The Acer Iconia Tab A200 is one of three new tablets from Acer in 2012, and the runt of the litter.
Priced at £279.99 in the UK and $329.99 in the US, this 10.1-inch tablet packs Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich and serves as a budget option for anyone who doesn't fancy paying out for the new iPad 3 or other top-tierAndroid tablets such as the Asus Transformer Prime or Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1.
Acer's other two new tablets are the Acer Iconia Tab A500 and the premiumAcer Iconia Tab A700, but it's the cheaper Acer A200 that could cause the biggest stir among those searching for an affordable tablet.
Acer is obviously pitching the A200 at families and first-time tablet buyers. The Acer Iconia Tab A200 wears its family-friendly persona on its sleeve, with a friendly curved rectangle form factor and a soft, rubber-coated back that reminds us more than a little of the BlackBerry PlayBook.
It's available in two colours; the standard Titanium Grey and the much-better-looking-in-our-opinion Metallic Red.
As ever with budget tablets, there are some corners being cut. That's no different with the Acer Iconia Tab A200, and the eagle-eyed among you will have noted the lack of a rear-facing camera lens in our pictures.
Acer has stripped out the camera, as well as other features such as HDMI connectivity, to keep the costs down.
However, it has kept both a full-sized USB port and micro USB and the option to expand the 8GB of storage with a MicroSD card. In the US, 16GB versions are also available, for $349.99.
Also, the Acer Iconia Tab A200 isn't exactly what you'd call lithe. At a chunky 12mm thick, it's a big difference from the 8.8mm iPad 2 or the 7.7mmToshiba AT200.
The Acer Iconia Tab A200 also weighs 715g, which is heavier than both the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 (565g) and the iPad 2 (601g) - and the difference is obvious. This feels solid, but not obviously a tablet that you could just scoop up and use.
The big selling point of the Acer Iconia Tab A200, though, is the fact that it ships directly with Android Ice Cream Sandwich. And Google's latest update works well, with plenty of small tweaks such as the ability to load apps into folders and save web pages for viewing offline at a later date.
It's not like Acer has really skimped on the specs under the hood either. There's an Nvidia Tegra 2 dual-core processor, 802.11n Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, built-in GPS support, 1280 x 800 screen resolution and support for theGoogle Play app store.
It's far from competing with the likes of the Asus Transformer Prime or the new iPad, but as a budget option, the Acer A200 doesn't do much wrong.
It concentrates on the main things you want to use a tablet for - browsing the web, watching movies and playing Draw Something. All of which it handles nicely for a budget device.
There's no getting around the fact that the Acer Iconia Tab A200 is a chunky tablet, especially when compared to the slim iPad 2 and the even slimmer Toshiba AT200.
And you really begin to notice the extra weight after holding the Acer Iconia Tab A200 for a while, particularly if you're holding it one hand. We'd find it pretty difficult to recommend this tablet as an ebook reader, for example.
To give Acer some credit though, this tablet does feel robust. And if you were to hand it to the kids to use (as in Acer's cheesy promotional video), it could probably take the inevitable knocks and bumps. The rubberised back of the tablet means it won't slip out of your hands or get covered in smudges and fingerprints.
We also found the power button on the left-hand side and volume rocker on the top were easy to find and use. And, because the buttons are chrome silver, they look quite attractive too.
There's a 17mm bezel running around the 10.1-inch screen that could do with being a bit thinner, although it doesn't get in the way when you actually start using the tablet.
Connections
Of course, the other benefit to having a bit of bulk is that there's room to include ports on the side.
The Acer Iconia Tab A200 has both a full-sized USB port and a micro USB port, although, irritatingly, you can't charge it by USB and so have to use the bundled AC adaptor that connects via a port that looks almost identical to the 3.5mm headphone jack.
The big omission in terms of connectivity is the absence of an HDMI or Mini HDMI port that would enable you to hook the tablet up to a monitor or HD TV and enjoy your content on a larger screen. This has become almost standard on most tablets and, while we appreciate the Acer Iconia Tab A200 is a budget option, we still would have liked to see it here.
Although Acer has neglected the HDMI port, it has included a microSD slot for expanding on the paltry 8GB of onboard storage here (although US customers can opt for a 16GB version for an extra $20).
The microSD card seems to be falling by the wayside somewhat, with many new tablets omitting the expansion, but we think it's a particularly important feature and it's good to see Acer including it.
The microSD card slot has been hidden next to the reset button behind a plastic flap that you'll need fingernails to open. It's a bit frustrating to say the least, and it took us a few attempts to get it open.
Another noticeable omission - like the HDMI connection - is the rear-facing camera. Presumably in order to save costs, Acer dispensed with this feature that, although standard on virtually all tablets, isn't necessarily essential. How many times do you take your tablet out to take some pictures?
What Acer has included is a 2MP front-facing camera. Arguably this is more useful, because it means you can use Skype to video chat, or shoot profile pictures for Twitter or Facebook.
While the slim, metallic Toshiba AT200 or aluminium iPad might have universal appeal whether in the office or at home, the Acer Iconia Tab A200 is certainly more of a family device for the living room.
While we wouldn't have any problems scooping it up on the sofa to browse the web, the bulk and lack of connectivity render it useless for packing into a briefcase and taking into a business meeting.
Full Spesification's For Acer Iconia Tab A200
| GENERAL | 2G Network | N/A |
|---|---|---|
| SIM | No | |
| Announced | 2012, January | |
| Status | Available. Released 2012, January |
| BODY | Dimensions | 260 x 175 x 12.4 mm (10.24 x 6.89 x 0.49 in) |
|---|---|---|
| Weight | 700 g (1.54 lb) |
| DISPLAY | Type | Capacitive touchscreen, 16M colors |
|---|---|---|
| Size | 800 x 1280 pixels, 10.1 inches (~149 ppi pixel density) | |
| Multitouch | Yes | |
| - Acer UI |
| SOUND | Alert types | N/A |
|---|---|---|
| Loudspeaker | Yes | |
| 3.5mm jack | Yes |
| MEMORY | Card slot | microSD, up to 32 GB |
|---|---|---|
| Internal | 8/16 GB storage, 1 GB DDR2 RAM |
| DATA | GPRS | No |
|---|---|---|
| EDGE | No | |
| WLAN | Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, Wi-Fi hotspot | |
| Bluetooth | Yes, v2.1 with A2DP, EDR | |
| USB | Yes, microUSB v2.0, USB v2.0, USB On-the-go |
| CAMERA | Primary | 2 MP, 1600x1200 pixels |
|---|---|---|
| Features | Video-calling | |
| Video | Yes | |
| Secondary | No |
| FEATURES | OS | Android OS, v3.2 (Honeycomb), upgradable to v4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich) |
|---|---|---|
| Chipset | Nvidia Tegra 2 T20 | |
| CPU | Dual-core 1 GHz Cortex-A9 | |
| GPU | ULP GeForce | |
| Sensors | Accelerometer, gyro | |
| Messaging | Email, Push Email, IM | |
| Browser | HTML, Adobe Flash | |
| Radio | No | |
| GPS | Yes | |
| Java | Yes, via Java MIDP emulator | |
| Colors | Black | |
| - SNS integration - Google Search, Maps, Gmail - YouTube, Google Talk, Picasa - MP3/WAV/WMA/eAAC+ player - XviD/MP4/H.264/H.263 player - Organizer - Document viewer - Predictive text input |
| BATTERY | Non-removable Li-Po 3260 mAh battery | |
|---|---|---|
| Stand-by | ||
| Talk time | Up to 8 h |
| MISC | Price group |  |
|---|
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