\n\tThe Acer Iconia Tab A100 is one of several 7″ Android tablets to hit the market in 2011. Like its 10″ cousin, the Acer Iconia Tab A500, the A100 has a stylish exterior, dual-core NVIDIA Tegra 2 processor, two cameras, HDMI out, and expandable memory support. It’s available in 8GB and 16GB versions.
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\n\tI cracked open the larger A500 earlier this year. Follow along as I do the same to the Iconia Tab A100.
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\n\tFor a more in-depth review of the A100’s internal hardware, check out my article, “Acer Iconia Tab A100 teardown: Lots of tech crammed into 7″ case.”
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\n\tPhoto by: Bill Detwiler / TechRepublic
\n\tCaption by: Bill Detwiler
\n\tAs of this writing, the Acer Iconia Tab A100 is available in 8GB ($329.99) and 16GB ($349.99) versions. The current versions only support Wi-Fi connectivity. But like the larger Iconia Tab A500, there is already a spot inside the A100’s case for a cellular card.
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\n\tPhoto by: Bill Detwiler / TechRepublic
\n\tCaption by: Bill Detwiler
\n\tInside the Iconia Tab A100’s box, you’ll find the tablet itself, power adapter and cord, USB cable, and product documentation.
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\n\tPhoto by: Bill Detwiler / TechRepublic
\n\tCaption by: Bill Detwiler
\n\tThe Acer Iconia Tab A100 weighs 0.92 lbs. and measures 7.7″ (W) x 4.6″ (H) x 0.5″ (D). The A100 is lighter than the HTC Flyer and BlackBerry PlayBook.
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\n\tThe A100 has a dual-core NVidia Tegra 2 1GHz processor, 1GB of DDR2 SDRAM, a 7″ touchscreen display (1,0240×600), a 2 MP front camera and 5 MP rear camera. It comes with Android 3.2 Honeycomb installed.
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\n\tPhoto by: Bill Detwiler / TechRepublic
\n\tCaption by: Bill Detwiler
\n\tTo illustrate just how small the 7″ Iconia Tab A100 is compared to other 10″ tablets, I took this photo of it alongside the Apple iPad.
\n\tOn the back of the Iconia Tab A100 are the 5MP camera and LED flash.
\n\tAlong the Iconia Tab A100’s bottom edge are the Reset button, Micro (Type D) HDMI port, docking port, Micro USB port, DC-in power jack, and speaker. A Home button is also located on the lower, front bezel.
\n\tNext to the Iconia Tab A100’s MIcroSD card slot is a space for a SIM card slot, which is blocked.
\n\tUsing a thin metal blade and taking care not to damage the Iconia Tab A100’s plastic case, I popped loose the thin plastic pieces that run along the tablet’s left and right edges.
\n\tFive screws hold the Iconia Tab A100’s back cover in place. Two screws along the left and right edge and one screw along the bottom edge.
\n\tLike the left and right edge covers, I used my thin metal blade to pop off the bottom edge cover.
\n\tWith all the screws removed, I used a curved metal tool to pry off the back cover.
\n\tAlthough the Iconia Tab A100’s lower edge cover is removable, the top edge cover is permanently attached to the back cover.
\n\tThe Iconia Tab A100’s internal hardware layout is extremely similar to the larger Iconia A500.
\n\tA small PCB mounted at the top of the Iconia Tab A100 contains connectors for the microphone (left), front-facing camera, volume control keys, screen rotation lock switch, power button, and headphone jack.
\n\tThis PCB contains connectors for the microphone (left), front-facing camera, volume control keys, screen rotation lock switch, power button, and headphone jack.
\n\tLike the A500, the Iconia Tab A100 has a metal mounting plate that covers the display. As the front panel (digitizer) and display are fused together and removing the mounting plate doesn’t reveal much, I decided to leave it in place.
\n\tFor a more in-depth review of the A100’s internal hardware, check out my article, “Acer Iconia Tab A100 teardown: Lots of tech crammed into 7″ case.”
Bill Detwiler is the Editor for Technical Content and Ecosystem at Celonis. He is the former Editor in Chief of TechRepublic and previous host of TechRepublic's Dynamic Developer podcast and Cracking Open, CNET and TechRepublic's popular online show. Previously, Bill was an IT manager in the social research and energy industries. He has bachelor's and master's degrees from the University of Louisville, where he has also lectured on computer crime and crime prevention.
