Low-End Windows Tablet Selection Continues to Expand with Acer W4

It seems Acer won’t be outdone by the new 8-inch tablets surfacing from both Dell and Lenovo. The company is launching the Acer W4, a revamped version of the Acer W3 tablet that it released to users earlier this year.

Acer hasn’t gone and completely rethought its tablet formula in creating the Acer W4. Instead, the company seems to have attempted to fix a few of the key shortcomings that led to its lukewarm reception from reviewers.

Unlike the relatively low-quality display included in the Acer W3, the Acer W4 includes an updated 8-inch IPS display with a resolution of 1280 x 800 pixels. In addition to being low resolution, the Acer W3’s display suffered from pretty glare problems when used outside or indoors in a room with a lot of lighting. Acer is hoping that users won’t have the same issue with the W4 since its positioned the display closer to the glass covering it.

The Acer W4 also ships with an upgraded processor that will allow users to open applications and browse websites more quickly than they could with its predecessor. As it’s an Intel Bay Trail processor, users can actually install and open desktop applications like iTunes on the device as well.

The company has also made the device a bit lighter. The Acer W4 includes the same 5 megapixel rear-facing camera and 2 megapixel front-facing camera from the Acer W3.

What is better is the price. Acer says that the Acer W4 will go on sale later this month beginning at just $330 for a unit with 32GB on-board storage. Users will also have the option to purchase a version with 64GB of on-board storage for $380, or add the more storage to either using the microSD card slot built into the device.

At that price, the Acer W4 could make a great traditional PC replacement for some users, and since users have the option to plug the device into a larger display with the built-in HDMI port and connect an optional keyboard dock, it can literally be the only PC and tablet users ever need.

The Acer W4 joins new low-cost 8-inch devices like the Lenovo Miix2 and Dell’s new line-up of tablets. Pricing for the Miix2 begins at $299 and  Dell’s Venue 8 Pro also has an 8-inch display and optional keyboard. Dell hasn’t disclosed final pricing for it yet.