Acer Iconia Tab A200

Update Feb. 2012: Android OS 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich is now available as a download for the A200. The Acer Iconia Tab A200 is Acer's latest 10.1" Android tablet, and it's very affordable at $349 for the 16 gig model and $329 for the 8 gig version. In fact, we're pretty impressed at what you get for the price: a sharp and colorful 1280 x 800 capacitive touch screen, a dual core 1GHz Nvidia Tegra 2 CPU, a gig of RAM and 16 gigs of storage (in the more commonly available 16 version that we recommend). Basically, you get a 2011 Android 10" tablet with a full set of features at a low price for 2012. The tablet ships with Android OS 3.2 Honeycomb but in mid-February 2012 Acer offered a free upgrade to OS 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich (you can download using the tablet's update function). Since 80% of Americans are still tablet-less, there's definitely a place for the Iconia Tab A200. Many of you are new to tablets and aren't sure that you want to spend $500 or more, or maybe you've got a tight budget. If that's you, do check out the A200 since it offers a lot of bang for the buck. This is a full-featured WiFi only tablet with single band WiFi 802.11b/g/n, Bluetooth 2.1 + EDR and a GPS (that works). It has the full suite of Google apps including the Android Market, Maps, Navigation, YouTube and Google Talk. It compares well against lesser or no-name brands that cut corners by using grainy resistive displays, run old versions of Android meant for phones or lack access to the Android Market. The A200 is a slightly slimmer and lighter version of the Acer Iconia Tab A500, and to our eye the display has improved. Video playback performance of MPEG4 content is most definitely improved, as you'll see in our video review. And you get that Acer special touch: a full size USB host port that works with USB peripherals including keyboards, mice, game controllers, flash drives and external hard drives (NTFS too!). Only Acer and Toshiba offer built-in full USB ports: some other Android tablets have micro USB ports that are compatible with USB host adapters, and the Asus Transformer tablets have a full size USB port in the $149 keyboard dock that's sold separately. Acer does a nice job of adding USB driver support to the OS and external storage items like videos and photos appear in Gallery, while music appears in the Music app (if you have a large drive with lots of files this can take a minute or two). There's also a microSD card slot, so storage possibilities are good here. What's missing from last year's Iconia A500 that launched at $449? There's no rear camera and no HDMI port. There's a good 2 megapixel front camera that works well with Skype and Google Talk video chat, but no rear shooter. There's also no HDMI port, so you'll have to rely on DLNA wireless streaming to get the tablet's contents to play on your (WiFi-equipped) TV. What do more expensive Android tablets have that the A200 doesn't? Tablets like the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 and Asus Eee Pad Transformer Prime are thinner and lighter at 0.33" thick and 1.3 pounds. Most other name brand Android tablets have a rear camera and micro HDMI ports (the Samsung doesn't, but Samsung sells an adapter that adds HDMI). While we expect 2012 tablets to run on newer CPUs, the Acer Iconia Tab A200 sticks with the pervasive and pretty decent 1GHz dual core Nvidia Tegra 2 with GeForce hardware graphics acceleration. If you already own a 10" Android Honeycomb that's promised an upgrade to Ice Cream Sandwich, the Acer A200 offers nothing new or better. If you want the latest and greatest hardware, the A200 isn't for you. The Asus Eee Pad Transformer Prime with its quad core Tegra 3 CPU, and upcoming tablets from Lenovo and others offer newer generation dual core CPUs with faster clock speeds. But for everyday use that includes web, email, Netflix, YouTube and Office files, you probably won't notice the difference.

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Acer Iconia Tab A200 Video Review Acer Iconia Tab A200 Gaming with a USB Game Controller Video Demo Acer Iconia Tab A200 and Asus Eee Pad Transformer Prime Playing OnLive Games

Design and Ergonomics

This isn't an uber-skinny tablet, but we don't mind because it's actually comfortable to hold and grip. The rubbery backside (available in deep red or dark gray) is easy to hold, though not chic. The Acer A200 feels and works like a tablet that was meant to be held and used rather than look pretty. The sides are curved for good ergonomics, and ports are located for easy access. The only thing we don't like is the speaker placement: the stereo speakers are at the lower corners where you'll likely grip it in landscape mode. And these speakers are already terribly volume-challenged. You'll need wired or Bluetooth headphones to enjoy music or videos. The 3.5mm jack sounds a bit bass-heavy to our ears, but most folks enjoy plenty of bass these days. Volume is acceptable using wired and Bluetooth audio gear. The mic is happily much better than the Iconia A500's, and we were easily heard over Skype.

The charger has a barrel tip and is the same wall wart charger that's used on prior Acer Android tablets. That means the side micro USB port is available for use when charging, which we like. A full size USB 2.0 port lives on the upper left side (when held in landscape mode), and the microSD card slot and reset hole live under a plastic door on the left side. The tablet doesn't support USB charging.

The 0.48" thick tablet won't win design awards, but it's not bad looking and feels sturdy. The back has a textured pattern and it shows some fingerprints but is easily cleaned with damp cloth and a tiny bit of soft soap, as is the display. The display has decent but not IPS caliber viewing angles, with none of the peculiarities of the Acer Iconia Tab A100 7" Android tablet. Colors are good and brightness is fine for indoor use, but it fades in very bright light and outdoors. It looks good for video watching and photo viewing, as long as you're not in an extremely bright room where the just average brightness and glossy screen glare detract.

Gaming and Video Playback

The Tegra 2 does well with 3D games, thanks to Nvidia's involvement and promotion of Tegra Zone games. The Acer Iconia Tab A200 does a fine job with Tegra Zone games like Riptide, Grand Theft Auto III, Dungeon Defenders and Shine Runner (see our video demo using a USB game controller below). But the Tegra 2 usually falls short when it comes to playing high profile 720p and 1080p video thanks to less than stellar 2D acceleration. Happily, the Acer has better codecs and drivers, so it can play 720p high profile H.264 MPEG video fine, and it can play 1080p standard profile video competently. Since the tablet has a 720p display and no HDMI out, 1080p high profile content that plays with dropped frames isn't much of an issue unless you're using DLNA WiFi streaming to an HD TV to play videos. If you want to watch Netflix and YouTube streaming video, the Acer Iconia A200 is a fine choice, and it can handle 720p standard and high profile locally stored MPEG4 content but not 1080p high profile MPEG4 content where it drops frames but does much better than the Acer Iconia Tab A500 that played 1080p high profile at 2-4 fps.

CPU and Performance

The Acer Iconia Tab A200 does well for a 1GHz Tegra 2 tablet, with average range Quadrant, Linpack and AnTuTu benchmark scores. It does very well on the Sunspider JavaScript test with a 2185 score (lower numbers are better), and real world browsing performance reflects that score. The tablet handles Adobe Flash playback and controls well and it loads full desktop sites with good speed. Pinch zooming and scrolling speeds are likewise good.

Acer Iconia Tab A200 Benchmarks:

Quadrant: 1800
AnTuTu: 5025
Linpack multi-thread: 53
Sunspider: 2185

The tablet has the usual 1 gig of RAM and is available with 8 or 16 gig of storage. Given the mere $20 difference between the 8 and 16 gig versions, we heartily recommend the 16 gig model. The tablet has a microSD card slot under a plastic door on the side, and it's compatible with cards up to 32 gigs in capacity. You can also use flash drives and external hard drives to expand storage.

The tablet is a good gamer, and you can use it with USB game controllers. We tested the XBOX wired controller and it worked great with GTA III and OnLive. In our video below we tested it using a Logitech USB controller (a Playstation Dual Shock clone).

Battery Life

Acer claims the 2 cell battery sealed inside the tablet is good for 8 hours of use. While that won't break any tablet records, it's acceptable and ours manages 7 hours with brightness set at 50% and WiFi on with mixed use that includes web, email, streaming Netfix video for an hour and playing a few YouTube videos.

Software

Acer pre-loads Netflix, Adobe Flash, VirusScan, SoundHound, Documents to Go (an MS Office viewer, you can upgrade to get edit and create abilities or buy another Office compatible suite for $20 or so), Evernote, Zinio (a very attractive magazine app) and the full suite of Google apps such as Android Market, Maps, Navigation, YouTube, Google+, Gmail, email and the web browser. Acer apps include AUPEO! (online radio), clear.fi, Media Server (DLNA server) and SocialJogger for social networking with Twitter, Facebook and MySpace. There's also a Voice Recorder app and a link to buy Gameloft HD games available for purchase. Acer's DLNA apps work well, but keep in mind that most of the third party apps are freely available on the Android Market, so aren't exactly a value-added (the same is true of many other Android tablets' software bundles).

Conclusion

For the price, we really like the Acer Iconia Tab A200. Acer's doing a good job of chasing the affordable and entry level market with their tablets, and we can see the A200 selling well in Walmart where the Iconia A500 once reigned king. The tablet is sturdy, has a decent capacitive display that's fine for indoor viewing, solid Tegra 2 performance and a full size USB port and 8 or 16 gigs of storage plus microSD card expansion. It's not razor thin, but it's comfortable to hold thanks to its more ample girth and grippy back. At 1.5 lbs., you'll notice the weight after 30 minutes of use vs. lighter tablets like the Asus Eee Pad Transformer Prime, Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 and iPad 2. If you're in the market for an affordable tablet that's upgradable to Ice Cream Sandwich, the A200 is worth a look as long as you don't want a rear camera or HDMI port and can live with the whisper-quiet speakers.

Price: $329 for 8 gig model, $349 for 16 gig model

Website: www.acer.com