Here’s the new Nexus 7 by ASUS. This is the world’s first 7” quad-core tablet running Android™ 4.1 Jelly Bean.
Powered by an NVIDIA quad-core Tegra 3 processor the Nexus 7 runs smoothly and quickly. With 1GB RAM and either 8GB or 16GB of onboard storage it makes for a great package priced at only £159/$199 and £199/$249 retrospectively.
As mentioned earlier this is the first tablet to be running Android™ 4.1 Jelly Bean with Project Butter thrown into the mix too. This makes for a quick and responsive tablet without any signs of lag which some of the earlier Android systems experienced. Even running more demanding games the Nexus 7 copes fine.
The 1280 x 800 HD LED backlit IPS display on Nexus 7 is crisp and clear thanks to ASUS Truvivid technology which increases colour clarity and reduces glare; with the Corning fit glass it should stand up well to everyday use.
The front of Nexus 7 is devoid of any buttons with only a 1.2MP front-facing camera at the top giving a clean minimalist look. On the side featured is a power/sleep button with a volume control just below; everything else you need is on screen. On the bottom of the unit is a micro USB port and headphone jack. Moving onto the back a thin speaker port, which apart from the ASUS and Nexus branding, is the only feature on the soft textured back.
The Nexus 7’s size makes it great to hold for long periods whilst reading or watching a movie. Weighing in at 340grams and measuring 198.5 x 120 x 10.45mm it is much the same experience as holding a book. The soft textured back has a nice quality feel to it and the whole tablet feels solid and well built.
Google Chrome comes ready installed as the stock browser on the Nexus 7. Web pages load nicely usually in mobile form but there is an option to request the desktop site if you prefer. Another neat trick the Nexus 7 possesses is if it is unsure what link you meant to press a zoomed in pop up shows the links to clarify which one you meant to press.
Currently Nexus 7 only comes in Wi-Fi flavour so for a connection on the go you either have to tether your phone or find a public Wi-Fi connection. It would be nice to have a 3G/LTE version but this is a small quibble.
I found battery life on Nexus 7 was great. It features a 4325mAh battery which should give around 9.5hours of game playing, internet browsing and video playback.
At this price point, the Nexus 7 is great – better than great, in fact, it’s fantastic! It is more than a rival for higher end tablets (it won’t be able to compete with unique products like Transformer Pad Infinity though) on the market but at a much lower price point.
Bradley
Hi! I’m currently a student also working as a freelance journalist. This is my first ‘break’ so I’m still learning, a lot! I’m not, what I would call, a techy person but do find it interesting finding out about new products and their abilities. Hopefully my reviews will be of some interest to someone! Maybe you’ll see more of me a few years down the line? Let’s see.