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Acer locates 'missing' tablet strategy

Date, price set for Android 3.0 fondleslabs

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Acer has announced the launch date and pricing of its Iconia 10.1in tablets. The company has a two-OS strategy supporting both Windows 7 and Android 3.0 Honeycomb in its W500 and A500 models, respectively.

Acer Iconia W500

Acer's Iconia W500 in netbook mode

The W500 will be available in Wi-Fi and Wi-Fi + 3G versions, and will be sold either separately or with a docking keyboard. It’s this keyboard that rather captures the imagination as the W500 looks every inch a netbook when attached to it. However, it doesn’t close up in the way you would expect: the tablet needs to be removed, and the hinged docking latch and interface folded away. Then the keyboard can function as a protective lid, held in place with a combination of a latch and magnetism.

Clumsy and inelegant? Yes, and heavy too.

Acer Iconia W500

Slimline tablet transformed into chunky netbook

There’s no trackpad either, but the touchscreen will take care of most things although there is a green, ThinkPad-style rubber pointing stick that Acer calls the FineTrack. The keyboard also features wired networking and an additional USB port.

Acer Iconia W500

No track pad, just a point stick

Acer made great play of its tablet history, remarking that its TravelMate C100 was the first Windows XP tablet to appear, some ten years ago. But executives nevertheless confessed that its tablet strategy was "missing". Apparently, the touch and type combo of the W500 is aimed at those who want to "do stuff on the move".

Re: Hayden Clark

"You're with your cool friends - would you dare to get this contraption out of its bag, while their poking and sweeping on their iPads?"

Sounds like your nights out with friends are an absolute riot!

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Nipple mouse?

We never used to call them 'nipple mouse' - always called them something that ladies usually say men can never find.

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Rubber pointing stick...

"green, ThinkPad-style rubber pointing stick" - I thin you mean a nipple mouse, like those found on older laptops, I replaced the rubber cap on one of mine not that long ago

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True and Sad

It's quite sad how true the OP's statement really is. However, if you've spied the Samsung 8.9" and 10.1" follow-ups to the Galaxy Tab (which was terrible btw), you'd likely be singing a different tune in the way of competing tablets.

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IBM trademarked the name TrackPoint

but other names include TouchStyk. Other names can be found in the relevant Wikipedia article, and many other good information sources.

IBM's name was the original, though, as they developed it to a product even if they did not invent it.

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