which means I have to key in my password anyway before it takes me to the shortcut, it makes the feature a little redundant.
Verdict
Overall, I have been surprised by the Iconia A1. I’ve found myself using it more than I expected (in place of my Nexus 7), mainly for browsing when watching TV. Its screen may not be as good as the Nexus 7’s but speed wise it seems to handle most tasks that it was designed for and I enjoyed the extra screen space. I liked the feel of the tablet despite it being plastic, it feels a little bit like a Kindle, like a device I can use and place anywhere without worrying about potential damage (it’s a budget tablet). It’s the type of tablet you could take camping without worrying about damaging it.
With this in mind the Iconia A1 is a decent option to pack on your travels, plus it’s got good battery life and a front facing camera. If you are looking for a budget tablet for doing the basics, browsing, updating social etc on your while you are away, Acer’s new tablet is worth considering.
The Acer Iconia A1 is available as 8GB or 16GB version to add 32GB via microSD.
Pricing and Availability
The Iconia A1-810 (WiFi) version will be available end of May at a starting price about £149.
I was given an Iconia A1 by Acer in order to test and review the device.
