Setting up the Acer Iconia W700 for OptiMiser

[Ryan Moore]

We have been recommending the Acer Iconia W700-6831 Tablet for over a year and it’s still probably the best hardware you can get to run OptiMiser for under $1,000 (and we’re not sure if the $1,200+ models like the Surface Pro 3 are any better). However, there are some critical configuration actions you need to take to make it really work as a portable audit machine (some of these suggestions are quoted directly from here).

1) Navigation:

a) Log in straight to the desktop: unless you use the “live tiles” Start screen or have “metro” style apps you use on a regular basis, you’re probably going to want to start on the “regular” desktop and just use the Start screen as an app launcher.

First, head to the desktop. Then right-click the taskbar and select Properties. From the screen that appears, click the Navigation tab. Check the box next to “When I sign in or close all apps on a screen, go to the desktop instead of Start.” From now on, when you log into Windows, you’ll go straight to the desktop.

b) Turn the Start screen into an app launcher: On the desktop right-click the taskbar and select Properties, then click the Navigation tab. In the Start screen section, check the box next to “Show the apps view automatically when I go to Start.” From now on, when you go to the Start screen you’ll see a list of all your apps rather than those big tiles. You can sort apps in a few ways; I like to sort them by “Most Used.” Click any app to run it.

c) Launch desktop apps faster: Often the “desktop” programs you use most often, like OptiMiser, are hidden among the myriad Windows 8 apps on the Start screen. There’s a simple way to quickly find and launch desktop apps. On the desktop right-click the taskbar and select Properties, then click the Navigation tab. On the Start screen section, check the box next to “List desktop apps first in the Apps view when it’s sorted by category.”

2) Screen resolution: The Iconia W700 has 1920×1080 resolution. It looks great, except on that 11-inch screen you can’t work with any of the Windows dialogues using your finger or a stylus. One solution is to reduce the resolution a little so things get bigger. I also recommend using the “Make text and other items larger” setting. From the Desktop put your mouse in the bottom-right corner or swipe from the right sidebar to bring up the Charms bar, then click Settings then Control Panel. Click Appearance and Personalization, Display, Screen Resolution. Using the Resolution dropdown control, set the resolution to 1600×900. That will make things a little easier and doesn’t look too bad. Of course, you can tune it down further if you want. OptiMiser sense the resolution and zooms accordingly, as long as you have screen magnification turned on in the OptiMiser settings. Before you leave the Screen resolution page, hit the “Make text and other items larger or smaller” link. Click “Custom sizing options” and type in 110%. You have to log out/in for this to take effect, but that only takes a few seconds. You can adjust this up, too, but be careful: you’ll start to notice in OptiMiser and other programs that labels and other items start to overlap and not fit together correctly.

3) Performance:

a) Graphics settings: From the Desktop put your mouse in the bottom-right corner or swipe from the right sidebar to bring up the Charms bar, then click Settings then Control Panel. Now click System and Security, System, and on the left-hand navigation menu click Advanced system settings. On the Advanced tab, Performance box, click Settings. Choose the radio button marked Adjust for best performance. From there you can turn these items back on if you find you just can’t stand the look of Windows without them (they are all appearance-related functions). I like to turn the “Smooth edges of screen fonts” back on. Hit “Apply” then “Okay.”

b) De-throttling: Acer ships the Iconia W700 with the processor and WiFi antennae throttled down considerably to improve battery life. You’re like going to want to change that, especially once you get a taste for the difference it makes in performance. But keep in mind there is a tradeoff between performance and battery life. We haven’t done any scientific testing, but a review of other users’ posting on the subject indicates the battery life under constant use could drop from 7 hours (which is really fantastic) to 5. I personally think it’s worth it, but I suggest you give OptiMiser a thorough try with the throttling on and off to see what you think. Here’s how to turn it off:

Go to the Control Panel, again. Click System and Security, Power Options. Choose High Performance then click “Change plan settings,” “Change Advanced Power Settings.” Expand Wireless Adapter Settings, Power Saving Mode. Next to “On battery:” choose Maximum Performance. Then skip down to Intel(R) Dynamic Platform… Expand it and “Low Power Mode Setting.” Next to “On battery” choose “Application specific.”

There’s plenty more tuning to do to improve your Windows 8.1 experience, but the above should go a long way towards making your OptiMiser experience a productive one on the Acer Iconia W700.

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