Here's a a video unboxing of the Acer W700 Windows 8 Tablet:

Acer Iconia W700 Windows 8 Tablet Unboxing

Welcome Wezzterman!  Yes, we're just getting started here on WindowsTabletCentral.  Now that the Windows 8 tablets are starting to come out we'll be posting more reviews and having discussions about them, accessories, apps and programs...you name it.  This is very early in Windows 8 tablet evolution so it should be a fun ride as they pick up steam and gain market share.  Glad to have you aboard!

There's no definite date yet for the release of any of the Windows 8 Pro tablets but they have said it will be in the first quarter of 2013.   So looks like we'll have to wait till after the new year to get a full blown Windows 8 Pro tablet like you're looking for.

There's nobody quite like 'Mobile Tech Review' when it comes to their tablet and hardware reviews.  They're simply the best.  Lisa Gade has done dozens of these and she strikes just the right balance of technical knowledge and consumer straightforwardness.   Her thorough understanding and deep experience using various kinds of tablets gives her a particularly seasoned eye and ability to cut through the BS you might see in other reviews and let you know the 'straight dope' on new products.   Thus, she's one of the most respected tech reviewers in the blogosphere today.

I'm happy to say that Lisa gives a really fantastic 30 minute review and overall she's very positive about Microsoft's new baby.  She's particularly impressed with the 'Touch Cover' with one of the best lines of the review being "Pretty much like Apple's Smart Cover only this one actually does something".  I definitely recommend everyone that's interested in the Surface RT to give it a watch and make sure you leave us your comments below.   You can see the full written review when it's available at the link below.


MobileTechReview

I can't play around too much while I'm at work... but I did open it up last night.  Windows 8 is pretty much a totally new animal for me.  I tried some of the earlier desktop releases and was totally not thrilled.  With Windows 7, I had pre-releases installed on several machines as it was that good.  Having said that, I haven't used Windows 8 very much.  Also, coming from Android, I have a lot to learn.  Windows 8 is however, right at home on a tablet.  This is the RT version, so it's Metro apps only.  The OS seems to be pretty much the same as the x86 version in terms of use.  You still have the desktop, control panel (with pretty much the same options), etc.  The current app selection is sorta blah right now.  I'm thinking that the Windows 8 tablets will take off more quickly than Android with Microsoft's huge marketing push (I don't recall ever seeing Android tablets advertised).  I'm still an Android fan... but I'll attribute that to the fact that I "know" Android.  I used to feel the same way about Macs.  I knew Windows inside out and could do everything... when I first started using Macs, it was just frustrating.  I was lucky enough to live with someone who had been using them for years, so I at least had some support.  Over time, I grew to like OS X as much as Windows (I really don't prefer one over the other).  I think that's pretty much where I'm at now.  My one major gripe with Android is fragmentation.  It's totally up to manufacturers (and carriers for phones) to push updates.  Even the Nexus phones... which were supposed to be developer models and get the updates first, ended up getting tied up by the carriers.  A lot of devices... totally capable of running the newer versions, are never updated (gotta push sales of the new devices ya know).  Fortunately, there's a pretty strong Android rooting community.  Unfortunately, the average user is only going to install what gets pushed to them.  I've also found, surprisingly... outside the tech community, lots of people don't even know what version of an OS is running on their device.

That's one area where Apple has it right with iOS.  When there's an update, everyone can get it at the same time.  A downside with Apple is that while they have great hardware... it's typically not "always" cutting edge.  They do usually set the bar pretty high when they release something... but then that's the only thing that will be available until the model is updated.  In the Android world, you can almost always get cutting edge technology as you have a bunch of manufacturers constantly updating and releasing new hardware.

I think Microsoft has the potential to get the best of both worlds here.  You have a bunch of manufacturers pushing out the latest and greatest hardware... but you also get the benefit of centralized OS updates from Microsoft. 

So far, I haven't really been able to do much more than play around a bit, so I can't really offer any real opinions.  One little annoying thing... and this is an Asus hardware thing... not a Windows 8 issue.  For some reason, Asus decided to change the data port connection on this device from it's Android hardware.  The insides are basically the same, so I'm not sure why they went this route.  Asus is among the leading Android tablet manufacturers.  I expect there are lots of people out there with Android tablets from Asus that would be staying with them for their Windows 8 tablet purchases.  Unfortunately, they won't be able to interchange their cables... so it's just one more proprietary cable to keep around.

I'm looking forward to the future of the platform.  Microsoft seems to have found a nice niché right in between Android's very open, but fragmented platform and Apple's super tight, but efficient platform. 

I'll snap some photos tonight and post them.  If there's anything in particular that anyone would like to see (either the hardware... or the OS)... let me know and I'll be sure to include them.