IntroductionWindows 8 has seen a host of fresh designs for tablets and laptops, with many manufacturers trying their hardest to build a device that's capable of doing both jobs. That has led to some innovative thinking, such as the screen-spinning Dell XPS 12 and the Microsoft Surface and its detachable keyboard. However, the Acer Iconia W700 has a slightly simpler take on the hybrid design.The Iconia W700 differs from other hybrid tablets by not having a keyboard that attaches to the body of the tablet to create a laptop-style device. Instead it looks like any normal tablet, albeit bulkier and 11.6 inches across. It docks into a stand that props it up at a usable angle and acts as a charging stand and USB hub.The idea is that you keep the dock and keyboard at work or in your home, and use it like a full PC. The added HDMI means you can connect it to an external monitor so you'd have no idea you were using a tablet at all. When you leave, just pull the tablet out from the dock, for games, apps and browsing on the move. We actually prefer this set up to the jack-of-all-trades and master of none form factors of some other Windows 8 hybrids, such as the Lenovo IdeaPad Yoga 13 and Toshiba Satellite U920T, which are too large to be used as tablets yet suffer from reduced usability in 'laptop-mode.'However, don't think you'll get the same svelte stylings as those of the Apple iPad. When you pack a laptop-grade processor into a tablet, you have the same thermal headaches as la
Comment