To the power of seven
Google is trying to replicate its smartphone success to the $66 billion tablet arena and has stepped up its challenge to Apple and Amazon by launching the Nexus 7, a $199 tablet device that sports a slim seven-inch screen. The tablet will feature...
Google is trying to replicate its smartphone success to the $66 billion tablet arena and has stepped up its challenge to Apple and Amazon by launching the Nexus 7, a $199 tablet device that sports a slim seven-inch screen.
The tablet will feature the latest version of the Android operating system, called Jelly Bean, the company said at its Google I/O developers conference on June 27 in San Francisco.
The Nexus 7 tablet, available this month, is being made in partnership with Asus. It has a front-facing camera, runs on a Tegra 3 processor from Nvidia, has 8GB or 16GB on board storage, a nine-hour battery life and only weighs around 300g. Sadly it has no external storage options and no back camera.
The Nexus 7 will also be the first device to officially use the latest Android OS – Jelly Bean provides faster speeds and UI smoothness, new improved widgets, voice-based search, Google Now, richer notifications, improved keyboard and also offline voicetyping.
Android tablets are already available from companies such as Samsung, HTC and also Motorola, which Google acquired last month for $12.5 billion. Amazon’s seven-inch-display Kindle Fire tablet also runs on Google’s operating system while featuring many of its own services, music and book sales. Given its price and size, the Nexus tablet should help Google compete with the Kindle Fire.
Google definitely upped the game by building a device that showcases how Android should be delivered on a tablet device.
Unfortunately, for now the Nexus 7 will be only sold in a handful of English speaking countries like the US and UK and there are no confirmed details on worldwide availability.
A technology enthusiast who has his own blog at www.itnewsblog.com.