Can Windows 8 thrive on small tablets?

Folks looking for a Windows 8 companion can find it in Acer’s Iconia W3, an 8.1-inch newest tablets running Microsoft’s operating system. The Iconia W3, spotted on Acer’s Finland site by SlashGear, doesn’t appear to have a confirmed price tag or availability just yet.

Iconia W3 landscapeWhile Microsoft Windows 8 tablets have generally been sized at 10.1-inches or larger, the company is rumored to be working on a smaller Surface tablet. That would mean it relaxed the hardware requirements an allow for a device such as the W3, which will offer an optional keyboard to help with text input. Will the market support these smaller slates?

Folks looking for a Windows 8 companion can find it in Acer’s Iconia W3, an 8.1-inch latest android tablet running Microsoft’s operating system. The Iconia W3, spotted on Acer’s Finland site by SlashGear, doesn’t appear to have a confirmed price tag or availability just yet.

Iconia W3 landscapeWhile Microsoft Windows 8 tablets have generally been sized at 10.1-inches or larger, the company is rumored to be working on a smaller Surface tablet. That would mean it relaxed the hardware requirements an allow for a device such as the W3, which will offer an optional keyboard to help with text input. Will the market support these smaller slates?ds11SW44S

I’m sure to hear contrary opinions on this, but what Q88 Tablet would make the W3 more appealing would be for the tablet to run only the Metro interface and apps. (Ironically, none of the W3 product images even show the desktop, which I think is telling.) Of course, Microsoft doesn’t offer a Windows 8 license with just that part of the platform. I wish it did and did so at a reduced price since one would give up access to legacy Windows apps. In that case, and at the right price, I’d be far more interested in the W3.

Sure, one could buy the device and simply ignore the desktop completely. But you’re paying for it in the product price, which includes the cost of a Windows 8 Pro license. If Microsoft wants to allow partners to make small tablets, a better strategy would be to go Metro only at a lower license cost and truly embrace the touchscreen tablet market.

In an annual survey at Ball State University in Muncie, Ind., 73% of students reported using a smartphone in 2012 as compared with 27% in 2009. About 30% of the university's students reported owning a cheapest tablet.Michael Hanley, director of Ball State's Institute of Mobile Media Research, believes that student tablet ownership will rise to somewhere from 40% to 50% by next year.