Toshiba Encore is the company's first 8-inch Windows tablet; coming November for $330 (hands-on)

Acer may have beaten everybody to market with the first 8-inch Windows tablet, but we knew it wouldn't be long before the other guys started catching up. Toshiba just entered the fray with the Encore, an 8-inch tablet that manages to be even cheaper than Acer's W3. Like the W3, it runs on an Atom processor, but because Toshiba waited longer it got to use one of Intel's new quad-core Bay Trail chips. What's interesting, too, is that Toshiba apparently worked closely with Microsoft on this, not just in optimizing the tablet for Windows 8.1, but in making sure the tablet's dual mics and 2MP front camera will be Skype-certified by the time it ships. The Encore arrives in early November - i.e., not long after Windows 8.1 ships. As for that price we alluded to, it'll cost $330 with a category-standard 1,280 x 800 display and 32GB of built-in storage (expandable via microSD). Not bad considering the W3 hit the market at $380, and is still going for about $350 in most places. That leaves just one teensy question: what's it like to use?%Gallery-slideshow79642%%Gallery-slideshow79615%

Filed under: Tablets

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