Google Nexus 7 2013: Fondledroids, THE 7-inch slab has arrived

When Google launched the Asus-built Nexus 7 Android tablet back in August 2012, it dropped a big mean city-raised alleycat among the budget tablet pigeons. Starting at only £160 for the 8GB version, the Nexus 7 offered performance, style and build quality (kind of) at a price that previously had only bought you shoddy no-name …

[JDX]

iPad Mini 2

Assuming Apple do reveal this as expected, that will be the chief competition and it will be interesting to see a direct comparison since the prices will be reasonably close. For instance should Apple do a full retina 2048x1536 display in the mini 2, they win back the dpi crown but what about performance benchmarks?

[Bill the Sys Admin]

Re: iPad Mini 2

Prices are not that close. Think the iPad mini is 270 squid is it not? Making this 70 more for 16Gb versions. If they do go to 2048x1536 might find it struggles with the pixel pushing on games? It was a point made when the nexus 10 had high pixel density.

[Mad Hacker]

Re: iPad Mini 2

"270 squid"

So Android tabs can be purchased in squids? Good to know says Zoidberg!

[Badvok]

Re: iPad Mini 2

"since the prices will be reasonably close"

Not sure how a 35% difference can really be considered "reasonably close".

[JDX]

Re: iPad Mini 2

>>Not sure how a 35% difference can really be considered "reasonably close".

Similar ballpark in my view, especially by Apple standards.

[Eponymous Cowherd]

Re: iPad Mini 2

The current iPad mini is £70 more than the new Nexus, which outclasses it in almost every respect except, perhaps, build quality. It is £100 more than the old Nexus 7 (@ £170)

You can be sure that any "new" iPad mini will cost quite a but more than the current £270 (for the basic 16GB WiFi jobbie).

I would imagine that a "retina" mini is going to cost at least £50 more than the current model (the cheapest "retina" iPad is £70 more than a non-retina iPad 2), so you could be looking an a 16GB WiFi iPad Mini 2 costing between £120 and £140 more than the Nexus 7 mk2.

[imaginarynumber]

Re: iPad Mini 2

Why does everyone assume that Apple will add retina to the Ipad Mini? The MB Air still has a shit screen.

[Ramazan]

Re: how a 35% difference can really be considered "reasonably close"

1. 50% is a lot, 35% is reasonably close

2. considering that the 35% price difference is between XXX device and Apple device, the latter is a bargain in fact

[Frank Bough]

Re: iPad Mini 2

I'm sure Apple will ask more for a Mini than Google do for a Nexus, but just one day using both will indicate which is better value. The Nexus 7 tablet was a massive disappointment. Constant Wi-Fi problems. Battery carnage. Piece. Of. Shit.

iPad mini, OTOH: pricy, light, quick, colourful, utterly dependable.

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: iPad Mini 2

@Frank Bough

Utter rubbish. No wi-fi problems, battery lasts for days.

Had mine since Christmas, wouldn't swap it for an over-priced shiny slab.

How are the user profiles going on your iPad? hmmmm

[FartingHippo]

Re: iPad Mini 2

Love my N7. Only niggle is a little back-light bleed and screen burn, but this is only noticeable in very low ambient light and a dark-ish image.

Assuming a year of QA improvements have addressed the bleed, I'm very tempted to upgrade at xmas.

[regredit]

Re: iPad Mini 2

Frank Bough is right the 1st gen Nexus 7 is garbage with non gorilla glass screen, tin sounding speakers, horrid battery life. Oh yeah and profiles is garbage too. If you have 2 profiles and each has the same app guess what that same app takes twice the space. Garbage garbage garbage.

With that being said if the new Nexus 7 rights those wrongs for the price it is a grand bargain.

[The First Dave]

Re: iPad Mini 2

Still not even a mini-SD card reader onboard - at least Apple give you an add-on reader

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: iPad Mini 2

@AC

"How are the user profiles going on your iPad? hmmmm"

I don't know, I do know how the N7 goes when you fill it up with Films though and that's S>>>LLLL>>>>OOO>>>WWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW

and

S...T....T..T..UTER....EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE.

[HollyHopDrive]

Re: iPad Mini 2

@frankbough - Why do I doubt by your comment that you actually owned one but are just spouting what FUD you've "heard"

I bought one of the v1's and have never had a problem with it. Quite a lot of my friends and colleges bought one after playing with mine and all love it months and months after owning it. Some even have iPads too but *prefer* the nexus. But not one have ditched the Nexus for either reliability or function.

Either you are trolling or you've made the whole prejudgement without ownership and experience and reading between the lines you don't want to admit that just perhaps you picked style over substance.

[Nezumi]

Re: iPad Mini 2 - The screen on the current Mini is awful...

I'm in the market for a phone and tablets at both 10" and 7". I have been looking hard at the Apple offering, and find them expensive but with genuine plus points.

However...

I was in my local supermarket the other day and noticed they had the iPad and the Mini. The screen on the Mini was low resolution, washed out and frankly awful. It was so bad, I thought a ink-jet 'display' had been printed out and stuck on. I checked. It wasn't.

I will concede that the brightness could have been set wrong and that the harsh overhead lighting may not have helped, however the 'proper' iPad next to it looked as I would expect, having spent some time with a Retina iPad previously.

The Mini is for /my/ money, technically badly under-specified for it's price point. I will happily accept that the integration of iOS across devices and the quality of the app selection (as well as proper tablet versions of apps) is compelling, however the Apple Mini offering now is twice the price it should be.

[Craigness]

Re: iPad Mini 2 - The screen on the current Mini is awful...

N4+N7 = £400. I'm not convinced of the need for 7 and 10 inch tablets together. I'd go for a powerful 11.6" laptop and larger external monitor to leave all computing needs covered.

[Mark .]

Re: iPad Mini 2 - The screen on the current Mini is awful...

I agree about its poor specs (I suspect a lot of people buying it think they're getting the specs of a full price/size ipad for "less" money - Samsung have done a similar trick with the S3/S4 Mini phones, which are actually lower spec, with many people not realising). Though just to comment on:

"as well as proper tablet versions of apps"

But what's a proper "tablet" version? It's more a question of devices of different sizes, but the problem is now that all of the IOS apps for "tablets" were designed for a 10" tablet, so it's wrong to assume that they magically work on an 8" device as well too. I mean, why does a 10"-designed UI work fine on 8", but a 5"-designed UI not work well on 7"?

Android has been designed to work with a range of four different sizes, with developers aware of there being hundreds of devices, for years. Whilst a model of "specifically design for one or two models" can work better, it blows up when they they try to generalise that to having more different models.

[ratfox]

Re: iPad Mini 2 - The screen on the current Mini is awful...

Apple clearly felt they had to go ahead with a poor resolution for the mini iPad, just to have an answer to the Nexus 7. Indeed, most of the presentation was comparing the two devices.

Now that they had one more year to work on it, they better announce a resolution that is a lot better than the first version. Whether they can do that within the same price is another question.

[Mark .]

Re: iPad Mini 2

And a way lower resolution and DPI, and half the RAM (all more in line with last year's budget Android tablets), and fewer apps (as well as the problem that most apps have either been designed for either a 3.5" or 10" device, not 8" - what was once the advantage of specifically designed UIs for two sizes of devices now becomes a disadvantage as they move to a greater number of sizes).

It was very slightly thinner, and lighter, but the 2nd generation Nexus fixes those issues (and is now lighter than the ipad mini), as well as making the specs even further even the lead.

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: iPad Mini 2

This goes beyond trolling, you may even be damaging the Apple image with this nonsense.

[Blitterbug]

Re: iPad Mini 2

@Frank Bough: Utter crap.

I have both. I use both, every day. iPad Mini has generally higher quality games, and also a better Kindle app and I prefer its Marvel comic app too. It's also a fast grab for various other things like evernote.

But the N7 is my go-to device for power user stuff and movies. The various wifi toolkits, the use of mail and calendar adjustable-size widgets (so scheduling at a glance), not to mention much, much better NAS video streaming through ES File Explorer & DicePlayer on that lovely screen (File Explorer on iPad has quirky behaviour and stutters *badly* on HD rips, and the screen is pixely by comparison).

Both have good and bad points. But note I have the original 'slow' N7 and it still is a must-have tool that complements the iPad Mini's shortcomings.

Please comment based on actual knowledge, not frothy conjecture.

[JeffyPoooh]

Re: iPad Mini 2

They're so cheap these days that you could buy one of each. Totally avoid the whole fanboi 'I-can-only-afford-to-choose-one-or-the-other' (very sad) nonsense.

Uh-oh. If you're in the UK then my assumption of inexpensive price (= UKP 140) is way off-base. Sorry.

[Captain Queeg]

Re: iPad Mini 2

Without commenting either way, in the tablet market I'm not sure performance benchmarks are as important as perceived speed and UX.

[Anonymous Coward]

I’m seeing more and more folk out and about holding up tablets to take the kind of pictures they’d once have snapped on a compact camera or a phone

Of course you see them .... they look so ridiculous that they are hard to miss!

[Anonymous Coward]

I'm thinking of acquiring a Thornton Pickard wooden tripod for my tablet. With that and a large black cloth to hide under, with a suitably positioned hole for the rear facing lens, I'm all set.

[Anonymous Coward]

Eh?

now version 4.3 - and updates are rolled out directly from Google not from the manufacturer.

Er?

It's got Google on the box so Google is the manufacturer. Ok so it is made for them but they are as far as the end user concerned, Google are the manufacturer.

[Alan 6]

Re: Eh?

The Nexus 7 is manufactured and branded by Asus, this is clearly indicated in the article and on the pictures of the box.

[Steve Todd]

No talk of the known issues on this device?

Like GPS stopping or touch point tracking issues on the screen. Rose tinted glasses?

[Dave Robinson]

Re: No talk of the known issues on this device?

It's the kind of "in depth" review you can write by googling and looking at some pictures :-)

[Professor Clifton Shallot]

@ Steve Todd

It may be that Google's fixes for those two problems were already in place and so the reviewer didn't experience any problems.

I haven't tried myself but the update released last month claims to solve both.

[Steve Todd]

Re: @ Steve Todd

For a limited value of "released" that is. It isn't an automatic OTA upgrade yet, and I have heard of people who still have problems so it isn't a 100% fix.

I'd have expected that the issues be mentioned, even in the negative (like the author saying that he'd tried to provoke them and had seen no sign of these problems). Again, rose tinted glasses.

[Bonce]

Re: @ Steve Todd

I can attest that the software update JSS15Q does NOT fix all of the multi-touch problems for everybody.

[Al Taylor]

Re: @ Steve Todd

That's the same build my review device updated to as soon as I turned it on and hooked it up to my Wi-Fi. What problems are you having? I'll see if I can replicate them.

[Bonce]

Re: @ Steve Todd

Al, to recreate, install YAMTT from from the Play Store and drag two fingertips around the screen. It will only trace their path sporadically, false touches will appear elsewhere on screen. Touch the screen with three fingers and it goes completely haywire.

Note, this was only a problem on my first device (which also updated to the same software version as yours). I took it back to the shop and got a replacement which passed the above test with flying colours and has no problems at all. Thus I feel I can safely say it was a hardware fault.

[Al Taylor]

Re: @ Steve Todd

Not come across that app before, can see it coming in handy in the future, thanks for the info.

As you say it must have been a hardware fault, maybe an early batch with something amiss in the screen layers. Like your second machine my review device works perfectly with YAMTT no matter how many fingers I use.

Cheers

Al

[Al Taylor]

Re: No talk of the known issues on this device?

If I'd come across either of these issues (or any others) I'd have reported them.

The GPS radio has worked perfectly every time I've used it, including for a solid two hours as a satnav. The same goes for your touch-point tracking issues, it simply was not an issue I encountered on my review device. I can't criticize a device for a glitch that in my personal experience doesn't exist no matter what you or I may have read elsewhere.

As for the thoroughness of the review, other sites will be able to provide you with page after page (after page) of interminable bench test results if that is what floats your boat. That's not how El Reg's consumer tests have ever been done, I approached the new Nexus 7 in the same way, and with the same critical thoroughness, as I did the Xperia Z Tablet, Galaxy S4, Asus FonePad etc etc etc.

As a device I think it's pretty darned good, especially for the money. My review reflects that. Fell free to disagree.

[crashtest]

Re: No talk of the known issues on this device?

Got one a week ago. upon booting I was asked for wiifi and then to update before even creating the account. Intense daily allover use and I've yet to see a GPS or multitouch or any other issue. This little device is just perfect.

I miss the great ipad games though.

[Anonymous Coward]

Shut up and take my money!

Whilst there's nothing at all wrong with my (rooted) Mk1 Nexus 7 in terms of functionality, the better display on the Mk2 makes upgrading a no-brainer, IMO.

In fact, the only real downside I can see is that the change in the dimensions of the body means that the rather funky Bluetooth keyboard I bought for my Mk1 won't clip onto the Mk2's chassis, and that's not exactly a showstopper.

Hopefully it'll be as easy to root (and hence remove various bits of Chocolate Factory spyware) as the Mk1

[Piro]

re: Battery life

"broadly similar times" is doing it a disservice.

Snapdragon is so much more efficient than Tegra that the battery life soars.

http://www.anandtech.com/show/7231/the-nexus-7-2013-review/2

AnandTech did some testing. The web browsing battery life is through the roof.

This is one hell of a tablet at any price. The price it's at, there's no competition.

I'm annoyed they leave out an SD slot and USB OTG, though. I don't mean microSD, I mean full size SD! It would be lovely to pop the SD out of your camera and quickly review your photos. I don't know why Google is allergic to storage expansion.

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: re: Battery life

"I don't know why Google is allergic to storage expansion."

That way they don't have to pay Microsoft patent protection money (or do they?)

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: re: Battery life

>I don't know why Google is allergic to storage expansion.

Just a thought, maybe it's got something to do with this thing they call the cloud.

Personally I wouldn't touch it, the cloud that is, but these things are aimed at the general population and they are more likely to buy into it.

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: re: Battery life

I can't see any clouds around me, sorry! But hey, I live in London, none of those really big, trendy cities, where wifi and clouds are allegedly everywhere, and you can graze for free, hoping from one to another. That said, given the sim slot in the nexus, I should have no problems depositing my terrorist and porn materials in the cloud.

...

oh, I see. Well, next time then, maybe ;)

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: re: Battery life

You live in London, and you can't see any clouds? I call BS!

Unless you're in a bunker, or it's one of the 3.5 sunny days that your city gets

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: re: Battery life

rainclouds - plenty. No option to up/download anything onto/off them. Just bucket loads of wet water thingies deposited from them.

[Geoff Campbell]

Re: USB OTG

USB OTG support is the same as on the Mark 1, as I understand it - it's there, but you need to install some software to use it.

GJC

[Mark .]

Re: USB OTG

Unfortunately the 2nd generation Nexus 7 is affected by some bug that stops this working (at least for Nexus Media Importer) - see http://nexususb.blogspot.co.uk/2013/07/android-4.html . My Galaxy Nexus works fine with it, but my 2013 Nexus 7 doesn't, even with my trying the workaround several times. Hopefully this will be fixed - but given Google's dislike of anything to do with external storage, who knows...

[John Robson]

Re: USB OTG

Works fine for me on a first generation N7 - regularly plug in either a USB drive or a mouse (use a BT keyboard)

I think I have "Nexus Media Importer" to make the import of data easier, I can't recall if it was essential - but if it was it was about the same as the cost of the USB OTG cable (the trial version is time limited, to confirm operation IIRC - although it's a while since I've installed it)

The mouse comes in really handy for remote/virtual desktop style operations - the USB drive allows me to take a TB drive in the car, and play any video the kids want in the car - or to take a USB stick and be a bit careful about loading it.

[Thomas Whipp]

Re: re: Battery life

get an EyeFi card - I have one and sync with my Note 10.1, I agreed I'd prefer a full sized slot and just popping a card. But generally it works about as well.

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: re: Battery life

Yeah, it was actually the original LG-built Nexus 4 that couldn't be persuaded to do USB OTG; it just didn't have the right hardware so it couldn't be fixed by a software mod.

[Paul Shirley]

Re: I don't know why Google is allergic to storage expansion

They botched the storage architecture so badly that external SD tends to get used for things that should not be taken offline - like app storage. Yank the SD and "bad things" happen. Google applied their usual lazy response to problems, don't fix the problem, remove it by removing the feature.

[Anonymous Coward]

It's cheap...

...and it looks cheap. That would've been the biggest upgrade for me.

[Craigness]

Re: It's cheap...

If you held or used one you'd not think it's cheap.

[Mark .]

Re: It's cheap...

You're right that I can tell that the cost will be decent just by looking at it - it hasn't got a light-up fruit logo on the back.

[Jonathan 29]

Razor thin margins

It is unquestionably a good device and I am very pleased that such a popular tablet will have wireless charging (first one since the Touchpad). Once you have a wireless dock, I think people will see what an incredibly useful feature it is and it will become the standard.

Like the recent Reg podcast contributors though, I have my concerns about the quality of the components. This device is being sold with a tiny profit margin. Everything inside and not visible I believe, will have been sourced using the cheapest components available. Don’t expect this thing to run and run without issues.

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: Razor thin margins

Come off it. These parts are ALL made by a very small number of manufacturers. And that includes Apple's 'own brand' processors.

[Steve Todd]

Re: Razor thin margins - @AC

You DO realise that manufacturers make parts to varying price and quality standards don't you? Parts that fail one level of quality testing get bumped down to the next level and so on. Your assertion that they are all the same is far from true, and that's even before you start to assemble them into a completed whole.

[Jonathan 29]

Re: Razor thin margins - @AC

I have no evidence myself, but Storagezilla was talking about this on the podcast. Companies are buying up failed components cheaply and using software to try to paper over the flaws.

[swissrobin]

Re: Razor thin margins - @Steve Todd

Manufacturers do "bin" parts for temperature and speed grades, but I don't know of any silicon manufacturer that produces parts that are in some way not to spec and then sells them "cheap". So the 1.5GHz Industrial temperature range part will be rarer (and thus more expensive) than the 0-70c 1.0GHz consumer spec part.

I do know that some unscrupulous people manage to get their hands on "failed" parts, package them and sell them as new in counterfeit packaging - SD cards are a classic example of this.

If you have evidence of a silicon manufacturer that sells sub-standard chips cheap, please tell us about it as it would be very interesting to know who and what products it affects?

[Michael Jennings]

Taking photographs on a tablet.

There is one thing that is good about using a tablet as a camera, which is the large screen of the tablet. Composition is much easier than on a phone sized screen, or on the postage stamp sized screens of many point and shoot cameras. This is particularly so on tablets with high resolution screens such as this one. Composition is still not as easy as on a camera with a proper viewfinder, but only a relatively small percentage of cameras in use these days have these any more. Because of this, I find photography to be easier on a tablet than on a phone or a digital compact. (Unfortunately, though, the cameras that manufacturers are putting in their high-end tablets are not as good as the ones they are putting on their high end tablets. The gap is closing, but it is still there).

Against this is the fact that some people are going to think you look like an idiot taking photographs with a tablet. Whether this bothers you is up to you.

[Nuno]

Augmented Reality

A back camera is mandatory for any augmented reality application

[Gordon 10]

Re: Taking photographs on a tablet.

Indeed - we were at Longleat the other week - I was pleasantly surprised how good the pics taken on my wifes Mini were. From a composition and viewing results perspective it was far superior to any smart phone and as a result the taken photos were better chosen and therefore qualitatively better.

[Eponymous Bastard]

Re: Taking photographs on a tablet.

Well Sony might have come up with the goods for you with the new QX wireless camera / lens gismo invention.

[muddysteve]

Re: Taking photographs on a tablet.

Bit of a pain when it's windy, though. The tablets have a big surface area.

[poopypants]

It looks amazing

but I already have a two year old tablet that spends most of its time running the Kindle app. It's good enough, which makes it hard to justify an upgrade. If sufficient others are thinking along similar lines, then I'm guessing that tablet sales from all manufacturers will soon level off.

In any case I'd rather save for an NVIDIA GTX 790. Now that's exciting.

[Franco]

Lack of expandable storage is pretty poor TBH. I have an original 32gb Nexus 7, and whilst the Nexus Media Importer app works fine without rooting the device, OTG and an SD card slot shoould have been bundled from the start.

Glad to see the speakers are upgraded too, I rarely use them but they are awful.

[Bonce]

Multitouch: Mine was DOA

I unpacked mine and immediately found it to be deeply unsatisfying to use. The touch interface was horrendous, mysteriously detecting touches where there were none made typing and scrolling a very hit and miss (mostly miss) affair. A quick search online revealed that I was not alone with these problems and that a software update was meant to have fixed them. My tablet did have the update already so I took it back to John Lewis for a replacement which they gave me with no argument.

Very glad I didn't buy online this time! My replacement is behaving perfectly and I'm very happy with it.

[xperroni]

"easier than ever to use one-handed"

I seriously need to take my mind off the gutter.

[Anonymous Coward]

one niggle?

- no storage card slot

- no 3G (for voice / data)

so it's a pass again.

btw, the card slot is NOT an omission, in the sense "oops, we forgot!", it's the usual rip-off to make people pay "a little more" for the onboard storage.

never mind all that, asus are about to release take 2 of their cheap and cheerful fonepad. Yes, the resolution will be lower than new google slab (no 4K movies on the road, oh dear!), less ram and less processing power (no "latest and fabulousest games", oh dear), and no rubbing against your mate's to share those emotions via nfc (oh dear indeed!). BUT it's got two vital slots that more than make up for it - sim and micro-sd. And it's going to be cheaper than nexus, by 20 quid or so. And it comes from the same stable as the nexus.

[JeffyPoooh]

Still (?) doesn't support On-The-Go USB

"...the Micro USB port still doesn’t support On-The-Go USB hosting."

"Still" implies that the original Nexus 7 doesn't support On-The-Go USB.

I have the original Nexus 7 and I've purchased an On-The-Go USB Cable and connected one of those DVB-T USB sticks to it and tuned the Software Define Radio up and down the band and it works fine.

Can anyone clarify?

Is the word "still" an error; or am I missing something?

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: Still (?) doesn't support On-The-Go USB

methinks it's an error, original nexus did have the OTG USB listed as one of the features. That said, I've never owned one, so can't verify it, er... hands on.

[Boothy]

Re: Still (?) doesn't support On-The-Go USB

I've got a v1, and OTG doesn't work for me.

The comments above all seem to indicate you either have to root the device, and/or install 3rd party (paid for) software to get OTG to work.

All of these mean this is a Google failure. OTG should be supported natively in the OS. I should be able to just plug in the OTG adaptor, and then a mouse, keyboard, USB pen drive etc. and they should just work.

My S3 works fine with the same OTG adaptor, tested with several mice, a couple of keyboards, and assorted USB pen drives, and SD card readers, all worked fine without the need to launch or set anything. Presumably Samsung added this themselves?

Plug the same devices into the v1 N7, and not one thing works. This is a fail to me.

Other than that, the v1 has been a very nice and good bit of kit.

[phish]

Re: Still (?) doesn't support On-The-Go USB

Yup, it's a shame it's not a native capability - but buy the Nexus Media Importer and see the situation transformed. Worth every penny IMHO.

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: Still (?) doesn't support On-The-Go USB

Original does support USB-OTG, but requires rooting which is almost a one-click process with the unlocking applications out there. Using external storage also requires the StickMount app but these are very minor hassles in order to be able to attach 64GB memory sticks to the device. Presume the new version is the same but not verified it myself yet.

[Tom 35]

Re: Still (?) doesn't support On-The-Go USB

With the Media Importer app you don't even need to root. And it works with stuff like a mouse. I think there are USB game pads available too.

The one thing that seems to be missing is the doc connection on the side, I'd miss being able to just drop it into the doc on my bedside table.

[phish]

Re: Still (?) doesn't support On-The-Go USB

I can confirm that USB OTG works fine with the Nexus Media Importer and the Nexus 7 2013 LTE version.

And movies look stunning.

I don't understand people who begrudge spending the same on an app as they would on the OTG USB cable - especially when it works so well, and they keep adding functionality to the application.

[Wang N Staines]

Picked one up from Tesco over the weekend for £180 (£200 - £20 off voucher with £200 spent).

[Thomas Duffin IV]

Best Tablet in the World?

Absolutely no chance!

The iPad and iPad Mini are far superior products.

And secondly nobody will be impressed and think you're cool and wealthy when you are stood there with a Google device. They will think you're cheap and scruffy and have a poorly paying job.

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: Best Tablet in the World?

0/10 too obvious trolling attempt, must try harder.

[Nick Ryan]

Re: Best Tablet in the World?

Re: Best Tablet in the World?

0/10 too obvious trolling attempt, must try harder.

Yep, yet another waste of space shill. This one hasn't even had the foresight to register months ago and make arbitrary trivial posts before blatantly trolling.

[Craigness]

Re: Best Tablet in the World?

On BBC3's shopping centre reality/docusoap there was a guy moving to a new flat because he has a zero-hours contract and couldn't afford the rent on his old one. He has a macbook. A family whose daughter got bullied at school for being a rich kid...were using an Eee laptop. When I see people with Apple gear I don't assume they're rich, I assume they're idiots.

[Buzzword]

Re: Best Tablet in the World?

@Craigness,

Even if he had bought a £400 crapbook instead of a £1,000 MacBook, that still only covers a month's rent.

[Craigness]

Re: Best Tablet in the World?

Buzzword, the point is not how quickly it forced him out of his home, it's that he's not rich despite having an Apple product.

Being made homeless by an unnecessary purchase is an idiot move in any time scale though. My mortgage is paid off and I've not spent as much as £400 on a single computer since 2004! But that's because I know what I'm buying and what it can do.

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: Best Tablet in the World?

"I assume they're idiots."

That's the spirit. Spiteful envy and ignorance. I always assume such people are idiots who grossly overestimate the worth of their own judgement and abilities.

Just why do you think a full BSD UNIX like system with a first class UI for non-technical users and a pretty complete set of pre-installed GNU, BSD and other software, plus an included, comprehensive development environment, a low rate of depreciation (by computer kit standards) and well enough designed that the eye does not cringe at the sight of it, is for idiots? Must be why the kit is so popular with Google developers, graphical designers (who do rather clever things with rather heavy packages) and so on. Must be why Dell, Asus, Lenovo and others are spending so much effort on copying the designs to keep up with the Macbook Air, the pro and so on. Yes, idiots all. Heavens, even the Linux GUIs on some distributions, e.g. Elementary OS, are looking more and more OSX-like. Idiots, clearly. All those GNU, SourceForge OSX releases, MacPorts and so on - what a waste of time. Idiots.

Buy cheap, pay dear, so the old saying goes. Applies well to most computer systems (and in professional life, borne out by the cheap companies I endured going bankrupt or at least shrinking because their bills were much higher than the apparent savings, while the ones prepared to do a long term evaluation and appreciate that one gets what one pays for seem to stay in business and even flourish).

[h3]

Re: Best Tablet in the World?

It doesn't even have focus follows mouse. (Even Nextstep had that - better colour scheme as well).

[Mark .]

Re: Best Tablet in the World?

I suspect the idiot tag is more because of the way they have to evangelise and astroturf at every opportunity, revise history, pretend everyone is following their one loved company even when the other companies were making such products years earlier, come up with bizarre hand-picked methods to compare tech products (like rate of depreciation), and accuse other products of cringing at the eye, when they're the one using a product with a tacky light-up fridge-magnet corporate logo stuck on the back.

[Craigness]

Re: Best Tablet in the World?

@coward

Not everyone with a Mac is an idiot but it's a reasonable assumption to make. Most people could probably get as much done on a £200 chromebook as they do with their £1500 Mac. I know where to get development tools for free to install on my PC but I'd rather not have the bloatware preinstalled.

As for depreciation, if you spend £400 on an equivalent PC you're obviously going to lose less money than if you bought a Mac. Anyone buying a 2nd hand Mac is definitely an idiot. If you want the previous owner blogging about you as the person who stole their shiny, go right ahead.

[Eponymous Bastard]

@ Craigness Re: Best Tablet in the World?

Funniest thing I've seen on here for ages - thanks Craigness!

[cosymart]

Re: Best Tablet in the World?

I assume that they are sheep...Baa!

Sorry about the Linux icon but it is the only animal in the pot.

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: Best Tablet in the World?

@ Thomas Duffin

That's fine. I'd rather not be talking to someone who would make those judgements anyway. And as someone who runs a technical consultancy, it's a much safer bet to have my clients see me using a good and more advanced mobile platform than a locked-down, over simplified, over-priced piece of shiny tat designed for facebook, angry birds and posing and deduce that my IT skills are somewhere between those of my Nan and my cat.

[PJI]

Re: Best Tablet in the World? @@ Thomas Duffin

You've got clients? With that level of technical taste and judgement/prejudice? Yes. Stay anonymous in case they recognise you and decline your "services" on the strength of the reference that your email provides.

Or educate yourself: learn UNIX and OSX, buy some kit (perhaps second hand as I assume your clients are few and far between) and find out what you are talking about.

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: Best Tablet in the World? @@ PJI

Yes, I do.

And that comment is given as someone who does the majority of work on Unix-derivative machines, is a registered Apple developer, is typing this on a MBP because I happened to be using it for something else while on here and has spent a large portion of last week attempting to lock 20-odd iPads down with the same level of control as I could have got on even an old Android build.

Unlike you, just because I own several of the cult devices for business reasons, it doesn't mean that I can't see them for what they are and how poorly suited they are if you want to use them in a way that Apple hasn't dictated that you should and as such, I don't feel the need to act as an apologist for them as though someone had personally insulted me for using one.

[Peshman]

Re: Best Tablet in the World?

...And there I was thinking I bought my tablet for its functionality. I'd better keep an enlarged photo of my member on my iPad shoved down my pants to compensate for the real reason I'm so insecure.

[TheWeenie]

Re: Best Tablet in the World?

10/10 for Sarcasm.

You forgot to mention that you would have to cope with the shame of living a life which lacks the tacit approval of the guardian of the zeitgeist, Mr S. Fry, esq.

[Andalou]

Re: Best Tablet in the World?

It's the "who" not the "that" that matters.

[Alan 6]

Re: Best Tablet in the World?

Cock

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: Best Tablet in the World?

"They will think you're cheap and scruffy and have a poorly paying job."

And they will be right: inverse snobbery that the poor and scruffy are adept at using as justification. I should know.

[h3]

Re: Best Tablet in the World?

You would think Ellison was worth more than Gates using that logic.

Woz doesn't exactly look smart either.

[Fizzl]

Haswell or GTFO is my new chant for 7-8inch tablets.

An operating system crippled by the use of not quite java is fine for a phone but I I'd like my next fondleslab to do C, Python, Perl and dare I say it, some Ruby as well.

[Craigness]

Crippled? Why not try one and see for yourself what the processor can do?

[Peshman]

So buy a laptop and stop messing about with a tablet. Coding without a keyboard is an idiot move isn't it?

[Fizzl]

USB, bluetooth and type covers solve the keyboard problem. The whole point is I'm trying not to lug a laptop everywhere.

[Wanda Lust]

Narrowness

Specs & performance aside, when in portrait orientation I don't find the narrow display width comfortable to read/view esp as an eReader. When I recently looked, the Kindle app doesn't offer collections which is a real deficit when you're carrying a large eBook/PDF collection.

I do absolutely agree that the iPad Mini needs a better display but, overall, IMHO the iThing ergonomics/UI is preferred.

[Mark .]

Re: Narrowness

Yes it's such a shame that there's only one model of Android tablet to choose from.

Oh wait, there isn't. If you want 4:3, you can buy an Android one of those too.

If the Kindle application isn't as good as the IOS version, that's Amazon to blame, for putting the minority of Apple users ahead of the 80% of Android users. Complain to them. Personally I use FBReader, which allows me to categorise/sort my content in various ways.

[Al Taylor]

On-The-Go?

Granted you can access USB sticks using the Mk. 1 and Mk. 2 N7 if rooted or with the help of an app like Nexus Media Importer. However, my definition of OTG support is that out of the box you can plug in a USB stick using an adapter cable and can then access that stick, to read or write, using any old file manager. That you can not do with the Nexus 7, old or new.

[20legend]

Re: On-The-Go?

So what you mean is it's not enabled out of the box, which is very different to not being supported at all.

[Al Taylor]

Re: On-The-Go?

Fair comment. I should have made that more clear.

[M Gale]

Re: On-The-Go?

If "enabling" means rooting the thing, that pretty much means "unsupported".

[thesykes]

Re: On-The-Go?

it doesn't need rooting though, Nexus Media Importer does the job very nicely, no root required.

[Chemist]

Re: On-The-Go?

"it doesn't need rooting though, Nexus Media Importer does the job very nicely, no root required."

And we use Samba via WiFi for storage anyway

[Boothy]

Re: On-The-Go?

But you have to pay for "Nexus Media Importer" for a function that should just work without extra software.

Presumably Samsung added this 'extra software', themselves, as OTG works out of the box on my S3.

I had assumes, as it was mentioned with the S7, that it would also work out of the box.

Installation of additional software, to get a specific part of your existing hardware to work = fail

It's like providing a camera, but then not bothering to include a camera app.

[MerlynUK]

Re: On-The-Go?

@ Boothy

But you have to pay for "Nexus Media Importer" for a function that should just work without extra software.

Q. Is the iPad able to read SD cards 'out-of-the box'?

A. No, it requires the Apple SD card reader @ £25.

Compare with:

Nexus media importer software - £2.62 from Play Store

Micro USB OTG card reader - £5.99 from Amazon

Total - Less than £10

So £15+ cheaper than the iPad solution, and all it takes is 30 seconds to install an App from the store...no-brainer (for me at least).

[Boothy]

Re: On-The-Go?

Not really the same thing. For the iPad that's just buying a piece of hardware to plug in to get it to work, which is a given, and the cost is simply Apples standard inflated pricing model.

I've already bought the hardware, It should plug into the N7 and just work, just like the iPad device. I shouldn't then need to buy extra software to get it to work, and don't need to do on other Android devices.

If the comparison was to work with the iPad, after you'd bought and installed the card reader, you'd then have to purchase an App download before it would start working.

Whilst Apple users may be more inclined to part with their money that the typical Android user (based on stats, not personal judgement) , I doubt they'd be happy to be asked to pay again for the software, when they'd just spent money on the hardware!

[dotdot]

is it ready?

I'd probably think not.

Camera .. i'd suggest junk

The os .. i'd suggest still not ready. (it was flake city with N7MK1)

google... aren't really interested in doing this platform - properly.

(I had a transformer.. it was ok.. got rid - patches kept trashing apps which used to work).

i bought a nexus 7 mk1 ... got rid after a couple of months it was junk.

as for "where are we going KITKAT ?" ... ffs - A LOT OF people BOYCOTT nestle...

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: is it ready?

@dotdot - thank you for joining The Register today to give us your opinion

[dotdot]

Re: is it ready?

I've been here for a long long time - in fact, I've been asked if I worked for the reg in the past.

thanks btw

..

[Craigness]

Re: is it ready?

Dotdot, which of the 3 comments you've made caused anyone to think you worked for the Register? It looks like you joined today to make uninformed attacks on Android. Click a username to see the comment history, BTW.

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: is it ready?

Posts by dotdot

3 posts • joined Monday 9th September 2013 12:27 GMT

[20legend]

re OTG

'the Micro USB port still doesn’t support On-The-Go USB hosting' - my Nexus 7 v1 supports it quite happily, all I had to do was root it and install Stickmount to enable the host function.

Root can be had through a one-click piece of software available for free on XDA forum, and Stickmount is available for free on the Play store.

[M Gale]

Re: re OTG

all I had to do was root it and install Stickmount

Tell that to my mum. After she's finished slapping you for having such a dirty mouth, she'll still not have a clue what you just said.

If it requires breaking (or breaking into) the device, then it's not supported. Any more than installing Slackware on Surface RT is supported.

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: re OTG

"If it requires breaking (or breaking into) the device, then it's not supported."

It does not require rooting, and it is supported. The fact that in order to mount a filesystem there requires root is a different issue. Many peripherals "just work" if plugged in.

[M Gale]

Re: re OTG

I have a Transformer TF201 here that very much does support plugging USB thumbsticks and hard drives into the keyboard's USB slot. It also seems pretty good with mice, keyboards and, to a lesser extent, control pads and joysticks. Asus also provide a rooted ROM for you if you wish to use it, however the blurb is very clear in stating how it's not supported, and that if you break it, it's your problem.

You'll find most fondle-toy devices are the same way, whether the manufacturer provides rooted images or not. If your solution requires root, then the chances are it is not supported. This may not matter much to you, but it will matter to anybody who fails to get root, ends up with a brick, then tries to claim on the warranty.

[daldred]

OTG

Re OTG: it's provide in hardware, but there's an issue with the software at present. See http://nexususb.blogspot.co.uk/2013/07/android-4.html

[KPz]

Best Value =/ Best

Sure, the Nexus 7 is great value at £200.

But my experience of it - with its annoying Wi-Fi, irritating lack of user-friendliness, inability to play movie files properly (unless you buy a separate app), and general "designed by a developer" feel - means that, now it decided to commit hari-kiri after 13 months of ownership*, I'll be in the queue to get the new iPad.

Sure, more expensive, but in tablets, as with everything, you get what you pay for.

* The screen decided to crack. On its own, without me touching it. Quite a good trick in this day and age. I broke my iPhone 5 screen too, but that was after dropping it about 5 times (not in a row, I'm not that clumsy).

Interestingly the iPhone 5 screen continued to work fine, even as my finger filled with shards of broken glass, but the Nexus 7 screen stopped working entirely, even though it only had a couple of cracks through the middle of the screen.

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: Best Value =/ Best

Sounds like you're awfully hard on your electronic products. Maybe a ruggedized flip phone and a Toughbook would be better for you?

And saying that it won't play movies 'properly' (whatever that means), then saying you prefer an iPad? HAH!

[Manolo]

And how about actually using WiFi and Bluetooth?

"There’s no need to talk too much about the operating system because, being a Nexus-branded device, it runs unadulterated Android"

There is a lot of need to talk about the OS, especially since it is a Nexus device. For instance, does Bluetooth actually work? My Bluetooth keyboard will only work decently if I switch off WiFi. Google for it and you will find hordes of Nexus users struggling with this problem (on Nexi 4, 7 and 10, mine is a 10). And I don't use BT for audio, but apparently that does not work properly either.

Another problem for Nexus users is WiFi dropping. How is that on the new N7?

And since inevitably some dumbass will show up to claim that since his Nexus is working fine, I must be making this up and the problems do not exist:

WiFi : https://code.google.com/p/android/issues/detail?id=40065

Bluetooth keyboard: http://productforums.google.com/forum/#!topic/nexus/ORce7P9V4qU%5B1-25-false%5D

Bluetooth audio: http://productforums.google.com/forum/#!topic/nexus/nVjWKiUvvPs

[Al Taylor]

Re: And how about actually using WiFi and Bluetooth?

No issues to report with Wi-Fi signal reception or retention, or Bluetooth audio streaming (either to a BT speaker phone or the entertainment system in a Mercedes). I've not tried it with a Bluetooth keyboard so can't comment on that directly at the moment.

[Jolyon Smith]

Your "regret" was in fact a "disappointment"

That is unless you were involved in the decision as to where to position the power button.

[Big-G]

Ok so I fancied owning one when I read this. Checked the 12 year old Nectar account, and hey presto, had enough, so got down to Argos and the 32GB version was mine within the hour for a lifetime of points and an additional £4.99 . Good job I planned on getting one of these all those years ago.

Love it Love it, Love it.

[TWB]

Lucky you

I checked my old Nectar account and I have 11 quid - might have to buy some more stuff....

[TWB]

Apple users not all the same

I use a Macbook at home - just because I preferred the hardware/software integration a long time ago - I cannot stand labels. I also had a Nexus 7 mk1 and really liked it - sadly I managed to break the display - no idea how, but I did not get around to replacing it.

I like the look of this new model and may well get another. We have an iPad at work work we use for predominantly for looking at schematics. Having used both the iPad and Nexus, I preferred my Nexus, so please, for those that assume all Apple users are the same, think again - I'm an engineer, not a writer, graphic artist or facebook user.

[Mikel]

My wife got the first Nexus 7

I wanted one but couldn't justify it at the time as I already had a Transformer. Hers is marvellous. The kids share my tablet and fortunately now they have broken it so it is this under the tree for me.

We have quite a collection of broken tablets now. Almost all charging cable yanking. I think I will go with the wireless charging for this one.

[king of foo]

3 words; portable wireless storage

Also portable wireless SD card/usb reader come battery chargers are approx 25 quid.

Not perfect but adequate.

There are actually some benefits over traditional "put SD card in phone" setup such as "micro SD card catapulted 50 feet into strangers coffee". The less fiddling with micro SD cards the better IMHO.

[John Hughes]

No OTG? No memory card?

"One thing that hasn’t changed is the absence of a memory card slot, and the Micro USB port still doesn’t support On-The-Go USB hosting."

Was sounding like a must have 'till that - suddenly changed to a don't want.

Idiots.

[M Gale]

Re: No OTG? No memory card?

Unfortunately seems standard with Nexus devices.

Want more storage? Buy a new device or buy storage on our servers.

Yeah. No.

[CmdrX3]

No thanks

After my daughters experience with Google Play I will be giving them no more money. By the way, for anyone purchasing from Google Play, please be aware that should you need to return it under warranty, they will charge you for another tablet before they will even accept it back again, no exceptions. Fine if you can afford it, if you can't then don't try Asus either, Asus say it's not their problem it needs to be returned to Google Play. So you will be stuck with a faulty device until you can come up with the money first. So for me, I would've looked at the device before, now it's once bitten twice shy, and not something I would even consider no matter how good it is.

[Craig Mulvaney]

Slow down?

Interested to know if there is a noticable slow down on the 2013 N7 if the storage gets filled up as there was on the original N7. Mine became near un-useable until I wiped everything - something I've had to do more than once.

I use an iphone 5 and N7 so not a fanboi, but we have an ipad2 at home as well, and the performance is far more consistent, plus apps definitely are better. However, I do prefer the smaller form factor, will consider the new N7.

Oh and battery performance on the original N7 is dire no matter what the Android fanboi's say.

[Persona non grata]

Re: Slow down?

They activated TRIM in 4.3 and that has gone away for both old and new Nexus 7s.

I've noticed a distinct improvement in storage performance on my gen 1 N7. And the battery performance is still excellent on mine - you seem to have had a lot of various Android devices for someone who dislikes Android from your post history, I make it about 7 phones in 3 years including your iPhones.

Curious.

[Craig Mulvaney]

Re: Slow down?

I have a love / hate relationship with Android - but I WANT to like it! I've had the 4.3 update, but performance isn't as zippy as when it was boxfresh and I haven't filled the storage either.

Might look to get a 32GB 2013 N7 towards xmas if Apple don't do something with the mini and keep the price low.

[Chris Long]

Off topic

I'll just put this here in case someone in power sees it...

The O2 flash ads that have been running on this site for the last couple of weeks consistently peg one core of my machine at 100% and cause the whole browser window to become horribly laggy, cooling fans to start whirring, etc. It only seems to happen with the O2 ads. Please sort it out or I'll have to (a) avoid the site or (b) install an ad blocker, neither of which would be good for your business.

Windows 8, Intel Core i5, Firefox 23.0.1.

[M Gale]

Re: Off topic

Firefox and Flash. There's your problem.

No, really. Block Flash from running on Firefox unless it's needed. Your computer will love you for it. Myself, I just uninstalled the plugin completely. Chrome gets used for the occasional Flash game or Youtube video that absolutely must show ads, and therefore can't use the html5 player. It also seems to have a better Flash implementation in general. At least, it doesn't turn into a computer-destroying jerkathon.

[MJA]

Impressed

Despite not being a Fondleslab fan at all, despising tourists walking around taking photos with them (and therefore not owning one), I've had a lot of use of them over multiple platforms. The Nexus is definitely a dark horse. Work decided to splash some money on an iPad Mini, Tab2 and Nexus 7 (for reasons unknown) and as I predicted, they quickly ended up gathering dust in my bottom drawer. As I result I adopted them and gave them some use.

I was excited about the Tab2 10 and initially sceptical about the Nexus but it quickly became apparent that the Nexus is a far more capable device. In my examples the screen is smaller but aside from that the Nexus is better than the Tab2 in all ways. The vast price difference definitely didn't prepare me for the fact the Tab2 would be a juddery mess when trying to play games that the Nexus took in its stride! Plus the Tab2 resolution is far too low for the screen so the display looks blocky and unappealing. This trend continues with the smaller Tab2 7 inch tab.

As for the iPad Mini - well my girlfriend uses one of these so I have first hand experience of the crashes and performance issues requiring factory resets. It's not a bad little device and feels much nicer to hold than any Android tab (certainly the best iPad from the range - unless you have a desk to keep the full sized version on) but you need your head checked if you completely overlook the Nexus and pay £100 more for the iPad.

It's worth a try. An absolute steal for under £200.

[thomas k.]

Love it, love it, love it!

Beautifully made device, the workmanship is superb.

Waited to get mine till they issued the GPS & touch fixes, not that I use GPS and in fact turned off all location related options in Settings first thing.

Bought this as an addition/supplement to my N900, since it was way less than half of what an HTC One costs. The stereo is really quite nice, very clean and crisp with plenty of volume so couldn't be more pleased on that score.

USB OTG works great with Nexus Media Importer (no rooting, so no voiding the warranty), I can copy from or write to USB drives, I can stream music from USB drives (though only with the Google Play Music app, for some reason).

I can stream my music from Amazon Cloud with the Cloud Player.

I can browse the Public folder on my home NAS (still trying to access my private folder). I can browse my Win7 desktop PC (and shared USB hard drives on that).

And, with Flash player installed and using Dolphin HD browser, I have full access to Flash content - woohoo!

Video looks great, btw, especially nice to watch 1080p videos on youtube.

All in all, couldn't be more pleased with this thing, far surpasses my Playbook (and weighs a lot less, too).

[VinnyR]

Cheapness of Nexus 7

Why do the fanbois always criticize the "cheapness" of Nexus devices. These are the same people who say how wonderful Apple are as a company for making so much profit.

What they don't seem to realise is that the devices that Apple make are just as cheap to produce, just that they are fleecing the fanbois by adding a massive premium!

[Jerome 0]

Ugh, why no OTG? The lack of an SD card is needless and irritating, but at least it's not a deal breaker. :(

[godanov]

no microSD no buy...ever

[phish]

LTE version received this afternoon from O2

two days early.

[Jan 0]

This wonderful screen

Every review praises the increased pixel density. However I'm underwhelmed by the brightdarkness of my Nexus 7Mk 1. Is the New Nexus 7 any brighter? Has anybody actually compared the two? Please let us know.

Where's the Peter Mandelson icon when you need one?

[BigAndos]

Just got mine...

Pretty happy with it in general. Setting it up was a piece of cake, far easier than an early android tablet I owned and gave up on a few years ago (Viewsonic Gtablet). It runs like greased lightning and the screen is spectacular. It is very satisfying to use, quick and responsive.

In bad points, I struggle with the touchscreen occasionally but that could just be because I'm not used to the tablet form factor yet. I've also had a couple of crashes in chrome. Once it started updating Chrome unbidden while I was surfing the web and it just booted me out back to the homescreen with no warning. I also tried to post this review from it and Chrome crashed when I hit submit! Also, still not the same range of tablet specific apps that iOS has but this will improve.

All in all, for over £100 less than an iPad mini it really is hard to argue with. I just hope the stability and touch screen issues are temporary!

[cp-as]

Avoid iPads, buy Nexus

It’s all about unit profit margin. Amazon and Google want to give us all a table at cost. So to argue about value might be missing the point. Why is anyone buying ipads or ipad minis? People who think that Apple engineers is unable to integrate this and that component is also ignorant of the fact that Apple’s business is to make money from hardware. And like Intel, why would they roll out the latest and greatest at the first available opportunity? Bottom line is Apple doesn't want to give users the high spec and low price that N7 offers, people should vote with their wallet and buy the N7.

[Anonymous Coward]

"Micro USB port still doesn’t support On-The-Go USB hosting"

Still doesn't? What?

Ok, so this "review" is worse than useless for the one outstanding question that I had. "Still doesn't" implies that the original Nexus 7 can't do OTG USB hosting, and it most certainly can- with a three quid lead from Amazon or the like.

I regularly connect an external USB DAC/headphone amp to mine, and occasionally a wired XBox 360 pad for MAME, both work a treat. I have also run apps to do tethered USB control of my DSLR this way, too- which is good for showing off.

So, maybe the new N7 does support OTG, maybe it doesn't. Since you don't seem to be aware that the first model did, I suspect that your information may (to be polite) be somewhat unreliable. Off to look for a better review elsewhere..