Acer Iconia Tab A500 - why not?

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AQ_OC

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Everyone seems to be hot to trot for the ASUS Transformer and while I think it is a good contender for an affordable Android tablet, we can't get one. Yet, the Acer Iconia Tab A500 is widely available. It has a microSD slot, so it can be expanded and it has a real USB port, making it able to do a lot more stuff than another other tablet around. It has mini-HDMI out too. A built in GPS for Nav on a 10.1-inch screen.

The obvious disadvantage is it is heavier (1.7lbs). The build quality has some pros and cons, but at least one review commented that build quality wasn't quite up to standards. But then the Transformer has some issues too, apparently. The Acer has a real USB port on the side, meaning you can plug USB keyboard in there as well as use BT keyboards. I actually have a USB keyboard that I bought with my old Samsung Q1 (UMPC), so I'm hoping I can use that. For comparison, my iPad 2 with Smart Cover weighs 1.65 lbs.

As I said in another post, the reviewers at bestbuy.com seem to be very happy with the Acer and I'm seriously considering giving them some love since they have product available now. ASUS has stated that they under estimated the demand which makes me wonder if they are really committed to the Transformer. They have plenty of other slate type computers, so why were they so far off the mark this time? That really doesn't matter, though. What matters is that I can get an Acer and can't get an ASUS.

Oh, I don't see the docking keyboard that you can get for the Transformer for $150 as that much of an advantage. It makes the device twice as thick and brings the weight to nearly 3 lbs. It's a laptop when you do all that. I guess it does has an extra usb port and battery life, IIRC. My calculations show that an Acer with the samsung usb kb weighs 2.28 lbs, which should be less than the ASUS with it's docking station / kb. I think the Acer will have less battery life from my reading, but I'm not sure that will be a big deal for my usage (conjecture at this point).

I'm wondering what others here think about the Acer Iconia Tab A500?
 
I posted a reply to you about the Acer in the post about the transformer and it's availability. I've played with the Acer in my local bestbuy, picked it up held it, even the guy in the department was cool enough to remove the security feature so I could hold it and the xoom by themselves to see which I liked the best.

The Acer feels cheap compared to the Xoom and it's not just the weight difference, the buttons felt like they wouldn't stand up to much use and the body just didn't feel top quality, though it's not super expensive either. The Xoom on display felt snappier, I know some people don't understand "feel" and it's subjective but it was noticeably the slower of the 2. Comparing the screens of the 2 the Xoom had a better looking screen imo and I'm a display snob.

I know they say the screen you get is hit or miss with the Xoom but I know several people who have them and all of them love theirs. These are people who have owned the Ipad previously or who have both. I chose to wait for the Asus and actually wanted to see it in person before buying one but no retail stores have them yet, not even a display model and I was finally able to order one online and I bit.

I hope I enjoy it and if it's as nice to hold as the pics I saw from a fellow [H]'er post then I'm sure I'll like it and so will my significant other since she's not as picky as I'am ;). I will have mine Friday so I'll post then to let those know. I guess you could always give the Acer a shot and see what you think of it, just sucks bestbuy has a 15% restocking fee which sometime can be waved but depends on the manager/store if they'll do so.

If you get one post pics and tell us what you think. You may like it and it may fit your needs just fine but I personally didn't care for it.
 
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Just bought one so we'll see. get all weekend to decide if I hate it or not.
 
I went to best buy the day of the transformer's launch, after calling and asking them to set one aside for me. They said they did; when I showed up, they'd set the acer aside, and had never heard of the asus. I considered just buying the acer and calling it a day, but I couldn't help feeling I'd regret it down the line, or at minimum would have to spend the $400 for the asus anyway.

I want 4 things in a tablet: battery life, a decent screen, the most updated android os, and durability. The Asus seems likely to satisfy all those the best at this point; the IPS screen, the scratch resistant glass, the near-stock honeycomb, the decent battery. Paying more for the Acer would just foster remorse, not something I want to suffer in gadget land.
 
If you like it, then get the Acer A500. The main reason why people get it is because of the price, keyboard dock, and/or IPS screen. Also, Asus is supporting the Transformer with software updates (haven't followed the A500 for awhile so don't know if they are too). I don't know why you think supply and demand would question their long term support for a product, that doesn't make sense to me.
 
AOM said:
The Acer feels cheap compared to the Xoom and it's not just the weight difference, the buttons felt like they wouldn't stand up to much use and the body just didn't feel top quality, though it's not super expensive either. The Xoom on display felt snappier, I know some people don't understand "feel" and it's subjective but it was noticeably the slower of the 2. Comparing the screens of the 2 the Xoom had a better looking screen imo and I'm a display snob.
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I would expect the Xoom to be superior to the A500 since the Xoom is a more premium device, like the iPad 2. The Acer compares similarly, in terms of build quaility, to the iPad 2. However, the Acer is not a cheap build. I don't like that it has so many seams for stuff to get in...but the keys feel fine to my hands. And the A500 feels plenty snappy to me. I've been using it for several days now and do not get any feel that is is slower. Stuff happens when it is supposed to happen and there is no delay.


I hope I enjoy it and if it's as nice to hold as the pics I saw from a fellow [H]'er post then I'm sure I'll like it and so will my significant other since she's not as picky as I'am ;). I will have mine Friday so I'll post then to let those know.
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The screen on the Acer is quite nice. It is highly readable. I think the IPS display will give greater viewing angle, but I think that is the extent of it (so far). At a reasonable viewing distance, it is quite easy to be within the range of acceptable viewing angles. I think too many people are going by mere specs rather than paying attention to practical usage.

I guess you could always give the Acer a shot and see what you think of it, just sucks bestbuy has a 15% restocking fee which sometime can be waved but depends on the manager/store if they'll do so.
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Yes, you are correct here. Taking a 15% hit to return this for another Android tablet may very well not be worth doing. I do like the light weight of the Samsung Tab 10.1, but it has zero expandability (as does the iPad 2 I already have). I have this 16 GB Acer expanded up to 64GB now, using 32 GB internal microSD and a tiny usb stick in the usb port with a 16 GB card. I could bump that up another 16 GB if I wanted to and still keep the device at essential the same size and weight (which, is one place where this tablet sucks).

If you get one post pics and tell us what you think. You may like it and it may fit your needs just fine but I personally didn't care for it.
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Yeah, I understand different strokes and all. This would not be my first tablet, but as a second, say an upstairs or downstairs machine, it may indeed be fine. I get 45 days to return this at Best Buy (as a premier member, though i'm not sure if that applies to electronics).

Here are my thoughts so far:

Screen: +1
Weight: -1
Expandability: +1
Wifi Strength: -1
Price: +1
Build Quality: 0
OS: 0
Company: 0
Add ons: -1
Features: +1 (it has GPS where the iPad 2 doesn't)
Apps: 0 (iPad has more and higher quality apps, Netflix, HBO Go, The Daily, GoodReader)
Video Payback: 0 (watched movie this morning that was choppy in places, but plays fine on iPad)
-----------------------
Total: +1

That just means, for me, so far, it totals out to a positive experience rather than a negative one.
 
DKYang said:
If you like it, then get the Acer A500. The main reason why people get it is because of the price, keyboard dock, and/or IPS screen. Also, Asus is supporting the Transformer with software updates (haven't followed the A500 for awhile so don't know if they are too). I don't know why you think supply and demand would question their long term support for a product, that doesn't make sense to me.
Click to expand...

Perhaps you should read:

That really doesn't matter, though. What matters is that I can get an Acer and can't get an ASUS.
Click to expand...

Why did they not think demand would be there? They only produced 100000 units and now people are being inticed to may more than necessary and play games waiting for stock. The question is what is management thinking. You'd think price and features, which they obviously thought to provide over the Xoom, would win them they day. Logic would suggest that they be ready to sell them like hotcakes, to get a foothold on mindspace among users. I bet they wish they had had more foresight.
 
I have serious concerns about both the WiFi and GPS antennas on the Acer A500 tablet. I've been trying as hard as I can to fall in love this with machine, but the poor WiFI and GPS are causing me headaches.

I'm using GPS Test now..and in the same location, my phone easily locks onto several satelites, while the A500 seems to struggle really hard. I have barely seem it lock onto more than 2 satellite and none are in use. Phone (Droid Incredible) has 7 in use right next to the A500.

I see a similar thing going on with WIFI. The signal strength is about 5-10 dbm weaker on the A500 than my Droid Incredible, depending on location and orientation. Get farther away and the problem increases almost to the point where the signal is too weak to use WIFI.

I use Wifi Analyzer to test the WiFI signal strength.

Would someone be so kind as to do side my side comparisons of the Acer A500 and whatever Smartphone you have using these two apps? I would like some confirmation of my findings concerning WIFI and GPS signal performance vs smartphone signal performance.

This could be the deal breaker for me that will cause me to return the Acer and pay the restocking fee. One reason I wanted this tablet is because of the GPS antenna (which my iPad 2 lacks). And obviously I want decent WiFi connectivity.

Edit: After leaving the a500 on with GPS Test running, I now have 7 or 8 satellites in view with 4 to 7 in use. It would seem that the GPS is slow to lock on to satellites compared to my DI.
 
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I have an A500 and am on my second one. I returned the first one due to wifi being weak in low signal bar areas. It would constantly lose and then regain connection in about 5 minute intervals, but the signal was very stable in "medium" or better signal areas. I also have a gTablet and the wifi on it is better than the A500 (the gTablet IMO has a great wifi radio). The second A500 has the same wifi issue, but seems a little better (placebo?) though the wifi issue appears to be common, based on posts here, Best Buy, Amazon and Androidforums. The other common issue is the A500 likes to wake-up out of sleep mode, unprovoked. It appears to be random and happens regardless of what apps are open, or if gps/wifi is on or off.

Besides those issues, the A500 is a solid device:

1. I disagree about the build being weak and so do most reviews. It seems to be built very well. It seems built better than the Xoom, so not sure on people's perception of build.
2. USB host works great with 64gb TDs and even powers and works with 1.5tb HDs (with the NTFS patch after rooting). Works great for playing movies and Playstation games (prefer using the 64gb TD for obvious battery reasons).
3. The device is dead-easy to root and get Titanium and other rooted apps on it.
4. The display is the best non-IPS panel I have seen.
5. In spite of the sleep mode issue, battery life is great (8 hours heavy use and 10 with lighter use).
6. UI is fast and the stock apps are not mainly bloatware, as most devices are- like the Xoom from VZW.
7. Microsd works great (unlike the Xoom).

If the wifi were better and the sleep mode issues fixed, the A500 would be OUTSTANDING at $450. Heck, the wifi issue is not an issue if you have a router with wider coverage, or not using wifi in fringe signal areas.
 
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AQ_OC said:
Perhaps you should read:



Why did they not think demand would be there? They only produced 100000 units and now people are being inticed to may more than necessary and play games waiting for stock. The question is what is management thinking. You'd think price and features, which they obviously thought to provide over the Xoom, would win them they day. Logic would suggest that they be ready to sell them like hotcakes, to get a foothold on mindspace among users. I bet they wish they had had more foresight.
Click to expand...

Asus announced last month that the Transformer will be constrained to 10,000 units a month (global) until late June. Analysts suggest it is due to IPS panel supplies, since the other components are in supply at vendors. There is nowhere near 100,000 units sold, since Asus can not make them and they already said "ten thousand" a mont until late June.
 
rushmore,

Thanks for your posts.

Have you checked out the GPS yet? I've been using GPS Test. The GPS is a bit slow to lock, compared to my Droid Incredible. It seems to be decent once you get it going, however.

The build is definitely not weak! The device does have a goodly number of seams, though. I think one reviewer found a wider gap in a seam on one side of the machine than on the other. This may be causing people to say the build is weak.

The screen is good, IMO. This is one of it's strongest features.

Note that you cannot currently copy to the internal microSD card while plugged into the the computer via the USB port. I'm hoping this will be fixed in the June OS updated.

The waking out of sleep mode issues is a non-issue for me.

I cannot get mine to play any movies without choppiness. What plays well on my iPad won't play well on the Acer. Also, I can stream over wireless better than I can play off the internal memory of the Acer.

The Acer does get noticeably warm if you keep the screen on for long periods of time. I don't think this is a serious issue, but you can definitely notice this while holding it in your hand.

The wifi is just weak, period. Both my phone and iPad get much higher transfer rates than the A500 at the same location, which is a good ways from my router. In some cases, I could not even load a webpage on the Acer at that location. This issue will impact different people in different ways, because everyone's living environment is different. It is important to ensure that it works well in your particular environment.

What movies are you playing, how were they transcoded, and what player are you using?
 
I have the transformer and I can assure you the transformer cannot lock on to gps indoors (at least indoors in the buildings I have tested). Out doors gps locks. I think there is a difference between phone gps (which can lock indoors) and these two tablets (a-gps vs gps maybe?).

I have no method to compare wifi so can't comment there.

AQ_OC said:
I have serious concerns about both the WiFi and GPS antennas on the Acer A500 tablet. I've been trying as hard as I can to fall in love this with machine, but the poor WiFI and GPS are causing me headaches.

I'm using GPS Test now..and in the same location, my phone easily locks onto several satelites, while the A500 seems to struggle really hard. I have barely seem it lock onto more than 2 satellite and none are in use. Phone (Droid Incredible) has 7 in use right next to the A500.

I see a similar thing going on with WIFI. The signal strength is about 5-10 dbm weaker on the A500 than my Droid Incredible, depending on location and orientation. Get farther away and the problem increases almost to the point where the signal is too weak to use WIFI.

I use Wifi Analyzer to test the WiFI signal strength.

Would someone be so kind as to do side my side comparisons of the Acer A500 and whatever Smartphone you have using these two apps? I would like some confirmation of my findings concerning WIFI and GPS signal performance vs smartphone signal performance.

This could be the deal breaker for me that will cause me to return the Acer and pay the restocking fee. One reason I wanted this tablet is because of the GPS antenna (which my iPad 2 lacks). And obviously I want decent WiFi connectivity.

Edit: After leaving the a500 on with GPS Test running, I now have 7 or 8 satellites in view with 4 to 7 in use. It would seem that the GPS is slow to lock on to satellites compared to my DI.
Click to expand...
 
You2,

I did do a car test with the Acer and it did get lock outside. It's been cloudy here over the past couple of days, so it wasn't the best test, but I did get lock and it was able to guide me to a location. The problem is, with Google Maps you can't get updated map info beyond what it downloaded while you were under Wifi. So the test is rather limited. I'm thinking of trying out Copilot just to get a true feel for how well the GPS works when outside. That's obviously the important case...I've never used GPS inside other than to map a route to check it before leaving home.

So you think tablets use lower-quality GPS devices than phones? I guess that make some sense....I don't typically think of using a 10-inch screen for Nav...though that is nice to do. I don't have an effective mount and charging system for car use.
 
AQ_OC said:
rushmore,

Thanks for your posts.

Have you checked out the GPS yet? I've been using GPS Test. The GPS is a bit slow to lock, compared to my Droid Incredible. It seems to be decent once you get it going, however.

The build is definitely not weak! The device does have a goodly number of seams, though. I think one reviewer found a wider gap in a seam on one side of the machine than on the other. This may be causing people to say the build is weak.

The screen is good, IMO. This is one of it's strongest features.

Note that you cannot currently copy to the internal microSD card while plugged into the the computer via the USB port. I'm hoping this will be fixed in the June OS updated.

The waking out of sleep mode issues is a non-issue for me.

I cannot get mine to play any movies without choppiness. What plays well on my iPad won't play well on the Acer. Also, I can stream over wireless better than I can play off the internal memory of the Acer.

The Acer does get noticeably warm if you keep the screen on for long periods of time. I don't think this is a serious issue, but you can definitely notice this while holding it in your hand.

The wifi is just weak, period. Both my phone and iPad get much higher transfer rates than the A500 at the same location, which is a good ways from my router. In some cases, I could not even load a webpage on the Acer at that location. This issue will impact different people in different ways, because everyone's living environment is different. It is important to ensure that it works well in your particular environment.

What movies are you playing, how were they transcoded, and what player are you using?
Click to expand...

GPS is hit and miss for me, but I suggest that some folks assume GPS is working great indoors, but wifi triangulation is what is really showing their "location".

Please try Moplayer, since it works well and can be customized for what codecs get hardware acceleration. Also, the stock app, Clear.fi player works well with some MP4's that other apps do not. The main issue with the A500 is the same for ALL Tegra 2 tablets- Nvidia's sucky codec support.

GPS is a non issue for me, since I use my phone. That and a photo camera are near superfluous to me on a tablet.

The 3.1 update may not fix the sleep issue, since seems to be A500 specific and not a Honeycomb (Transformer and Xoom do not have the issue). I am returning my A500 and will wait to see if the 3.1 update fixes the "wake out of sleep mode" problem.
 
My transformer had a problem when I initially got it trying to wake from sleep. It flashed the locked screen, went black again and when I attempted to do antying nadda. Had to perform a fresh start. Took a whole 30 seconds out of my day for this one problem that hasn't arose again but I do hear it happening from time to time on the Transformer. I'm also waiting for the 3.1 update.

The GPS on the Transformer is not the "OMG BEST THING EVER" but it works. Its also very accurate and updates your location pretty fast. I have to say I'm very impressed with the GPS they threw in it.
 
Acer shipping 1 million Iconia Tabs, facing shortages

Part suppliers said late Thursday that Acer was seeing stronger than expected sales of the Iconia Tab line. It was "likely" to ship one million of the mostly Android-based tablets in the spring but could have moved more. Demand was hot enough that, according to Digitimes, Acer couldn't keep up from the April launch through May.
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http://www.electronista.com/articles/11/05/19/acer.iconia.tab.sales.exceed.demand/

 
Lilluda_5 said:
Honestly they are both solid products, with the Acer ICONIA being a little cheaper. It is a great overall experience though for as far as google android tablets are concerned.
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If you're referring to it being cheaper than the Xoom it is in fact cheaper, but the 16gb Asus Transformer is $399 where the Acer is $449 for another $50 you can have the 32gb Transformer which is what I purchased.

I looked at the Acer again today and it seemed to be of better quality than the first one I got to toy around with. Makes me think build quality is hit and miss since there was a large difference between the two.

I can see people being happy with the Acer though, it's not not a bad tablet by any means.
 
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