I’ve written a lot about the Windows 8 operating system and Windows RT tablets over the last few months – for more details, see my reviews of Windows 8, the Microsoft Surface with Windows RT, and the ASUS VivoTab RT – but I haven’t had a chance to spend much time with a Windows 8 tablet running a traditional Intel processor. Unlike the ARM processors found in the Surface RT and VivoTab RT, the Iconia’s Intel Atom Clover Trail processor allows the device to run traditional desktop applications without sacrificing the battery life or form factor.
Over the next few weeks, I’ll be comparing and contrasting the two types of processors and documenting my experiences. Unfortunately, the Iconia W510 did not come with a keyboard dock, so it might be more difficult to compare actual productivity. I am, however, considering picking one up.
My initial impressions of the device are mixed. On the one hand, I love being able to install Microsoft Office Professional Plus 2013 and other desktop applications on a tablet. Last weekend, while recording my regular weekly podcast, I was forced to ask a fellow host to record the episode, since I was out of town and only had my Surface. If I’d had the Iconia W510 with me, this wouldn’t have been an issue. I don’t need to use desktop applications all the time, but they’re still very handy to have around. And installing the SkyDrive for Windows desktop application makes things even more convenient. Of course, the fact that the device is running Windows 8, rather than Windows RT, means that it doesn’t come bundled with a copy of Microsoft Office. As a result, you’ll need to purchase, download, and install it yourself. It actually felt strange to use a Windows tablet that didn’t come with Office.
Sadly, the Iconia W510 suffers from the same problem that has plagued most Windows PCs for years – crapware. In fact, it’s riddled with it. My first act upon setting up the device was to go through and uninstall the 36 different apps, desktop applications, and pinned sites that Acer was paid to have preinstalled. This is in stark contrast to the Surface, which only came with the standard Windows 8 apps, and the VivoTab, which included just a handful of preinstalled apps and pinned sites. In an attempt to make the desktop more touch-friendly, Acer also bumped up the zoom to 125%. I’m not a fan of this personally, as makes everything seem more bloated, so I quickly returned it to the standard 100% setting.
The hardware itself feels pretty nice and sturdy, although the back near the NFC plate does feel a bit warm to the touch on occasion. While Windows RT tablets usually feel very responsive, this one seems even more so; especially in apps which sometimes take a while to load. The same, however, can not be said for the Start button, which requires me to press down harder and for a longer duration than I’m used to. Lastly, the screen looks pretty good, albeit a bit high on the contrast side. The display on my particular model appears to have a small imperfection on the right side of the screen, but I am hopeful that this issue will be resolved soon.
I plan on using the device for a while before writing my full review, but I’m pretty happy with the Acer Iconia W510 so far. While the initial out-of-the-box experience was somewhat annoying - due in large part to the crapware – the actual hardware and performance appears to be pretty good. I’m looking forward to being able to use desktop applications like Outlook and Photoshop on my new Windows 8 tablet.
The Acer Iconia W510 tablet was provided to me, by Intel, as part of the company’s #TabletCrew program.
“My first act upon setting up the device was to go through and uninstall the 36 different apps, desktop applications, and pinned sites that Acer was paid to have preinstalled.”
If you buy the W510–or any other computer through the Microsoft Store–you can avoid all the crapware. In fact, they were selling them for $100 under list price on Cyber Monday. Unfortunately the MS Store seems to be sold out of them at the moment…
Oh, I’m very much aware of that. In fact, that’s the biggest reason I bought my desktop from the Microsoft Store. The Signature PCs are fantastic.
Unfortunately, there are still only a few dozen locations in the US and Canada, and many people don’t think to order the devices through the Microsoft Store website. More often than not, consumers will simply run out to their local store or visit their favorite website and end up with a crapware-filled device. It shouldn’t happen. Period.
And in my case, I didn’t have much of a choice.
Drivers are up to v2.00 now, do remember to get the latest ones, cause they *seem* to have fixed some lingering issues.
Thanks for the tip! The tablet arrived earlier today, so I’m still downloading updates, setting things up, etc. I’ll have to double check and make sure it’s completely up-to-date.
Nice write up. I was actually considering this tablet one day.
I too, hate crapware with a burning passion!
How do you actually delete the factory apps? it barely gave me space to start with out of a 32gb.
Factory apps can be uninstalled the same way as any other apps. Just right-click on the tile (or tap and swipe down) to bring up the app bar, then select “uninstall.”
To free up even more space, simply delete the recovery partition. Plug in a 16GB+ USB flash drive and search the settings for “Create a recovery drive.” Check the box “Copy the recovery partition from the PC to the recovery drive” and then follow the prompts to copy it to the flash drive. Finally, select the “Delete recovery partition” option to free up the space.