Acer Introduces Budget Priced 10.1-inch Iconia A3 Tablet

Generally speaking, tablet prices have fallen off a cliff in the past year, a trend that was started by growing competition in the 7-inch market. However, larger size slates have also fallen in price now that Google's hardware partners have figured out that most consumers don't want to spend $499+ on a 10-inch slate. One company that's answering the call for affordable, full-size tablets is Acer.

Acer on Monday announced its new Iconia A3, a 10.1-inch Android slate powered by a quad-core 1.2GHz Cortex A7 processor. It also features a 1280x800 resolution IPS display, microSD card slot, micro HDMI output, Dolby Digital Plus for virtual 5.1 surround sound, 5-megapixel camera, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, optional 3G, and of course Android 4.2 Jelly Bean software.


"The Iconia A3 also debuts Acer’s IntelliSpin technology that expands the tablet’s screen image rotation feature, so even when lying flat, the screen image will rotate to match the user’s orientation when turned," Acer explains.

Acer says the Wi-Fi version will land in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa in October for 249 Euros (~$330), followed by the 3G model a month later for 299 Euros (~$395). No word yet on when the Iconia A3 will ship to the U.S. market or for how much.