Chromebooks are extremely popular in schools around the
world, but they do not offer the portability of an iPad or Surface device.
That's why Google Chrome is partnering with manufacturers to launch OS OS
tablet. The first of these is the $ 346 Chromebook Tab 10 from Acer, which was
announced back in March this year.
A cheap Chrome OS tablet looks great to be true, but it is
not for everyday users. This education is ready to market. If you want one
raise one, but first, read about why you should not - to know that unless you
work for school. Here's our Acer Chromebook Tab 10 review.
The design
Keep this in mind in this review: Acer Chromebook tab 10 is
not trying to compete with consumer-grade iPad or Surface tablet. It was made
in the minds of the children, and it is also not trying to be an attractive
tablet, which is right for all your needs.
This is especially true with the design of tab 10. It is
made of succulent plastic, with a textured back which makes it easy to catch.
At 1.2 pounds it is also a bit heavy. It looks like it looks like what you see
in a school - it does not sit much on a coffee table in someone's home.
The
bejels around the display are large, making it easy to capture in both
Landscape and Portrait mode. Above top, you will get a headphone jack (yay!), A
microphone and three speaker cutouts. On the left are Power Buttons, Volume
Keys, MicroSD Card Slots, and Stylus (more on that later). Below are three more
speaker cutouts and USB type-c ports. You can use this type-p port to charge or
hook external hardware such as display, keyboards and rats.
I am not able to
test the tablet while it is embedded on the external monitor, unfortunately.
Overall, I like the design of this tablet. This is a simple, no-frills device
for the classroom.
The Acer Chromebook tab plays 10 9.7-inch IPS LCD display -
the size of Apple's new learning-focused iPad. It does not compete with the
iPad's screen quality, but it is quite good. It has a resolution of 4: 3 aspect
ratio and 2,048 x 1,536, which results in a pixel density of 264ppi. It is good
to see an angle, and it can be very bright and dull. Although the screen is
hot, there is no option to tweak it in the settings menu.
Display and hardware:
The most notable "extra" hardware feature with Tab
10 is its speak stylus. Stuck on the edge of the tablet, Stylus provides an
easy way to screenshots users, take notes, draw and zoom in things. This is
using the electro-magnetic resonance (EMR) technology you've got in Samsung's
Chromebook Stylus. This allows the stylus to work without built-in battery or
Bluetooth connection.
The stylus itself is decent. It's small and light. It may be
difficult to catch for an extended period because it is too small, but I think
that kids will not have any problem in sketching the doodle and taking notes
with it. Samsung's S Pen does not have any additional hardware buttons in the
side, but it's still super functional. Removing the stylus enables a small menu
with screenshots and note-taking shortcuts. It is quite easy.
In addition, since Acer Chromebook 10 can run Android apps,
you can download any note-taking apps from the Play Store if you want something
more powerful than Google Keep.
There are six speaker cutouts in this tablet, but do not let
it fool you - this is very quiet. I'm not sure that the speakers will be quite
vigorous for children to listen to the video inside the classroom filled with
other children, although I did not test it.
If you are using an app at a time, Acer Chromebook Tab 10 is
a solid artist. Dual Core Rockchip RK 3399 and 4GB are enough to launch RAM
apps, but it fights with multitasking. There is a fair amount of interval when
switching between two apps at one time.
This will definitely not be a good tool
for consuming media or casting things on your TV, which is worth explaining to
the targeted demographic of the tablet. Students may not use this device as
hard as I can.
Another reason this tablet is not clearly for consumers:
cameras Tab 10 has 5 MP rear and 2 MP front camera, both of which are less than
passable. It seems that they are directly out of the 2010 Flip Phone era. They
may be fine for classroom use, but it's about it.
Acer says that the Chromebook tab 10 can run on a single
charge for up to nine hours, and I would say it's right. Teachers will be able
to get them plugged in these days.
The keyboard:
The software keyboard on tab 10 is the same keyboard as the
other touchscreen Chrome OS device. It certainly does not compare to the
gobbles, and typing can be extremely disappointing. Text prediction and
improvements are not exactly accurate in the form of goggles.
In addition, for
some reason, the keyboard is set to capitalize the first letter in each word on
some Android apps, and you can not turn it off. If you are using normal Android
apps like Google Keep or Docs, then it breaks down the typing experience alone.
To be worth it, it's not on Chrome Web App.
Fortunately, Tab 10 pairs are there with any Bluetooth
keyboard, so this is the option if teachers want their students to write long
form essays or like. Acer, however, does not offer a Bluetooth keyboard built
for this tablet, which is a bumar.
Acer needs to create a folio cover with a built-in keyboard,
like what is the Surface tablet. Obviously, this tablet will defeat the purpose
of keeping the form factor, but the option to include one in each order would
be good - especially because this garbage software will be ready for the
keyboard. Belkin Chrome OS tablet creates a wired keyboard for schools that can
connect with this tablet, if they do so.
On the bright side, Gore is obviously coming in to Chrome OS
in this fall. It will significantly improve the typing experience.
Software:
In addition to keyboard problems, this is the same Chrome OS
experience you'll find on any other Chromebook. I will not go into the basics
of Chrome OS in this review - I will save it for Gary - but I will talk about
my experiences using this as the main computer in addition to the Android app.
It's still a desktop-level OS, which means that some things
are hard to do on a tablet. Automatically hides the "status bar" at
the top of the screen about every web and Android app, so if you want to close
the app, you need to swipe down from top to bottom every time. On Chromebooks
with a physical keyboard (and thus a trackpad), the "X" button
appears automatically. The workflow is just easy on the full computer.
The Android app still needs some work on Chromebooks. They
are not compatible with all Chrome OS, and some compatible people will not open
anyway. Gboard is available in the Play Store, but can not be set as the input
method. Some Android apps work perfectly, and when they do this, it's great.
Multitasking with Android apps and Chrome browsers makes an amazing experience.
Educational attributes
The Acer Chromebook tab 10 supports Google campaigns, which
lets you take virtual field trips from the comfort of your desk. The tablet
will also support AR campaign in future, ultimately allowing students to see
objects in real reality in the classroom.
The IT department will be able to manage these tablets with
Chrome Management Console. Each student can have their profile with their own
login information, so all data loaded on a person's account will remain on that
account.
Specification:
| Acer Chromebook Tab 10 (D651N-K9WT) | |
|---|---|
| Display | 9.7-inch IPS LCD 2,048 x 1,536 resolution ~264ppi 4:3 aspect ratio |
| SoC | Rockchip RK3399 Dual-core Cortex-A72 and quad-core Cortex-A53 processors 2GHz |
| GPU | Mali T860 |
| RAM | 4GB LPDDR3 |
| Storage | 32GB MicroSD expansion |
| Cameras | Rear: 5MP sensor, 720p HD audio and video recording Front: 2MP sensor, 720p HD audio and video recording |
| Battery | 34Wh 8,860mAh Lithium-polymer Up to 9 hours |
| Stylus | Wacom EMR |
| Connectivity | 802.11ac 2x2 MIMO dual-band Wi-Fi Bluetooth 4.1 USB 3.1 Type-C |
| Software | Chrome OS |
| Dimensions and weight | 172.2 x 238.2 x 9.9mm 544.3g |
| Color | Indigo blue |
I think it's clear that Chrome OS is not ready for the mainstream tablet market. A lot of things are not yet optimized for the tablet form factor. However, Google issues continuous updates for the operating system, so things will change in the coming weeks and months.
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