Words by Matthew Chiam
As some of my close friends may know, I have owned a Asus/Google Nexus 7. I got it as a Christmas present last December. Immediately after getting it, I went straight to reviewing it, which was kinda stupid, given the fact that the time I held the device only added up to a mere 5 minutes. Now, 6 months have passed and I think I have more experience with it so I decided to do a revisited post on the Nexus 7.
During the Google I/O developer conference in 2012, the Nexus 7 was announced. A portable 7-inch tablet that costs just $199. That alone garnered many rounds of applause by the audience during the conference. The tech specs were equally marveling, a quad-core Nvidia Tegra 3 processor with a 12-core GPU, 1 gigabyte of RAM, and a HD (1280 x 800) IPS display, and a 4325mAH battery.
From a hardware standpoint, the Nexus 7 is no short of awesome. The quad-core processor and the 12-core GPU (Graphics Processing Unit ) makes everything liquid smooth, from multitasking, navigating through the UI (user interface), surfing the web, watching Youtube videos, you name it. Gaming performance is stellar too! Games that need much processing power such as Need for Speed: Most Wanted ran smoothly on the Nexus 7 , largely because of the 12-core GPU at its disposal. However, there are still some dropped frames here and there, but nothing to worry about, it's still really smooth! It gets warm, however, after playing power hungry games or apps but that's to be expected from every mobile device.
Storage is an important part of a mobile device. The Nexus 7 currently has variants of a 16GB and a 32GB model. The part where it disappoints is the absence of expandable storage, that is to say that it does not have a micro-SD card slot. However, there is one consolation: it's possible to store all the music and movies on the cloud, if you have constant connectivity.
The HD IPS display is impressive too, although not as sharp as smartphones, this display is still like a baws, relatively clear and sharp. Don't forget that it is also a IPS display. This means that you will be able to enjoy accurate and consistent colour reproduction from all viewing angles. It also means that the display is can be adjusted to a high level of brightness to compensate for sunlight when viewing the display outdoors.
Now let's move on to the materials that make up the device. Every mobile device's display needs protection, and this case, it comes in the form of a sheet of Corning's Fit Glass.While I don't really know what that is but I think its probably like a cheaper version of Gorilla Glass, which itself is a toughened, scratch resistant glass. So, it's probably better than regular glass.
The back of the device is a dimpled plastic surface with a grippy texture which allows a "grippier" grip to the device, while still maintaining its looks. I really like it, because it is really easy to hold the device, even only with one hand. There a also a band of plastic on the side of the device that's made up of regular plastic, I guess. I had a minor incident with it. So basically, a few months back, I dropped it on the floor after a tripped on the stairs. Unfortunately, it chipped the plastic on the side. I was a tad bit disappointed about plastic, so there's the one thing I dislike about the device. But I guess there's nothing much to complain because it costs only RM899, which for what you get isn't too bad; though it should've been cheaper since it's $199 in the States, so its understandable that they had to skimp on some of the materials. Overall, the build quality is pretty solid for the price you pay. I have seen more expensive tablets with less desiring build qualities.
The battery is a moderately large one, and it will keep the Nexus 7 running for a full day without problems. Google claims the Nexus 7's battery life allows 9 hours of HD video playback, 10 hours of web browsing or e-reading, and 300 hours on standby and according to my daily use of the tablet, I'd say they're quite accurate.
There is a 1.2 megapixel front-facing camera on the Nexus 7 which is useful for video conferencing with apps like Google + Hangouts and Skype. However, there isn't a rear-facing camera on it which means you can't take photos like you would with an iPad. But let's face it - people normally use their smartphones to take pictures so the absence of a rear-facing camera is not such a bad thing after all.
Next up, the software side of things. The Nexus 7 currently runs a pure version of Android 4.2.2 ( that is to say that there are no manufacturer added software ), the latest version of the world's most popular operating system. And the best part is that, as part of the Nexus lineup of devices, it gets updates really quickly, pretty much instantly after Google releases them.
In the past few years, a commonly known negative aspect of Android is that it often lags and the UI is just not smooth. Well, not anymore! With Android 4.2.2, the operating system has got smoother than ever. Since Android 4.1, 'Project Butter' as it was code-named, was implemented to the operating system to make its user interface run much more smoothly and consistently. Android 4.1 or 'Jellybean' also saw the introduction of Google Now, an intelligent personal assistant similar to Apple's Siri. I have used it personally, although not much, and it turned out to be really awesome! Voice recognition was substantially accurate, and it speaks out the search results sometimes, like Siri. However, unlike Siri, Google Now presents information in cards that it predicts the user will find useful based on their search habits, like traffic conditions, sports results, and weather.
The Nexus 7 is also perfect for reading e-books. The 7-inch form factor and its light weight makes it a pleasure to use as an e-reader, even when reading while lying down! Speaking of e-books, they are available on Google Play, a one-stop destination for e-books, movies, music, games, magazines, and television programs. Google Play has more than 700, 000 apps which is a significant amount of apps for enjoyment.
While tablet apps are still lacking on the Play Store, the Nexus 7 can also take advantage of phone apps as its 7 inch display is a hybrid between a 10 inch tablet and a 4 inch smartphone. Let's just hope that tablet optimized apps will increase more rapidly in the next few years.
Critics have praised the Nexus 7 for the combination of competitive pricing and quality of the Nexus 7. I'm gonna end here with a quote from the Verge columnist, Joshua Topolsky. "Google's Nexus 7 isn't just an excellent tablet for $200. It's an excellent tablet, period."
As some of my close friends may know, I have owned a Asus/Google Nexus 7. I got it as a Christmas present last December. Immediately after getting it, I went straight to reviewing it, which was kinda stupid, given the fact that the time I held the device only added up to a mere 5 minutes. Now, 6 months have passed and I think I have more experience with it so I decided to do a revisited post on the Nexus 7.
During the Google I/O developer conference in 2012, the Nexus 7 was announced. A portable 7-inch tablet that costs just $199. That alone garnered many rounds of applause by the audience during the conference. The tech specs were equally marveling, a quad-core Nvidia Tegra 3 processor with a 12-core GPU, 1 gigabyte of RAM, and a HD (1280 x 800) IPS display, and a 4325mAH battery.
From a hardware standpoint, the Nexus 7 is no short of awesome. The quad-core processor and the 12-core GPU (Graphics Processing Unit ) makes everything liquid smooth, from multitasking, navigating through the UI (user interface), surfing the web, watching Youtube videos, you name it. Gaming performance is stellar too! Games that need much processing power such as Need for Speed: Most Wanted ran smoothly on the Nexus 7 , largely because of the 12-core GPU at its disposal. However, there are still some dropped frames here and there, but nothing to worry about, it's still really smooth! It gets warm, however, after playing power hungry games or apps but that's to be expected from every mobile device.
Storage is an important part of a mobile device. The Nexus 7 currently has variants of a 16GB and a 32GB model. The part where it disappoints is the absence of expandable storage, that is to say that it does not have a micro-SD card slot. However, there is one consolation: it's possible to store all the music and movies on the cloud, if you have constant connectivity.
The HD IPS display is impressive too, although not as sharp as smartphones, this display is still like a baws, relatively clear and sharp. Don't forget that it is also a IPS display. This means that you will be able to enjoy accurate and consistent colour reproduction from all viewing angles. It also means that the display is can be adjusted to a high level of brightness to compensate for sunlight when viewing the display outdoors.
Now let's move on to the materials that make up the device. Every mobile device's display needs protection, and this case, it comes in the form of a sheet of Corning's Fit Glass.While I don't really know what that is but I think its probably like a cheaper version of Gorilla Glass, which itself is a toughened, scratch resistant glass. So, it's probably better than regular glass.
The back of the device is a dimpled plastic surface with a grippy texture which allows a "grippier" grip to the device, while still maintaining its looks. I really like it, because it is really easy to hold the device, even only with one hand. There a also a band of plastic on the side of the device that's made up of regular plastic, I guess. I had a minor incident with it. So basically, a few months back, I dropped it on the floor after a tripped on the stairs. Unfortunately, it chipped the plastic on the side. I was a tad bit disappointed about plastic, so there's the one thing I dislike about the device. But I guess there's nothing much to complain because it costs only RM899, which for what you get isn't too bad; though it should've been cheaper since it's $199 in the States, so its understandable that they had to skimp on some of the materials. Overall, the build quality is pretty solid for the price you pay. I have seen more expensive tablets with less desiring build qualities.
The battery is a moderately large one, and it will keep the Nexus 7 running for a full day without problems. Google claims the Nexus 7's battery life allows 9 hours of HD video playback, 10 hours of web browsing or e-reading, and 300 hours on standby and according to my daily use of the tablet, I'd say they're quite accurate.
There is a 1.2 megapixel front-facing camera on the Nexus 7 which is useful for video conferencing with apps like Google + Hangouts and Skype. However, there isn't a rear-facing camera on it which means you can't take photos like you would with an iPad. But let's face it - people normally use their smartphones to take pictures so the absence of a rear-facing camera is not such a bad thing after all.
Next up, the software side of things. The Nexus 7 currently runs a pure version of Android 4.2.2 ( that is to say that there are no manufacturer added software ), the latest version of the world's most popular operating system. And the best part is that, as part of the Nexus lineup of devices, it gets updates really quickly, pretty much instantly after Google releases them.
In the past few years, a commonly known negative aspect of Android is that it often lags and the UI is just not smooth. Well, not anymore! With Android 4.2.2, the operating system has got smoother than ever. Since Android 4.1, 'Project Butter' as it was code-named, was implemented to the operating system to make its user interface run much more smoothly and consistently. Android 4.1 or 'Jellybean' also saw the introduction of Google Now, an intelligent personal assistant similar to Apple's Siri. I have used it personally, although not much, and it turned out to be really awesome! Voice recognition was substantially accurate, and it speaks out the search results sometimes, like Siri. However, unlike Siri, Google Now presents information in cards that it predicts the user will find useful based on their search habits, like traffic conditions, sports results, and weather.
The Nexus 7 is also perfect for reading e-books. The 7-inch form factor and its light weight makes it a pleasure to use as an e-reader, even when reading while lying down! Speaking of e-books, they are available on Google Play, a one-stop destination for e-books, movies, music, games, magazines, and television programs. Google Play has more than 700, 000 apps which is a significant amount of apps for enjoyment.
While tablet apps are still lacking on the Play Store, the Nexus 7 can also take advantage of phone apps as its 7 inch display is a hybrid between a 10 inch tablet and a 4 inch smartphone. Let's just hope that tablet optimized apps will increase more rapidly in the next few years.
Critics have praised the Nexus 7 for the combination of competitive pricing and quality of the Nexus 7. I'm gonna end here with a quote from the Verge columnist, Joshua Topolsky. "Google's Nexus 7 isn't just an excellent tablet for $200. It's an excellent tablet, period."
1 comment :
I'm so jelly right now~ :P
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