Tablets Apple iPad marked the era of new mobile devices. But a little later they left iPad mini with a diagonal of 8 "and an aspect ratio of 4: 3, followed by other manufacturers. The new format has become a trend for "pocket" tablets. Today in our laboratory we have just such a tablet from Acer - Iconia A1-810. In our review we will try to identify its advantages and disadvantages.

Below are screenshots of CPU-Z

We received the 810 version of the Acer Iconia A1. There is also an 811 version. It differs in that it is equipped with a 3G module.

Acer Iconia A1-810 | Design and appearance

There is nothing remarkable in the design of the Acer Iconia A1, the appearance can be called standard.

Most of the front side is occupied by an 8” screen, which is covered with glass. The distance from the screen to the edge at the top and bottom in portrait orientation is about 2.3 cm. On the sides - 1 cm. At the top center is the front camera eye.

On the sides, the border around the screen seems to be wide enough for a finger to enter it, but the finger constantly moves out and the screen works. The edge was reduced, but not enough. On the iPad mini, the edge is not so wide, the brain does not think to put a finger on it. And holding the Acer Iconia A1 in a different way is inconvenient. If he had been a little narrower, it would have been convenient to hold him, clasping him with one hand. And so the question constantly arises of how to use the tablet. All this is true for portrait orientation. In the landscape, everything is convenient.

The side edge and back cover are made of plastic. The edge is stylized as metal and slightly protrudes above the glass. Thanks to this protrusion, when falling, the plastic will be crushed, and the glass will not crack. The back cover is white. The white color looks beautiful, fingerprints are not visible on it, but scratches are better visible.

On the top right side is the power/lock button. On the right (from top to bottom): volume rocker, micro-SD card slot, microphone, reset button (recessed into the case, pressed with a needle), micro-HDMI output. On the bottom edge on the right is a micro-USB connector and a headphone jack. There is nothing on the left side.

On the back surface are: the peephole of the main camera - in the left upper corner, speaker grille - lower left corner, Acer logo in the center and stickers with serial number and additional information in the lower part.

In general, the Acer Iconia A1 is assembled with high quality - there are no backlashes or gaps. But the tablet does not seem to have a frame: the tablet strongly bends when bending or twisting over the edges. The structure lacks rigidity.

Acer Iconia A1-810 | Contents of delivery

The Acer Iconia A1 comes in an eco-friendly thick cardboard box. The box is stylized on the outside as a tree. Inside the box is the tablet itself, multilingual instructions, warranty book, USB cable and charger.
Software and settings

Acer Iconia A1 is running Android 4.2.2. This is good, as many manufacturers are still releasing tablets with Android 4.1. Installed on the tablet standard android 4.2.2 with a regular shell.

Here we note additional programs added by Acer.

As with Iconia Tabs from 2012 (see ), the volume rocker button assignments change depending on orientation. Volume up is always to the right (landscape) or up (portrait). Reducing the volume, respectively, vice versa. It is very comfortable. By accidentally taking the tablet upside down, you can still change the volume intuitively.

Various applications preinstalled:

• AccuWeather - weather, weather widgets 16,17,18,19
• 7digital - music store 21
• Acer Cloud - cloud storage
• WildTangent Games - Game Store 22
• Acer Life Image - create collages from photos and videos acerlifeimage
• Office Suite - a program for reading office files
• Simeji - Japanese Keyboard 25
• Tunelin - online radio and podcasts 24
• Zinio - magazine shop 26
• McAfee Mobile Security– antivirus 23

Preinstalled apps are good. The manufacturer makes sure that the user can start working with the tablet right out of the box. But this time, Acer went a little overboard. Not everyone needs a paid antivirus, app and music stores, or a Japanese keyboard. Here, even the problem is not that there are extra applications, but that they cannot be removed by regular means. Preinstalled apps can only be disabled.

Acer Iconia A1-810 | Video

Since April 2013, we have been using a new testing methodology for testing multimedia devices. It is divided into several parts.

• Popular formats- Common video formats and codecs. Their support is recommended to be evaluated first of all
• images DVD discs and Blu-ray- playback check complete images DVD/Blu-ray including menu. Recommended if you store your media library as images
• Rare formats- less common formats, but still relevant
• Ultra HD 2K and 4K— formats with an eye to the future. In 2013, ultra-high-definition video will gain popularity

The standard player Acer Iconia A1-810 did not open quite a few files. There is support for mostly popular formats, and even then not all of our test files. However, the problem is solved by installing a third-party media player, but we are testing the pre-installed ones.

It should be remembered that the aspect ratio of the screen is 4:3, so when watching movies, you will most often get fairly wide black bars at the top and bottom.

Acer Iconia A1-810 | Camera

Acer Iconia A1-810 has two cameras. Front for video chat and back for photos. The front camera is of average quality, but it’s definitely enough for conversations - the image is not very blurry when moving, and noise appears only in poor lighting conditions. The main thing is that it is conveniently located - in the center above the screen, and not in the corner, like many tablets.

The 5 MP rear camera shoots well in sufficient light. Lots of noise in the dark. But it's forgivable. The main thing is that the test with text, even in low light, the camera performs well. It's still a tablet, not a camera phone.

Below are the test shots. Click on the picture to view the full size version.

The video camera shoots in Full-HD resolution. The quality is average, as you can see in the next video.

Acer Iconia A1-810 | Performance

CPU performance

We tested the performance of the Acer Iconia A1 quad-core Cortex A7 processor using Linpack. Results are in millions of floating point operations per second (MFLOPS).

The results of the Acer Iconia A1 are high, typical for its quad-core processor. The results are higher than the similar processor in .

Overall system performance

We used Smartbench 2012 1.0 to evaluate overall system performance. This test is very similar to the 3DMark and SysMark packages, as it provides simple and convenient performance indexes for two categories: productivity applications and games. On the other hand, a synthetic test may not accurately reflect the actual performance of applications and games.

You can compare your tablet scores with other smartphones and tablets at http://smartphonebenchmarks.com/

The results are high thanks to good hardware and low screen resolution. We get performance at about the same level.

JavaScript Performance

SunSpider is a JavaScript test that demonstrates how the performance JavaScript engine tablet, and the computing power (to a lesser extent) of the hardware. Poor implementation of JavaScript on a very fast tablet can "blur" the overall performance of the platform. And at the same time, a great implementation of JavaScript will allow you to effectively use even slow systems. However, today the main implementations of JavaScript engines are getting closer to each other, developers are borrowing all the best ideas. JavaScript tests are single-threaded due to the nature of browsers. SunSpider correctly evaluates CPU-sensitive tasks found in real web applications.

Below are the results of SunSpider 1.0 on tablets and Android phones. Android devices use the Google V8 JavaScript engine.

The smaller the result, the better. The result of the Acer Iconia A1 is good. Only a tablet on full-fledged Windows 8 turns out to be significantly faster.

AnTuTu

Below are the results of the popular AnTuTu test. It has been updated to version 4.1.

The results are high. They are comparable to .

Relative Benchmark

This test was created “for growth”, no available Android devices can show really high results. The level of graphics is much higher than the average game, so even if the results here are not impressive, in real games the performance can be quite good. 60 fps in this test is already Xbox 360.

In the Relative test, the Acer Iconia A1 gets an average result. It is even slightly smaller than MSI Primo 76. In various tests, Acer and MSI tablets compete with each other with varying success.

Network bandwidth

We tested network performance with the IxChariot benchmark as well as an 802.11 b/g/n router with 1 Gbps ports. The tablet was at a distance of about 1 meter from the access point. We tested the maximum available network mode (802.11g or 802.11n), at that time there were no other active transmissions, no pronounced interference in the network coverage area was detected either.

The results are excellent. The Wi-Fi module passes more than 50 Mbps. The speed of loading pages will depend on the network speed, and not on the capabilities of the tablet.

Acer Iconia A1-810 | Game tests

Test results don't always match real performance, so we decided to conduct tests in real conditions.

In games, frames per second (fps) is an important factor. The higher it is, the smoother the game is perceived. Frame rates below 30 fps can result in stuttering and other annoying effects. Frame rates below 15 fps turn the game into a slideshow, you can hardly enjoy it. We took the average frame rate during the test run in the selected game.

epic citadel

We have added the Epic Citadel game test, which is a demonstration of the capabilities of the Unreal engine from Infinity Blade for Android OS. The test has different .apk and cache for different GPUs, so you need to take your versions for the test. The test was conducted only in High Quality mode. We excluded the High Performance mode from the tests, since the results differ slightly, and we are interested in the performance of the tablet relative to other models. You can see the results below.

Epic Citadel is a rather serious game test with "heavy" graphics. The result is just great. In almost all scenes in High Performance and High Quality modes, our Acer Iconia A1 delivers frame rates close to the maximum 60 fps. Only in Ultra High Quality mode, the frame rate sags. And then up to 26.9 fps. This is the best result in the Epic Citadel test among all the tablets that have been in our laboratory.

Acer Iconia A1-810 | Time battery life

A battery with a capacity of almost 5000 mAh allows you to watch a movie at maximum brightness for 5 hours. But, unlike most tablets, Acer Iconia A1 has a low maximum brightness. Therefore, in real conditions when watching a movie, you will get about the same time. The results are low. But it is worth noting that in this case, power consumption is mainly not on the screen, but on the hardware. Therefore, you can read a book on the Acer Iconia A1 for a long time. Also, in the locked sleep state, the tablet consumes almost no power.

Charging, despite the 2 A power supply, takes a relatively long time. A little less work time. In this aspect, the Acer Iconia A1 is not as strong as we would like.

Acer Iconia A1-810 | Conclusion

Acer has a solid tablet. The popular 8" format is good for mobile use. But, unlike the iPad mini, the Acer Iconia A1-810 turned out to be quite large both in thickness and in length and width. It does not feel compact. It is no longer so convenient to hold the tablet in one hand.

An 8” screen with a resolution of 1024x768 is no longer impressive, even phones come with Full-HD resolution. The same ASUS recently released a 7″ Nexus (2013) with Full-HD resolution, so Acer would like a similar step. As a result, we get not the highest pixel density. They become noticeable almost at a distance of use. At the screen of the tablet, the brightness also "pumped up". The range is very small. The maximum brightness is not enough on the street even on a cloudy day, and the minimum brightness "cuts" the eyes in the dark.

Acer Iconia A1 is suitable for games. Both simple casual and heavy ones. Good hardware, coupled with a small screen resolution, leads to high frame rates in games. The tablet is also well suited for reading - in this mode, the tablet is discharged slowly.

We advise you to purchase the A1-811 version, that is, with a 3G module. It costs a couple of thousand more, but you will get the opportunity to use the Internet at any time and not depend on WiFi hotspots. Especially Acer Iconia A1 has an aspect ratio of 4:3, which allows you to comfortably view web pages.

Advantages of Acer Iconia A1-810

• IPS screen with wide viewing angles
• High performance
• Android 4.2.2, regular firmware updates
• micro HDMI output
• Memory expansion with micro-SD cards
• Availability of versions with 3G module (A1-811)

Disadvantages of Acer Iconia A1-810

• Great weight and dimensions
• Small brightness range
• Long-term charging

Apparently, the Taiwanese giant Acer found itself in the market tablet computers in the production of budget "tablets". Not so long ago, the company released a very modest Iconia B1, the price of which, by the way, has already dropped to . This is a tablet that, with all its appearance, seemed to hint that it belongs to the category of cheap ones. What did the TN-display alone cost! Yes, it cost the manufacturer mere pennies.

Acer Iconia A1 - our guest today - is a device of a different class. It is more expensive - on the Internet, prices for this tablet start from , which, in general, is also quite divine. Judging by the technical characteristics, this price looks very attractive. Why are they asking for some money for the Iconia A1? Let's try to figure it out.

⇡ Appearance and ergonomics

The low cost of the device gives out even its exterior. Acer Iconia A1 looks quite standard, the body of the device is devoid of any interesting solutions. However, you can turn a blind eye to this. The main disadvantage of the case is its large thickness (slightly more than 11 mm). The tablet is made entirely of plastic. When squeezing the corners, the body of the device crunches, and characteristic color stains appear on the screen. In general, the gadget should be handled with care.

Acer Iconia A1 full face

The tablet was designed and assembled without due reverence. On the left side, there is a small millimeter-long gap between the frame and the display, which is not present on the right. The screen is set slightly to the right of the center, which breaks the symmetry. It would seem a trifle, but it is not difficult to notice this, and subsequently the eye will cling to this flaw all the time. First, we attributed this shortcoming to the features of our test sample. However, according to the thematic forums, at least the entire first batch of tablets has such a flaw.

Acer Iconia A1 - front panel

The location of the controls on the Acer Iconia A1 is standard. The front panel of the tablet is free from any hardware keys. On it, except for the front camera lens, nothing at all. All main buttons are on-screen.

Acer Iconia A1 - right side face

The tablet power key is located on the top end. The universal audio jack and microUSB interface are moved to the bottom, which is not very convenient when watching a movie with headphones - the left hand tries to touch the wire. The volume control buttons, microSD memory card slot, microphone and micro-HDMI video output are placed on the right side. The left side of the body is empty. The sides of the tablet are decorated with the now popular silver edging.

Acer Iconia A1 - back panel and sides

The back panel of the device is non-removable. It is made of glossy, pleasant to the touch plastic. The snow-white "back" of the device is quickly covered with fingerprints and other dirt, losing its original beauty. On the back panel there is a lens of the main, five-megapixel camera and stickers with technical information. In general, the tablet looks somewhat cumbersome due to the excessive thickness and wide frame around the screen. But in terms of usability, the design of the Acer Iconia A1 is quite good.

⇡ Specifications

On a single-chip Intel Bay Trail system and with a Full HD display

We have been waiting for the appearance of Android tablets based on the Intel Bay Trail family of processors, which replaced the no longer young, but still relevant Clover Trail +. When Windows tablets on new SoCs already flooded the market, the hybrid Ramos i10 Pro fell into our hands, which left only bewilderment. And finally, we got an Android tablet from a well-known manufacturer on the Intel Bay Trail - Acer Iconia Tab 8 (A1-840FHD).

Specifications Acer Iconia Tab 8 (A1-840FHD)

• Model Number: A1-840FHD
• Single-chip system: Intel Atom Z3745
• CPU: 4 cores @1.86 GHz (base frequency 1.33 GHz), 64-bit
• GPU: Intel HD Graphics @778MHz (base frequency 311MHz)
• Display: IPS, 8″, 1920×1200, 283 ppi
• RAM: 2 GB
• Internal memory: 16 GB
• microSD card support
• Wi-Fi 802.11a/b/g/n (2.4 + 5 GHz)
• Bluetooth 4.0
• GPS/A-GPS/Glonass
• Cameras: 2 MP front, 5 MP rear
• Micro-USB (OTG-enabled), Micro-HDMI, 3.5mm headphone jack
• Battery capacity: 4600 mAh
• Operating system: Google Android 4.4.2
• Size: 215×130×8.5 mm
• Weight: 360 g

* - at the time of publication of the relevant article

In terms of weight and dimensions, the new Acer is very close to Xiaomi MiPad (adjusted for aspect ratio), but at the same time, its battery capacity is almost one and a half times less, the same as that of LG G Pad 8.3. The rest of the characteristics do not stand out in any way, the manufacturer did not go further than experiments with the platform.

Equipment

In the box with Acer Iconia Tab 8, only a Micro-USB cable, AC adapter (5.35 V, 2 A) and instructions were found.

Acer doesn't tend to accompany its tablets big set accessories.

Design

The most notable design feature of the Iconia Tab 8 is the thickness of the bezels. In width, it is larger than the LG G Pad 8.3 by four millimeters, although the diagonal of the latter is larger by 0.3 inches! But on either side, the Acer tablet can be firmly held with one hand.

On the front panel, we see the manufacturer's logo and the front camera lens. Light sensor is not provided.

The rear panel consists of three parts adjacent to the display closely, without a frame around the perimeter. Their color is the same, but the materials are different: aluminum in the middle, and plastic around the edges.

In the center of the rear panel, the camera lens protrudes, and at the bottom, a speaker grill is placed across the entire width. Its sound quality is average, typical for tablets. The volume drops noticeably when the Iconia Tab is placed on a table.

All tablet connectors are closely concentrated on the top edge. On the left is a 3.5mm headphone jack, to the right, apparently, a microphone, then Micro-HDMI and Micro-USB ports.

On the left side we see an open slot for a memory card. Considering the sloping shape of the tablet, there was no need to count on a stub here.

On the contrary, there are thin mechanical android buttons, with a short and clear stroke. But not particularly convenient to use due to its angled position. In this tablet, they have an annoying feature: depending on the orientation, the volume up and down buttons are reversed. It's annoying.

When creating the Iconia Tab 8 A1-840FHD, Acer reacted to the design, apparently in the same way as Xiaomi did when developing the MiPad: on the principle of "the main thing is to work normally." When assessing the quality of the assembly, the manufacturer can only be blamed for the imperfect fit of the parts to each other. This shortcoming becomes noticeable only with careful study.

Screen

The front surface of the screen is made in the form of a glass plate with a mirror-smooth surface, resistant to scratches. Judging by the brightness of reflected objects, anti-glare properties of the screen are not worse than those of Google Nexus 7 (2013) (hereinafter simply Nexus 7). For clarity, here is a photo in which a white surface is reflected in the off screens of both tablets (Acer Iconia Tab 8 - on the left, then they can be distinguished by size, since it has a larger screen, and in all the following comparative photos the tested tablet is located under the Nexus 7) :

The screen of the Acer Iconia Tab 8 is slightly lighter - the brightness in the photo is 112 versus 110 for the Nexus 7. The tripling of reflected objects in the screen of the Acer Iconia Tab 8 is very weak, this indicates that between the outer glass (it is also a touch sensor) and the surface matrix no air gap ( OGS type screen - One Glass Solution). Due to the smaller number of boundaries with very different refractive indices (glass-air type), such screens look better in conditions of strong external illumination, but their repair in case of cracked external glass is much more expensive, since the entire screen has to be changed. On the outer surface of the screen there is a special oleophobic (fat-repellent) coating (effective, but slightly worse than the Nexus 7), so fingerprints are removed much more easily, and appear at a slower rate than in the case of ordinary glass.

With manual brightness control, its maximum value was about 320 cd/m², and the minimum 14 cd/m². The maximum value is not very high, but given the good anti-reflective properties, in bright daylight the image on the screen should be more or less distinguishable. In complete darkness, the brightness can be lowered to a comfortable level. Automatic adjustment There is no brightness on the light sensor. At any brightness level, backlight modulation is present ( rectangular pulses with an amplitude of 100%), but its frequency is high - 503 Hz - which reduces the likelihood of a possible negative impact, however, in some situations, the presence of flicker can be determined visually by the stroboscopic effect that appears.

This tablet uses IPS type matrix. Micrographs show a typical IPS subpixel structure:

For comparison, you can see the gallery of microphotographs of screens used in mobile technology.

The screen has good viewing angles without hue inversion and without significant color shift even with large deviations of the gaze from the perpendicular to the screen. For comparison, here are photographs in which the same images are displayed on the screens of the Nexus 7 and the tested tablet, while the brightness of both screens is set to about 200 cd / m², and the color balance on the camera is forcibly switched to 6500 K. The test image is perpendicular to the screens:

Color reproduction is good on both screens, the color balance differs slightly, but the colors on the Acer Iconia Tab 8 screen are slightly less saturated (note the tomatoes and the blue napkin). And the white box:

Note the good uniformity of brightness and color tone. Now at an angle of approximately 45° to the plane and to the side of the screen:

It can be seen that the colors and brightness balance did not change much in both tablets, but in the Acer Iconia Tab 8, the contrast decreased to a greater extent due to black bleaching. Then a white box:

The brightness at an angle for both tablets has noticeably decreased (at least 5 times, based on the difference in shutter speed), but in the case of the Acer Iconia Tab 8, the screen brightness at this angle is still slightly higher. The black field, when deviated diagonally, is highlighted very strongly, and acquires a slight purple or red-violet hue. A photo from the Nexus 7 for comparison shows this (the brightness of the white areas in the perpendicular direction for both tablets is approximately the same!):

And from another angle:

When viewed perpendicularly, black uniformity is not ideal, as there are areas with slightly increased black brightness along the edge (why the screen is so dark is explained below):

Contrast (approximately in the center of the screen) is high - 915:1 . The response time for the black-white-black transition is 21 ms (11 ms on + 10 ms off). The transition between 25% and 75% grayscale (according to the numerical value of the color) and back takes a total of 37 ms. The gamma curve constructed from 32 points with an equal interval according to the numerical value of the shade of gray did not reveal a blockage either in the highlights or in the shadows. The exponent of the approximating power function is 2.31, which is higher than the standard value of 2.2, while the real gamma curve deviates noticeably from the power dependence:

Due to the dynamic adjustment of the brightness of the backlight in accordance with the nature of the displayed image (in average dark images, the brightness decreases, which is why the black field in the photo above is so dark), the resulting dependence of brightness on hue (gamma curve) may not correspond to the gamma curve of a static image , since the measurements were carried out with a sequential output of shades of gray almost on the entire screen. For this reason, we carried out a number of tests - determining contrast and response time, comparing black flare at angles - when displaying special patterns with invariably average brightness, and not monochromatic fields in full screen. In general, such a non-switchable brightness correction does nothing but harm, since in the case of dark images in ambient light conditions, on the contrary, you want to raise the brightness a little in order to improve detail in the shadows. But in this case it goes down...

Color gamut narrower than sRGB:

Apparently, the matrix filters mix the components together. The spectra confirm this:

This technique allows you to increase the brightness of the screen with the same energy consumption for backlighting. As a result, the colors of images - drawings, photographs and films - oriented to the sRGB space (and the vast majority of them) have slightly reduced saturation. Because the napkin and tomatoes have a less saturated shade.

The balance of shades on the gray scale is good, since the color temperature does not differ much from the standard 6500 K. True, the deviation from the blackbody spectrum (ΔE) is more than 10, which is considered not a very good indicator for a consumer device, however, the variation in color temperature and ΔE very small, which has a positive effect on the visual perception of color balance. The dark areas of the gray scale can be ignored, since the color balance is not of great importance there, and the measurement error of color characteristics at low brightness is large.

Let's summarize. The screen has not the lowest maximum brightness and has good anti-glare properties, so the device can be used outdoors even on a sunny summer day. In complete darkness, the brightness can be reduced to a comfortable value. The advantages include an effective oleophobic coating, the absence of an air gap in the layers of the screen, as well as a good - in visual evaluation - color balance. Significant disadvantages are the low stability of black to the deviation of the gaze from the perpendicular to the screen surface and the narrowed color gamut. The presence of non-switchable dynamic adjustment of the brightness of the backlight in accordance with the nature of the displayed image, we also cannot add it to the pros. Nevertheless, taking into account the importance of properties for this class of devices, the screen quality should be recognized as high.

Operating system

The Acer Iconia Tab 8 (A1-840FHD) has an operating system installed on Google system android version 4.4.2. During testing, we did not receive any updates to the basic version of the firmware. From 16 GB internal memory only 9.59 GB is available to the user, which is very strange, given that nothing voluminous is installed on the tablet. Perhaps a low-quality drive is to blame, the real volume of which is much inferior to the declared one.

The list of basic applications has been expanded with several Acer utilities and free apps partners. A couple of proprietary technologies of the manufacturer have been implemented. The Acer Touch WakeApp allows you to wake up your tablet by placing five fingers of one hand on the screen or, in landscape orientation, the thumbs of both hands. Acer IntelliSpin tracks and changes display orientation when the tablet is placed on a flat surface. These tools are, of course, useful, but they do not particularly affect the use. There is also support for Intel Smart Video.

The operating system works very smoothly, although it does not do without problems. The tablet does not erase labels on its own remote applications. And besides, it sometimes makes mistakes in assessing free space, preventing applications from being installed because of this. Turning on the tablet takes approximately 35 seconds.

Platform and Performance

Let's move on to what attracted us to the new Acer Iconia Tab 8 - its hardware platform, which belongs to the Bay Trail-T tablet family. This single-chip system was introduced in May this year.

Its characteristics are as follows:

• Architecture: Intel Silvermont, 22 nm
• Bit depth: 64 bits
• Number of Cores/Threads: 4/4
• Clock frequency: 1.33-1.86GHz
• L2 cache size: 2 MB
• SDP: 2W
• Supported memory: LPDDR3-1066, up to 4 GB, dual channel
• Maximum throughput Memory: 17.1 GB/s
• Graphics system: Intel HD Graphics
• Clock frequency graphics system: 311-778 MHz

The average of the new line was immediately thrown by us into the thick of it, to powerful competitors (except for LG G Pad 8.3). To gauge the progress of Intel's SoCs, we've also compared where possible the test results of the Iconbit Thor iZ tablet, which is based on Intel's most powerful Clover Trail+ SoC, the Z2580, and has a resolution similar to ours. Let's start with browser tests.

The Intel Atom Z3745 processor effortlessly outperforms the Snapdragon 800, overtakes the Clover Trail+, and in the test, Mozilla even outperforms the Apple A7. Impressive result; perhaps the older Bay Trail-T processors will already be able to measure their strength here with the Tegra K1.

And in MobileXPRT, our hero was able to reach the level of Tegra K1, both in terms of performance and work android interface. In Antutu, the Xiaomi tablet is further from the Iconia Tab than the Galaxy TabPro 8.4, but these results should not be particularly counted on, since the testing took place in different versions of the benchmark.

Let's move on to a group of processor and memory tests.

Here the Acer tablet performs on par with the Samsung, although it easily beats it in browser tests. Let's move on to gaming benchmarks.

In two benchmarks on the Unity engine, our hero is inferior to almost everyone (except Galaxy Tab S in Bonsai). Maybe it's Bay Trail-T's compatibility with the Unity engine, but most likely the problem is the instability of benchmarks, which we've been noticing for the first time.

By the sum of all the components of the benchmarks, the Acer Iconia Tab 8 (A1-840FHD) turned out to be approximately on the level of the Samsung Galaxy TabPro 8.4. And the Intel Atom Z3745, respectively, is slightly inferior to the Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 (the difference in resolution is already taken into account here). Now let's evaluate compatibility with games.

Modern Combat 5 was not found in the Play Market, in Need for Speed there were significant problems with the sound. Asphalt 8 was partially obscured by the Android panel, which could not be hidden, and you had to click on the bottom menu buttons at random. As a result, only half of the games in our set work as expected, so on this moment Acer Iconia Tab 8 (A1-840FHD) is not a gaming tablet.

Video playback

Decoding capabilities of single-chip Intel systems stepped forward in the new generation. Now everything works out of the box - only AC3 tracks are not decoded.

Additionally tested HDMI interface. Note that the device is equipped with a micro-HDMI connector. This connector is miniature (narrower than micro-USB), but has 19 pins. HDMI cables for such a connector are usually quite rigid, which during operation often causes the plug to be skewed in the socket and a failure in image transmission. After some time, this connector becomes loose and cannot be used. In general, the performance of this method of connecting to an external screen is extremely low. Using a micro-HDMI connector is still somewhat justified in the case of miniature devices like phones, but in tablets you need to use more reliable options like mini-HDMI, mini-DisplayPort, or even full-size HDMI.

We used an LG IPS237L monitor to test the HDMI output. The output mode can be specified in the setup menu, we chose 1080p at 60 fps. With an active HDMI connection, the image output to the screens of the tablet and monitor is carried out only in landscape orientation (the HDMI connector is on the left on the tablet). On the external device an exact copy of the tablet screen is displayed, while the image on the monitor is inscribed in the boundaries of its screen, which leads to a distortion of the proportions:

With the tablet settings, you can slightly squeeze the picture from the sides, so as to restore the proportions on the connected monitor, but the clarity of the image is only further reduced due to interpolation along two axes:

Sound is output via HDMI (in this case, the sounds were heard through the headphones connected to the monitor, since there are no speakers in the monitor itself) and has a very good quality. At the same time, the tablet's speakers are turned off, and the volume is not adjusted with the buttons on the tablet, the sound is only turned on and off.

Next, using a set of test files with an arrow and a rectangle moving one division per frame (see "Methodology for testing video playback and display devices. Version 1 (for mobile devices)"), we checked how the video is displayed on the screen of the tablet itself. Screen shots with a shutter speed of 1 s helped determine the nature of the output of frames of video files with various parameters: the resolution varied - 1280 × 720 (720p), 1920 × 1080 (1080p) and 3840 × 2160 (4K) pixels - and the frame rate - 24, 25, 30, 50 and 60 fps. In tests, we used the MX Player video player in Hardware+ mode. The results of this (block titled "Tablet Screen") and the following test are tabulated:

Note: If both columns Uniformity and Passes green ratings are set, this means that, most likely, when watching movies, artifacts caused by uneven alternation and dropping frames will either not be visible at all, or their number and visibility will not affect viewing comfort. Red marks indicate possible problems associated with the playback of the respective files.

According to the criterion for displaying frames, the quality of video files playback on the screen of the tablet itself is good, since frames (or groups of frames) can be displayed with more or less uniform alternation of intervals and without frame drops. The tablet can even display 4K resolution files up to and including 30fps. When playing video files with a resolution of 1920 × 1080 pixels (1080p), the image of the video file itself is displayed one-on-one, exactly on the wide border of the screen and in true Full HD resolution. The brightness range displayed on the screen is more like an extended range (i.e., the range 0-255). At the same time, most of the video files are encoded in the video brightness range of 16-235, so the white color of such video files is displayed as light light gray on the screen of this smartphone, and the black color is displayed as dark dark gray, which obviously does not improve the image quality.

When playing video on a monitor connected via HDMI, the displayed brightness range corresponds to the standard range of 16-235 - all gradations of shades are displayed in the shadows and highlights - which is required for the correct playback of typical video files. The results of the monitor output tests are shown in the table above in the "HDMI (monitor output)" section. The quality is good, only with 50 fps files there are minor problems - frames are skipped at some intervals. When working with an external monitor and when playing video in hardware decoding mode, the tablet screen turns off a few seconds after playback starts, and turns on when the user is active. Again, it is during video playback that the frame rate of the video signal adjusts to the frame rate, that is, 60 Hz is turned on for 24, 30 and 60 fps, and 50 Hz for 25 and 50 fps. This automatically improves the smoothness of the video display.

It turns out that connecting to external monitors, TVs and projectors via HDMI can be used for gaming, watching movies, web browsing and other activities that benefit from a multiple increase in screen size. Roughness only in some distortion of proportions and / or a slight decrease in clarity.

Support for wireless networks and OTG mode

Acer Iconia Tab 8 (A1-840FHD) supports Internet access via Wi-Fi 802.11a/b/g/n in the 2.4 and 5 GHz bands, but is not always stable: some networks that work fine with all other devices cause the tablet has a stupor. GPS doesn't work well either. The device supports both A-GPS and Glonass, finding satellites in less than a minute. But the connection takes about four minutes to establish. From time to time, the tablet loses this connection and then restores it again. Completes a set of wireless communication standards Bluetooth 4.0.

Connection Supported external drives. The average speed of copying from a flash drive to internal memory reaches approximately 9.1 MB / s; in the opposite direction is slower, at a speed of 6.8 MB / s.

cameras

Acer Iconia Tab 8 (A1-840FHD) is equipped with two cameras. The front has a resolution of 2 megapixels, the rear - 5 megapixels. But the real resolution of her pictures is 4 megapixels (2560 × 1440). Their quality is low; the camera is suitable only for undemanding general shots.

The text of the book spread, taken by the camera, is legible with some difficulty, focusing is not good enough.

The tablet can shoot videos in 1080p resolution. In the test video (MPEG-4 3GPP Media Release 4, 1920×1080, 14.7 Mbps, 30,000 fps, audio - 96 Kbps, 48 ​​kHz, 2 channels, AAC(LC)) you can even distinguish license plates of passing cars , while maintaining excellent frame rates.

Offline work

The battery capacity of the Acer Iconia Tab 8 (A1-840 ARV) is 4600 mAh, which is still not enough compared to competitors. According to the OS readings, the battery consumption is not quite uniform, but close to it:

There are no power saving modes in the tablet settings.

In terms of energy efficiency, the new Iconia Tab is seriously inferior to the Galaxy Tab 8.4 and can only compete with the LG G Pad 8.3. You can’t exactly call Acer a long-playing tablet. Iconia Tab 8 can be charged from a computer via USB. Charging from the supplied adapter takes only two hours (however, this is not much less than the operating time of the device under heavy load).

conclusions

If we consider the Acer Iconia Tab 8 (A1-840FHD) as the "first pancake" from Android to Intel Bay Trail, then, of course, you can forgive something for the tablet. But for an end device released into the wild jungle of the consumer market, the list of weaknesses is too long. Here, there are problems with the firmware, and a small amount of internal memory, and unimpressive compatibility with games, and low battery life. The design of the tablet will not be to everyone's taste, since its dimensions are noticeably higher than the usual standards for eight-inch devices. The Acer Iconia Tab 8 (A1-840FHD) asset can only record a high-quality display, good video recording and 4K video support. This is clearly not enough for success. Especially considering the current price of the tablet, which is comparable to the prices of good ten-inch models.

Apple, after much deliberation, nevertheless decided to bring a smaller tablet to the market. New tablet from Acer, namely the Iconia A1 (or A1-810), has a lot in common with the "younger" iPad. Both tablets feature a 7.9-inch diagonal display resolution of 1024 x 768 pixels, both have their own ecosystem benefits and aim at a wide audience of consumers at an affordable price. But, of course, in terms of the operating system, the difference is very significant: unlike the iPad, the Acer tablet relies not on iOS, but on Android.

In the Android market, the division of tablets by diagonals and prices is clearly visible: large tablets with a diagonal of 10.1 inches are oriented by manufacturers to the premium segment of the market, and in the "budget" segment, mainly tablets with a diagonal of 7 inches are located. At the same time, manufacturers have realized that there is also a demand for compact tablets with high-quality hardware. The same one clearly showed that a 7-inch tablet can become a bestseller: you just need to ensure high build quality, a decent processor and display, although the price is only about 9 thousand rubles (200 euros). The success of the Nexus 7 and android tablets with a smaller diagonal led to the fact that Apple, after long hesitation, nevertheless released a "small" tablet.

iPad mini is inferior to the Nexus 7 in terms of specifications, despite the retail price of about 12.5 thousand rubles (330 euros in Europe). The low resolution display is especially sad. Either way, the iPad mini is still the cheapest entry into the world of iOS tablets. You can also notice that Apple has opted for a 7.9" format instead of the smaller 7". In practice, this step is welcome. A 7.9″ or 8″ diagonal still becomes a compromise for those users who need a compact tablet, but the 7″ diagonal is still too small.

The following table compares the specifications of the three tablets. As a 7-inch representative, we took the Nexus 7.

When comparing the new Acer tablet with an Apple product, parallels can be drawn in terms of diagonal and display resolution. The Acer Iconia A1, despite the low retail price, has a 4-core processor and 1 GB of RAM. In terms of storage capacity, the Acer tablet is noticeably inferior to the iPad mini variants, but you can expand the capacity with micro-SD cards. Both tablets are equipped with two cameras, the difference is visible only in the resolutions of the front cameras. Our test lab received a non-3G/4G variant of the Iconia A1. But the 3G version should be on the market soon. Apple offers video output from the tablet via its own Lightning connector, but Acer's tablet uses standard micro-USB and micro HDMI interfaces.

The Acer Iconia A1 has the same specs as the iPad mini. At the same time, the Apple tablet leads in terms of lighter weight and thickness, but it also costs 140 euros more. Although the Nexus 7 has a smaller screen format than the two 7.9" tablets, it offers a display with a higher pixel density for about 200 euros. Both Acer and Apple differ in this parameter for the worse from the Nexus 7, which we get density 216 ppi.

However, a direct comparison of the three tablets is somewhat artificial. In practice, most users initially target an Android or iOS tablet, they usually don't switch between the two worlds. A comparison of the two ecosystems is beyond the scope of our review, but the feature table will be useful for beginners who have not yet decided on their world choice.

Before the tests, we would like to show a video of the unboxing and first acquaintance of the Acer Iconia A1-810.

It became, in fact, the first 8-inch tablet on the Android platform. In general, frankly low-quality devices do not linger on the mobile gadget market, especially when it comes to some design or assembly errors. All prices of this or that segment are kept at approximately the same level. That is, for an ordinary user, in order to make a choice, it is enough to correlate the main characteristics of the gadget.

Each manufacturer has enough varieties of “stuffing”, as well as the choice of diagonal devices. Here, it would seem, there should be a clear differentiation, because this is still a rather peculiar production and is constantly evolving. But when conducting a more thorough analysis of the modern mobile market, it begins to seem that the manufacturer cuts the displays as if it were a banal window glass. In this regard, despite the apparent diversity, only two main segments can be distinguished, as they say, dimensions - these are small 7-inch devices and large ones with a diagonal of 9 or 10 inches.

After the Acer A1-810 tablet appeared on the mobile gadget market, many owners suddenly realized that, it turns out, 8 inches is just what they need. It is convenient to hold it with one hand, because it is neither large nor small, and the picture on the screen seems quite decent, both for horizontal and vertical orientations. And this means that the user has access to full-fledged web surfing, any toys, books and work with documents.

So, the hero of our review is a tablet. Characteristics, features, advantages and disadvantages, as well as expert opinions, along with reviews from ordinary users of the gadget, will be discussed in detail in the article.

Contents of delivery

Despite its relatively average size, the gadget comes in a rather bulky box. The packaging is additionally reinforced with a double lid, and inside you can see something like a cassette tray made of high-quality and thick cardboard.

Inside the box you will see:

• Acer Iconia A1-810 itself;
• micro-USB cable for mains charging and synchronization with a PC;
• charging block for 2 amperes (5.35 V);
• plug for memory;
• manual in Russian.

The equipment can be called modest. There is nothing superfluous here, only everything you need, and therefore, if you are missing something, then you will have to buy it in a separate item. If you look at user reviews on specialized forums about the Acer A1-810 (w3bsit3-dns.com and the like), then many clearly lack a macro-USB-micro-USB male-to-male adapter. The tablet quite comfortably supports synchronization with peripherals (mouse, keyboard, etc.), so it's better to worry about buying such an adapter right away. As for covers, films and other things, it is better to leave the purchase of such things at your own discretion, and not to shift it onto the shoulders of the manufacturer, because the taste and color ...

Appearance

His appearance The Acer Iconia Tab A1-810 isn't particularly impressive. Yes, it's tidy, well built, without any extra design frills, and maybe a little fat. If we put similar gadgets in one row, like the same Nexus of the seventh series or the iPad mini, then visually they are not much different, even though the latter have a diagonal of seven inches, while our respondent is an eight-inch tablet representative .

Tangible ergonomic advantages are felt while working with the device. Many owners in their reviews note that the tablet seems to be made exactly for their dimensions (it is comfortable to read data, it is convenient to control the screen and it is pleasant to hold).

Dimensions

Dimensions Acer A1-810, in principle, correspond to the diagonal of the screen - 209x146x11 mm and weighs 410 grams. Visually, of course, it still looks a bit thick, and it weighs a little more than usual, so for some users this moment will be critical at the time of purchase. Nevertheless, it is very convenient to hold the device in the palm of your hand.

It is clear that in most cases the dimensions of the gadget are set by the screen diagonal, but if the case of our tablet exactly repeated the aspect ratio of the display, then it would be much more square. Therefore, the manufacturer slightly extended the device, leaving frames around the screen with different thicknesses: horizontally - 2 cm, vertically - 1 cm. Plus, the gadget is additionally equipped with a small edging frame.

Generally speaking, the manufacturer made a pretty smart move with these frames. While working with the Acer A1-810, the touchscreen is in the middle, and there are 2 cm of non-touch surface on the sides, so the user does not need to be afraid that his thumb will accidentally press the sensor.

There is a rather nice metal frame around the perimeter of the device, and if you look inside, we will see that almost all the main elements of the tablet, including motherboard, mounted on a durable plastic mounting surface that blends in with the metal frame. The design turned out to be relatively light, and most importantly - reliable.

cameras

The peephole of the front camera is located exactly in the middle of the display frame, and in its short part, which means that the design of the Acer Iconia A1-810 is designed for the vertical position of the device during conversations on the same Skype. In general, with the aspect ratio of 4 to 3, it is very convenient to control the device in a vertical orientation, there is no feeling of discomfort.

The matrix of the main camera has a scan of five megapixels and is capable of recording video in Full HD format. The eye is located in the corner of the back cover, so you can take photos and videos as in horizontal orientation, as well as vertically. Judging by the reviews of the Acer A1-810 cameras, there are no problems for users during shooting, the manufacturer has thought a lot, so there are no critical comments here.

Interfaces

Not far from the lens of the main camera, on the side face, there are mechanical buttons: in the horizontal part - the volume rocker, on the vertical - the power off button. The device does not have any other mechanical controls.

In a mirror position to the eye of the main camera is the only speaker Acer A1-810, covered with a decorative grille. Naturally, there is no need to talk about at least some kind of audio system, but for the built-in sound card, the power is enough for domestic needs. In any case, if the speaker capabilities are not enough for you, then you can always connect third-party audio peripherals to a 3.5 mm mini-jack. Not far from the audio jack you can see a mini USB 2.0 interface.

The other part of the exits is located in the horizontal part of the butt. Next to the volume rocker there is a slot for an external SD card, a hole for a microphone, a hot reset button and - a little further - a micro-HDMI interface. There are not as many connectors as many would like, but you can fully work. Some owners in their reviews complain about the lack of a separate DC-in interface for a network adapter, and therefore they have to take up a very necessary USB port. In addition, if the gadget needs to be reset or replaced basic settings When the Acer A1-810 won't turn on, the hot reset button is so inconspicuous and hard to reach that you have to resort to using a special tool.

Platform

At the time of the first launch, the owner will be unobtrusively asked to go through a series of official procedures. This includes entering your ID, and if this is not the case, then go through a simple registration on the company's website, after which the Acer tablet will give you access to the desktop.

The basic platform that comes from the manufacturer's conveyor is the "Android" version of Jelly Bean 4.2.2. Wallpaper on the desktop is clearly an amateur, but this is of little interest to us. In addition to the obligatory widgets from the "Google" mail and the "market", you can find very useful and interesting utilities from the "Acer" itself and its friendly companies. Be sure to pay attention to the convenient online catalog for multimedia 7Digital, the AcerCloud branded cloud service (similar to Apple), as well as the TuneIn online radio broadcaster and the pretty Zinio digital publications store are worthy of attention. In any case, if this is not enough for you, then the same Google Play always works for you.

Some users in their reviews complain that certain series of the gadget are equipped with a different version of Android, which is distinguished by an overabundance of all kinds of advertising widgets and other non-removable applications that will surely annoy Acer A1-810 owners. Firmware, or rather, its replacement - this is the only best option. Fortunately, there are now plenty of tools and opportunities for this procedure.

Performance

We can say that the gadget is well balanced in terms of "stuffing". The Acer Iconia A1-810 has an 8-inch (20 cm) display with an aspect ratio of 4 to 3 and a corresponding resolution of 1024 by 768 pixels. The IPS-matrix has good viewing angles and gives a juicy picture at the output.

The hardware part is built on a single-chip MT8125 chipset from Mediatek, a Taiwanese company. Responsible for the performance of the processor "Cortex" from the A7 series, running on four cores with a frequency of 1.5 GHz. The graphical component fell not on the shoulders of a rather nimble PowerVR card of the SGX544 series.

In addition, the device fully supports wireless protocols Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, as well as the ability to work with 3G networks (variably).

Bench tests

In the popular Antutu benchmark, the Acer Iconia A1-810 device scored 12,881 points, leaving behind the Nexus of the seventh series and Transformer Prime from Asus. The gadget, of course, is far from the indicators of the venerable Galaxy S4 and Xperia Z, but nevertheless the result is very pleasing.

In a separate test for 3D visualization from the same Antutu, the Acer A1-810 outperformed its competitors by a good margin. If you look at the bare bench statistics, it is clearly noticeable that the manufacturer did not save on the "stuffing" and equipped his offspring with a worthy set of chipsets.

Offline work

When passing the battery efficiency test, the device showed shocking results. Note that this test for Antuta takes place in several stages at the maximum load of the gadget, and until the battery of the device runs down to 20% of its capacity.

So, the bench test lasted six hours! That is, the apparatus was loaded with everything possible and worked at the wear and tear of its forces for six whole hours. The test indicators exceeded the mark of 1000 points, and this is a kind of record among devices of this class. Usually, in such conditions, batteries, even from venerable manufacturers, could not withstand more than 4 hours, but here some Acer tablet lasted six.

The bare numbers of the reputable Antutu benchmark may not have impressed someone, but field tests have confirmed the unique capabilities of the model's battery. For testing in real conditions, audio and video samples were compiled in high resolution(1080p, 360 Kbps), that is, a set of tools is provided for testing things more serious than tablets (TVs, media players). The result fully met expectations: with all this surroundings, the device lasted a little more than 9 hours, which is very impressive.

But there is at this moment one fly in the ointment. The thing is that the official website of the company indicates the battery capacity of 4960 mAh, we see about the same thing on most other trading floors world wide web("Yandex.Market", "Svyaznoy", "Citylink", etc.). Some stores even indicate a capacity of 3250 mAh. As for the cost of Acer A1-810, its price is mostly unchanged.

Judging by the reviews of the owners of the gadget, it is clear that someone got a device with a less capacious battery, for example, 3250 mAh, and someone pulled out, as they say, a lucky ticket - the inscription 5020 mAh flaunts on the battery. What this is connected with is not entirely clear. Maybe the manufacturer equipped some of its models with a good battery for “priming”, and installed an average battery in the rest, but maybe there is some other reason that Asus representatives don’t want to name for some reason.

In any case, before you give your hard-earned money to the cashier of the store mobile technology, obviously it will not be superfluous to look under the cover of the device and ask about the capacity of the battery. If the figure does not suit you, then, thank God, there are plenty of such points of sale, so let the seeker find it.

Operation of GPS protocols

Field tests were carried out in urban conditions in the fresh air. GPS satellites were found immediately, when you first turned on the gadget. If there is such a need, then you can install some additional mapping applications and use the tablet as a navigator.

The basic set of programs and utilities includes "Google" navigation applications and standard cards. For everyday life, they may still fit, but for car navigation you need to look for something more serious.

Summarizing

The brand decided to beat its main competitors with a new gadget. A very comfortable eight-inch model with powerful hardware and a very aggressive price tag was able to outsell the now popular seventh series Nexus and almost caught up with the Apple iPad mini. A set of chipsets easily allows you to run even the most “heavy” gaming applications, albeit at medium settings, but without any lags, FPS subsidence and other brakes. The operation of the interface also does not cause any complaints: the desktops react smoothly, beautifully and without twitching.

In addition, for those who like to chat everywhere and always provided front-camera, which performed well in many instant messengers, including Skype. Therefore, users should not have communication problems. The capabilities of the rear camera are more modest than most venerable phablets, but it will do just fine for creating simple panoramas and ordinary photo and video materials.

In general, the company turned out to be a very good device with attractive external and internal characteristics, as well as excellent battery life. Our respondent's closest competitors are Apple's iPad mini and the seventh Nexus. The first is lighter and thinner than Acer, and other characteristics like the platform and the filling are only speculatively comparable. As for the Nexus, it slightly wins in the screen resolution - 1280 by 800 pixels, but loses in the diagonal (7 to 8 inches), so this is also a matter of taste.

Naturally, with all its advantages, the Acer Iconia Tab A1-810 model has some disadvantages. The weakest point of the device is the display. Modest, by modern standards, a resolution of 1024 by 768 pixels can scare away potential buyers. In addition, the maximum brightness of the display could be higher, which means that you won’t be able to work comfortably on a bright sunny day. Despite the modest screen specifications, this has an even greater positive effect on battery life, because a small scan and average brightness require much less energy.

As for the price, a model with 8 GB of internal memory will cost you about 7,000 rubles, and a variable device with 16 GB will cost a thousand more. The same "Nexus" costs a little less, but many users complain about some kind of buggy platform, while the "apple" mini-representative has no problems with this, but the price bites (10-13 thousand rubles).

Model advantages:

• a powerful set of chipsets in comparison with similar devices in this segment;
• a successful version of the Android platform without unnecessary advertising "garbage";
• the ability to work with external SD-carriers up to 64 GB;
• the presence of a modern micro-HDMI output;
• excellent battery life;
• the presence of a front and rear camera;
• work on 3G protocols (variably).

Flaws:

• for some, insufficient screen resolution (1024 by 768 pixels);
• low indicator of maximum brightness;
• too heavy and thick for its diagonal;
• mediocre speakers, so the only way to comfortably spend leisure time is a third-party headset.

If you are ready to put up with a low screen resolution, you will get a wonderful device on the Android platform in many ways. If you add a very democratic price tag to all its advantages, you get an excellent tablet with an almost perfect value for money.

The estimated price on popular Internet sites is about 7,000 rubles for the base model.