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Acer Iconia Tab A510 review

7.5/10 AVG.
RATING
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Acer Iconia Tab A510
Acer Iconia Tab A510
Acer Iconia Tab A510
Acer Iconia Tab A510
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7.5/10
Informr score
The Acer Iconia Tab A510 currently has an Informr score of 7.5 out of 10. This score is based on our evaluation of 11 sources including reviews from users and the web's most trusted critics.

If you think that you'll never find a suitable 10-inch tablet with Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich for work or for play, think again. The fact is, there are several such devices available on the market today. However, none are quite like the Acer Iconia Tab A510, which manages to trump the competition with its superb mobile processing power and superior battery life. You can call this tablet many things, but it is definitely not weak or under-powered. Actually, it is one of the more reliably powerful tablets that you can get in its price range. And on top of that, it even looks good.

What makes the Acer Iconia Tab A510 a force to be reckoned with? For one thing, it packs a 1.3GHz quad-core NVIDIA Tegra 3 System-on-a-Chip which comes with a 12-core graphics chip under the hood. That pretty much makes it capable of running any Android game you can throw at it. If they came out with a game called Angry Birds: Supernova and you had to play it by throwing cute yet disgruntled parakeets into swirling black holes in the middle of empty space to destroy pig fortresses made out of tiny galaxies, the A510 would run it. Science fiction aside, you really can do a lot of stuff with this tablet, ranging from watching HD movies on its 10.1-inch 1280x800 touchscreen LCD, playing music through its built-in loudspeakers with the aid of Dolby Mobile sound technology, browsing the Internet wirelessly through Wi-Fi (optional 3G connectivity), or any one of a hundred other things with the use of aftermarket software applications that can be downloaded through the Google Play store.

The A510 packs so much serious figurative muscle that Acer saw it fit to release it in a special Olympic Edition version to commemorate the 2012 London Olympics. Its other features include dual cameras, with the main one having a 5-megapixel sensor at the back, built-in Bluetooth and GPS, 1GB of RAM, 32GB of onboard storage, support for up to 32GB microSD cards, microHDMI output, and microUSB connectivity. Speaking of the microUSB feature, it works in a somewhat crippled configuration because you can only use it for charging with the accompanying wall charger. Charging via USB only works when the device is in sleep mode. And even then, it’s going to take needlessly long to finish charging. Evidently, Acer meant for the built-in microUSB port to be used only for data. No one really knows why they did this.

The bottom line is, you’ll definitely get plenty of bang for your buck with this tablet. Some people contend that Acer may be asking for too much with this particular device in terms of price. This is where it might be worth remembering an old saying: you get what you pay for.

Need to Know: Acer Iconia Tab A510

1. Powerful innards and sleek-looking outward appearance. (The Good)

2. Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich comes pre-installed as standard. (The Good)

3. Overall a bit too thick and too heavy for extended use. (The Bad)

4. USB port is non-standard and charging only works via the included wall charger. (The Bad)


Android
Operating system
Operating system
Android
1.3 GHz
Processor
Processor
1.3 GHz
10.1"
Screen Size
Screen Size
10.1"
5+ MP
Camera
Camera
5+ MP
9800 mAh
Battery


What the Critics Are Saying...


AppleNApps
AppleNApps

Shapes Music is worth picking up for a brand new music experience on the iPad, which is made for everyone to pick up and play. We just wish there was more to extend the ideas at work.

- Trevor Sheridan, AppleNApps
Coolsmartphone
Coolsmartphone

The Iconia is a great tablet that you can mould to your own requirements, be it travelling, multimedia, productivity or gaming. The problem is that most Android tablets now lag behind something or other, mostly the Nexus range, the Google pricing model has really shook up the tablet market and manuf...

- James Pearce, Coolsmartphone
Know Your Mobile
Know Your Mobile

Arguably the biggest selling point of the A510 - apart from its appealing but now outdated Olympic connection - is its Tegra 3 chipset. This allows it to offer world-beating performance when it comes to watching HD video, playing 3D games and surfing the web. However, all the technological potency i...

- Damian McFerren , Know Your Mobile
Know Your Mobile
Know Your Mobile

Arguably the biggest selling point of the A510 - apart from its appealing but now outdated Olympic connection - is its Tegra 3 chipset. This allows it to offer world-beating performance when it comes to watching HD video, playing 3D games and surfing the web. However, all the technological potency...

- Damien McFerran, Know Your Mobile
Tech Advisor
Tech Advisor

The Acer Iconia Tab A510 Olympic Edition won't be winning any Gold medals in our tablets chart. Its battery life is strong, and up there with the iPad, but once the games have finished there's little else here for us to recommend it over other high-end slates.

- Ross Catanzarit, Tech Advisor


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Quick view

Screen Size
10.1"

The Acer Iconia Tab A510's screen size is 10.1 inches with x pixels resolution.

Processor
1.3 GHz

There is a Nvidia Tegra 3 Quad-core CPU 1.3 GHz processor (CPU).

OS

The tablet runs on proprietary operating system firmware.

Camera
5+ MP
You can take photos or capture video with the tablet's onboard 5+ MP camera. There is also a secondary front facing camera with 1+ megapixels resolution.
Storage
32 GB

Internal memory is 32 GB. An external, MicroSD, MicroSDHC (up to 32 GB) expansion slot is available for increased storage capacity.

Battery
9800mAh

The tablet is powered by a Lithium Polymer (Li-Pol), 9800 mAh battery. Acer's performance ratings are 16 days standby time, 11 hours Wi-Fi surfing.

Iconia Tab A510 Specs

Overview
Release Date April 6, 2012
Regions Available USA, Canada
Operating System No

Compare Android Smartphones

Processor Nvidia Tegra 3 Quad-core CPU 1.3 GHz
Internal Storage 32 GB
RAM 1 GB
Hearing Aid Compatible No
TTY/TDD No
SAR Unknown
Manufacturer Warranty 1 Year
Accessories Included AC Charger, Manual, Standard Battery
Cellular
Networks
Mobile / Cellular Data
No (Option available)
Wi-Fi Calling No
Voice over LTE (VoLTE) No
SIM card size
No
Dual SIM No
Connectivity
USB Micro-USB 2.0
USB OTG Support No
Infrared No
Bluetooth 2.1
Bluetooth Profiles A2DP, AVRCP, OPP/FTP, HID
Bluetooth Audio Codecs SBC
Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n
Memory Expansion Slot Yes
Expansion Slot Info MicroSD, MicroSDHC (up to 32 GB)
NFC No
Camera
Main Camera
Resolution / Aperture
5+ Megapixels
Zoom
Yes
Flash
No
Additional Main Camera Info
Auto focus, Effects, Geotagging, Panorama, White balance, Exposure
Video Recording Formats
3GP / 3GPP, H.264 / AVC, MPEG-4
Video Recording Parameters
Full HD (1920 x 1080 pixels)
Front Camera
Resolution / Aperture
1+ Megapixels
Additional Front Camera Info
No
Video Recording Parameters
Display / Screen
Type Color
Technology LCD (TFT)
Colors 262k
Resolution x pixels
Pixel density Unknown
Size 10.1 inches
Sensors Ambient Light, Motion / Accelerometer
Backlit Illumination Yes
Zoom / Magnification Yes
Screen Orientation Lock Yes
Multi-Touch Yes
Fingerprint-Resistant Coating No
Additional Display Features CapacitiveTouchscreen
Power & Battery
Type Lithium Polymer (Li-Pol)
Battery Capacity 9800 mAh
Removable Battery No
Wireless Charging
Fast Charging No
Battery Charge Time 4 hours
Video Playback Time Up to 13 hours
Internet Use (Wi-Fi) Up to 11 hours
Internet Use (Cellular) Unknown
Standby Time Up to 16 days
Mixed Usage
Physical Characteristics
Material Plastic
Colors Silver, Black
Dimensions [H x W x D] 17.5 x 25.9 x 1.1 cm (6.9 x 10.2 x 0.4 in)
Weight 689 grams
Water Resistant / Waterproof Unknown
Rugged design No
IP Rating No
Headset Jack 3.5mm
External Speakers Yes
Input / Navigation
Touchscreen Yes
Sleep / Wake Key No
Home Key No
Physical keyboard No
Text-to-Speech Yes
Screen Reader No
Keypad/Screen Lock Yes
External Volume Control Yes
Fingerprint Sensor No
More
Additional Information Graphics: Yes
Backlit Illumination: Yes
Zoom / Magnification: Yes
Screen Orientation Lock: Yes
Predictive Text Entry: No
Keypad/Screen Lock: Yes
Web Browser: Yes
Email Client: Yes
Email Protocols: POP3, IMAP, SMTP, Microsoft Exchange
PC Synchronization: OTA
TV Out Info: HDMI
Audio Formats: MP3, eAAC+, AAC+, AAC, AMR, WAV
Video Playback Formats: 3GP / 3GPP, H.264 / AVC, MPEG-4
Streaming Video: Yes
Custom Ringtones: Yes
Vibration Alert: Yes
Viewable document types: DOC, DOCX, PDF, PPT, PPTX, XLS
Games: Downloadable
Apps: Downloadable, Pre-installed
Included Software / Apps: -
Calendar, World Clock, Alarm, Calculator, Maps, Voice Memos / Recorder

Other Names (AKA):
Related Links Manual (PDF)
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