Acer Iconia Tab A100 review

The 7-inch Android 3.2 tablet that's better than the HTC Flyer

Acer Iconia Tab A100
Android Honeycomb makes this 7-inch tablet fast and portable

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Acer iconia tab a100

In some ways, we're not sure where the Acer Iconia Tab A100 fits. The larger size of a 10-inch tab such as the Apple iPad 2 is a bit unwieldy for books, so in many ways the 7-inch screen of the Acer Iconia Tab A100 is more suited to book pages.

Otherwise, the Acer Iconia Tab A100 comes with all of the expected specs for a modern tablet: the Android 3.2 operating system, a 7-inch screen with 1024 x 600resolution, Wi-Fi, GPS, tilt sensors, a micro USB port for connecting to your computer, a micro HDMI port for video and audio-out to an HD TV, a 3.5mm headphone jack and Bluetooth 2.1.

Acer iconia tab a100 review

The tablet is only 12.7mm thick and looks like an oversized smartphone.

The speakers are below the Home button in a portrait orientation. There are volume control knobs on the right, and a screen lock switch. There are no buttons on the left-hand side. At the top, it's easy to find the power button and the headphone jack.

Acer iconia tab a100 review

Also below the Home button, you'll find the HDMI and USB ports, and a port for connecting the Acer Iconia Tab A100 to an optional dock. This dock includes audio connections for external speakers and one for running an HDMI-out cable to an HD TV.

One word of caution: even though the Acer Iconia Tab A100 is small and nimble, it's not long-lasting. The tablet is rated for only five hours of battery – the small size clearly means a small battery. Streaming videos will chew up the battery in about four hours, and other rich media might make the Acer Iconia Tab A100 die after four and a half hours.

The Tegra processor is faster than those on some tablets like the Flyer. I

John Brandon
Contributor

John Brandon has covered gadgets and cars for the past 12 years having published over 12,000 articles and tested nearly 8,000 products. He's nothing if not prolific. Before starting his writing career, he led an Information Design practice at a large consumer electronics retailer in the US. His hobbies include deep sea exploration, complaining about the weather, and engineering a vast multiverse conspiracy.