The tablet wars continue with ASUS and Google’s announcement of the Nexus™ 7 – the world’s first 7” quad-core tablet with the Android™ 4.1 Jelly Bean operating system – at Google I/O 2012 in San Francisco.
“We are very excited about this partnership and the synergy that it brings into the hands of consumers,” said ASUS Chairman Jonney Shih.
“We wanted to build a tablet that was light and portable enough for you to take your favorite entertainment wherever you go, but still didn’t compromise at all on power and performance,” said Andy Rubin, SVP of Mobile and Digital Content at Google. “Together with ASUS, we were able to accomplish that in Nexus 7. And starting at $199, it will be something everyone can enjoy.”
The Nexus 7 successfully combines premium ASUS hardware with the latest Google Services. Built together with Google, this full-fledged Android tablet is the very first device to run on Android 4.1 Jelly Bean.
The ASUS Nexus 7 features a 1.3Ghz NVIDIA® Tegra® 3 quad-core processor and a 12-core GeForce® GP and comes with a 7″, 1280 x 800 IPS panel with a 178-degree wide-viewing angle. This 10-finger multitouch screen is made of scratch-resistant Corning® FIT Glass. Sporting dimensions measuring 198.5 x 120 x 10.45mm and weighing in at 340g, the Nexus 7 delivers up to 9.5 hours of battery life and includes sensors like a gyroscope, accelerometer and NFC. All the standard tablet features are here, with the Nexus 7 sporting a front-facing camera, a micro USB port, a 3.5mm headset jack, 4-pin connector, and two microphones. The Nexus 7 also comes with an optional smart cover that is available in six colors. This snug-fitting polymer case has a non-slip matte finish to protect the tablet from bumps and scratches.
Nexus 7 was made for Google Play – giving users access not only to eBooks, magazines, songs, movies and TV shows, but to over 600,000 apps and games as well. Google Play syncs users’ music, movies, books, apps, and games across the web and all their devices, so they can access all anywhere.
Expect a more comprehensive review of the Nexus 7 here on Tech in Style soon.
Joseph