Acer Iconia A500 Android tablet

Acer Iconia A500 review: An Android 'Honeycomb' tablet with USB and HDMI-out ports

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  • User Reviews (17)
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  • Expert Rating

    3.75 / 5

  • User Rating

    4.00 / 5 (of 17 Reviews)

  • Price

    $ 579.00 (AUD)

User Reviews:

Patricia McMullin

4.5

1

Pros
Portability
Cons
Screen Glare
• • •

I bought my Acer Iconia Tablet a couple months ago and love it. I haven't been able to figure out being able to connect to network connections outside my home, such as work.

labby

4.5

2

Pros
apps r easy to get
Cons
weight
• • •

i love my tablet it is very cool

Brian G

3.5

3

Pros
Honeycomb. USB. HDMI
Cons
Poor file handling in USB. Weight & lack of USB charging.
• • •

This one's almost there but not quite eh.
I'm always traveling and am fed up with carrying a plethora of chargers.I wont buy any mobile without uniformity of USB charging.
Thanks for the review

Dennis

5.0

4

Pros
connectivity, memory expansion, speed
Cons
microphone performance
• • •

Excellent product
I have had my A500 for a few months now.
I didn't think I would use a tablet much but now I find I can't put this one down.
It connects quickly and easily to wifi or phone hotspot. Great for browsing.
I don't think the screen is much more reflective than my phone. I don't find it a problem.
Great for connecting a mouse when the finger is too big. Connect a keyboard at the same time too!
3.1 was a really big improvement.
The only thing I can fault is the microphone performance with Google Talk -software or hardware, I don't know?

melissa

4.0

5

Pros
good product
Cons
typing
• • •

How. Do you download apps not using the market

Tom Secreto

5.0

6

Pros
Acer A500
Cons
iPad
• • •

Once I looked at the Acer A500 and the fact that it has ALL of the ports on the main unit AND they all worked day1 it was a no brainer. Yes it is a little heavier because it is made so well with the aluminum back and the speed is very fast. I did not expect the bluetooth keyboard to wrk yet but the Logitech that I use for the PS3 worked perfectly including the mouse pad.
The HDMI to the 56" 1080p TV looks like Blueray very impressive. Once Android 3.x gets a little more mature the need for a laptop starts going away and with Google Docs no office apps are really needed to install.

Great job Acer.

k c reddy

4.0

7

Pros
aver iconia a500
Cons
ipad
• • •

one of the best tablet to hit the market and will certainly check the monopoly of big players like ipad and samsung ...the first in class usb ports is the most striking feature

Shantara

2.5

8

Pros
Nice review.
Cons
internet
• • •

Can you use a USB internet stick with the tablet?

pat irving

3.0

9

Pros
usage
Cons
Facebook download
• • •

When using the camera, how do I download the pictures to Facebook? Or isn't that possible? Please help.

sieve

5.0

10

Pros
price and quality
Cons
no gorilla glass??
• • •

Great unit! I hear people talk about the weight of this unit and yes it might be a couple ounces heavier but the unit is very thin and very fast. I like techie stuff and I think this unit is definitely worth it. I was also looking at the Samsung and the xoom....both also seem to have a lot of pluses but when you weigh everything out you can usually get this unit cheaper and it is a really solid performer; it seems like the "guts" of these units are all pretty close too. I have an HTC inspire phone (which I also like) but I would gladly give up the phone versus this unit. Also, my mom has the first generation I pad (again - it is nice and I like it but I think the processor in this unit and all of the options now available with android (and growing) makes this unit an easy pick.

Nicholas Tomlin

2.5

11

Pros
Display
Cons
Speed of GPS and Wifi Connectivity
• • •

I bought this thing on a head full of what it promised to do from its glossy display in the store.
I found using it very f';g ANNOYING!! It p'd me off sooo often that I think I should have spent my money elsewhere.
It failed to deliver on speed to lock onto a satellite for a GPS fix - the metal back case seems to block the signal if you're in a car and attempting to use it for track logging or navigation, in this attempted use it would drop out very frequently unless the satellites were available through the right windows.
WiFi connections seem to suffer in a similar way and even after I get a connection to my phone in AP mode I give up and log in using my Laptop because the tablet doesn't seem to want to go online. To top it off I can't find out why it won't - I suspect it is some problem with DNS allocations.

My summary - don't buy, there are better machines out there for a little more money that actually do work, when you want them to.

Nic Tomlin.
+61468324683

Gary Dean

2.5

12

Pros
you can take it with you
Cons
it's only half and idea
• • •

I have an Iconia 500. The Google maps gps was slow and simply watching a facebook promo about the 500 was jerky.
You can't transfer files from a standard USB to the 16gb of storage, what's with that? Why should I have to download an app for file management?
A micro usb hub? Why? Why not offer a standard size mini usb port. When listening to music and such first you have to find the hard volume controller; why not offer volume controlonscreen automatically?
What’s with the docking port?? Why not simply create a charging system via the USB port?
The charger is cumbersome; why not offer a USB cord style that plugs into a generic plug?
There are other issues like constantly having to go back all the time (hit the back button); so annoying.
It really could to with a nice flat(ish) rubberised keyboard, for ease of use and to protect the screen.
Buying these products today is like buying a car without car seats. “Go to Recaro if you want seats”. Why not sell these tablets with a case in the box?
To be honest I’d prefer a Digi TV installed rather than the excellent camera. Who uses a computer to take photos?
I do like the 2 cam idea however. Now if I could just find even one other Aussie who wants to video chat.
Why does man have two hands? To hold his tablet. What; no stand!?
To use this tablet efficiently you really need three hands or you’re constantly having to find somewhere to place it safely so check this and that on it.
Further, it really needs a phone and the stand, that way, you can use it at home.
Finally, what good is a slim computer if you need a dongle modem, just to use it??
The idea is good but more ideas, and hardware are required.
Buying this product now ensures users are simply a guinea-pig for a future suitable item.

Neil

4.5

13

Pros
Excellent touch screen
Cons
Lack of Apps as yet
• • •

I love my Iconia Tab.
Can't wait for other Honeycomb tablets to join the fray and increase the available large screen applications.
Downloaded the latest Flash and have had no problems viewing all flash sites but do get some screen refresh issues with mixed sites. I'm sure that will be resolved with later versions of OS.

Alfred

3.0

14

Pros
TABLET PC
Cons
INCOMPATIBILITY
• • •

Good point Aryan(hindu in english).The real issue is it's compatibility with printers and how well can it replace laptops as a business mobile tool.

steve

4.5

15

Pros
great tab and many uses
Cons
no printing capability
• • •

I havenot been able to have the Tab recognise my wifi printer and a closer look failed to find print function. Do I need to look further or is thsi function not available?

Otherwise I am loving it.

Aaron

5.0

16

Pros
Android
Cons
iPhone
• • •

You could also just download Dolphin Browser, then set the User Agent to "Desktop" so webpages don't get formatted as mobile

Brett Huhn

4.5

17

Pros
Acer Iconia
Cons
Motorola Xoom (this week)
• • •

Had it for 6 days now. Rooted, Zagged, Corporate email with SSL setup with Touchdown Exchange Tablet app. Picks up wireless access points very quickly. Intuitive interface. Has a Sim card slot. Have not pulled the tape and tried to put it on AT&T network yet. Don't know if the underlying hardware is there. Educated guess says that it is.Would have gotten 5 start if it had USB charging and a longer recharge cable

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