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Acer Iconia Tab A501 with HSPA+ hits AT&T on September 18th: $330 on contract

As promised, the Acer Iconia Tab A501 is hitting AT&T just before summer draws to an official close. The carrier just announced it'll start selling the 16GB model next Sunday, September 18th for $480 -- or $330 with a two-year contract. When we first heard about this way back in March, we knew it would be a "4G" device, and today AT&T clarified that this means HSPA+, not LTE, so sorry to burst anyone's bubble. Even so, five months after the A500 went on sale it remains one of a select few slates with a full-sized USB port, so there's that to consider if you're still on the fence about getting a tablet. As planned, it'll ship with Android 3.0, and an Acer rep confirms 3.1 is coming via an over-the-air update, though she couldn't say when, exactly, that'll happen. You can sign up for a monthly plan, if you so choose, though you can also pay as you go, with $15 getting you 250MB and $25 expanding your allowance to 2GB. Customers who commit to two-year agreements will have the same choices, to be honest, except they'll also have to contend with overage fees -- $10 per gigabyte or $15 per 250MB, depending on the plan.

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Update: We've added Acer's official press release below. Heads up: you'll notice that Acer lists the price as $499.99 for the 16GB model and $549.99 for the 32GB version. That's just the manufacturer's suggested retail price (MSRP). It doesn't say so in the press release, but AT&T confirmed to us before we published this story that it will actually be selling the 16GB version only, and for $480 (again, that $330 with a two-year contract).

Update 2: We've swapped in AT&T's press release, which fully spells out the pricing.

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MAXIMIZE ENTERTAINMENT ON THE GO WITH THE
NEW ACER ICONIA TAB A501

Acer's Popular 10.1-inch 4G Tablet with Android 3.0 OS Coming Soon to AT&T Retail Stores Nationwide and www.att.com


DALLAS, Sept. 12, 2011 - AT&T* today announced it will begin selling the Acer Iconia Tab A501, a 10.1 inch, AT&T 4G** mobile broadband capable tablet featuring Android™ Honeycomb, online at www.att.com and in AT&T company-owned retail stores nationwide beginning Sunday, Sept. 18.
Designed for both consumers and small businesses, the newest wirelessly enabled member of the Acer Iconia family of tablets gives customers the freedom to enjoy technology around the clock on the AT&T mobile broadband network. AT&T's HSPA+ technology with enhanced backhaul provides up to 4 times faster data transmission than AT&T's already fast mobile broadband network.

The tablet's 10.1-inch multi-touch screen provides precise finger-tip control for leveraging social media, email, productivity applications as well as games and entertainment. Powered by a NVIDIA® Tegra™ 2 mobile 1GHz dual-core processor and integrated GeForce™ GPU, customers can enjoy high-definition video, speedy browsing, multi-tasking, digital media playback and flash-based sites, games and applications.

"For tablet users it needs to be always on, connected, and readily available to access the content they want, including entertainment, social networking, email and Internet browsing," said Glenn Lurie, president, emerging devices, AT&T. "We're connecting the Acer Iconia to the AT&T 4G network and we're offering several data options, both prepaid and postpaid plans, to ensure the best experience, the best value and the greatest flexibility for our consumer and small business customers. We also plan to prominently feature the Acer Iconia in our AT&T stores across the country."

"Fast and fluid, the Acer Iconia Tab A501 is one of simplest ways to stay informed and entertained whether it's playing games or viewing a video on its high resolution capacitive touchscreen," said Sumit Agnihotry, vice president of product marketing, Acer America. "This tablet is not only intuitive, but it's svelte, stylish and comfortable to hold and carry, which appeals to consumers on the go."

The Acer Iconia Tab A501 will be available at AT&T company-owned retail stores nationwide and online beginning September 18 for $479.99. AT&T customers may also choose to purchase the Acer Iconia at a discounted price of $329.99 after committing to a two-year agreement for a new $35, 3GB monthly data plan.

Customers who do not choose a long-term commitment may still select one of two existing monthly billing options:
- Postpaid: $14.99 for 250 MB or $25 for 2 GB. Customers on the 2 GB plan who exceed their monthly data allotment will be charged $10 per 1 GB of overage. Customers on the 250 MB plan who exceed their monthly data allotment will be charged $14.99 per 250 MB of overage. Charges will appear on customers' monthly wireless statements.
- Prepaid: $14.99 for 250 MB or $25 for 2 GB. Customers on the 2 GB plan who exceed their monthly data allotment may choose to purchase an additional 2 GB for $25. Charges will appear on customers' credit card statements.
Offering the simplicity of a single bill, the postpaid option will show up on customers' monthly wireless bill after the data is used. The new postpaid billing option will be available online at www.att.com and across AT&T retail locations.

For the complete array of AT&T offerings, visit www.att.com.