back to article Google Nexus 7 price, details confirmed in pre-I/O leak

All the details you've read about Google's Nexus 7 are true - if an allegedly leaked training document is genuine. The bumf landed on a desk at Gizmodo Australia and details a 7in tablet with a 1280 x 800 IPS LCD display and based around a 1.3GHz Nvidia Tegra 3 chip. There's 1GB of Ram and either 8GB or 16GB of on-board …

COMMENTS

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  1. Anomynous Coward

    You know that all looks okay to me

    If it does hit that price point and battery life is respectable I will probably buy one.

    (I'd still love to have an IR transmitter built in though).

    1. MikeyWilko
      Happy

      Re: You know that all looks okay to me

      Me too. If a 32gb model was in the list, I'd almost be looking for a pre-order button.

      1. Bodestone

        Re: You know that all looks okay to me

        Chances are it will support HDMI out via an MHL adapter.

        1. Anonymous Coward
          Anonymous Coward

          Re: You know that all looks okay to me

          WIll that be the old MHL or Samsung's new incompatible S3 MHL?

          1. Anonymous Coward
            Mushroom

            Re: You know that all looks okay to me

            WIll that be the old MHL or Samsung's new incompatible S3 MHL?

            An Apple fanboi having a dig at connector incompatibilities? You owe me a new hypocrisy meter, mine just exploded.

            1. Anonymous Coward
              WTF?

              Really @Stike Vomit?

              Apple connectors have remained compatible far more years than the competition... The iPod connector has been around for 11 years. That beats any mobile port out there, even Nokia and their pop-port connector.

              You must have some seriously blind love for Samsung if you're trying to justify them breaking the barely 2 year old MHL standard with a dig against Apple.

              1. SteveK

                Re: Really @Stike Vomit?

                11 years would make it as old as the original iPod, which only had a Firewire connector. The dock connector apparently didn't appear until the 3rd generation so it has only actually been around for 9 years. Still a pretty good run though, in consumer electronics terms.

                Although I believe Apple have changed the spec a couple of times over that period, meaning that while the connector itself still fitted and it still worked with device and computer, other peripherals did stop working, or had functionality affected. Especially the 2008 change that removed the ability for newer devices to charge over a Firewire connection which resulted in quite a lot of expensive bits of 3rd party kit including integrated car kits no longer charging new iPods. OK, these are all 3rd party devices that stopped working, but they were working according to the pre-2008 spec and the problem wasn't limited to cheap unlicensed products.

                Note: I don't consider myself with any particular loyalty. I have a Samsung Android phone, but an iPad and an iPod. I use both Macs and PCs. I go with what works best for me for the job in hand. Hence I'm not having a dig at Apple.

                1. Anonymous Coward
                  Anonymous Coward

                  Re: Really @Stike Vomit?

                  Ok, so 9 years and change (April 2003) instead of 11 years. It's been so long I couldn't remember the connector used on the first two generations. Still an industry leading amount of time, more so considering all the changes that were going on (e.g. Apple's move to Intel CPUs in 2006)

                  There was a change from Firewire to USB in 2005, but Apple kept supporting Firewire charging in the same connector for 3 more years until the 3rd gen iPod Touch. Again, it's extremely rare for any manufacturer to provide such a compatibility transition time for their connectors.

                  Changing these connectors is not something Apple has shown to take lightly, so my disagreement with Mr Vomit's statement still stands. It also doesn't invalid my shock at Samsung's seemingly random change of the MHL standard they themselves helped create.

                  1. Anonymous Coward
                    FAIL

                    Re: Really @Stike Vomit?

                    Seriously? Samsung b0rked their mobile phone connectors already? Well that's news to me, but not a big surprise seeing they went proprietary on the dock-copy*cough*PDMI stuff.

                  2. Anonymous Coward
                    Anonymous Coward

                    Re: Really @Stike Vomit?

                    What's Samsung got to do with any of this? I'll chalk that one up to misdirected nerdrage.

                  3. David Simpson 1
                    Mushroom

                    Re: Really @Stike Vomit?

                    Surely the original point is this - SAMSUNG HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH THIS STORY - Thank you.

                    1. Anonymous Coward
                      Meh

                      Sammy

                      I hope Samsung turns out to be the real manufacturer for this tablet, Asus has been nothing but problems lately.

                2. Tom 35

                  OK, these are all 3rd party devices that stopped working,

                  Except one. Apple's own Hi-Fi speaker Doc had 12 volt charging.

                  And Apple's FM Radio remote that I bought for my Nano (2G) didn't work with a touch.

                  But yes better then most cell phone makers up to now. Standard micro USB is better then any oddball cable no mater how stable.

                  But I expect this tablet to be free of strange plugs and cables that require pay-me chips to work.

          2. Afflicted.John
            Trollface

            Re: You know that all looks okay to me

            Considering it is made by Asus, how exactly would Samsung be invovled? #FUDAlert

            1. This post has been deleted by its author

            2. Anonymous Coward
              Alert

              Re: You know that all looks okay to me

              Sasmsung is a founding member of the MHL Consortium who write the specs.

              Asus isn't even a member.

            3. Anonymous Coward
              Stop

              No MHL here, move along

              There won't be MHL of any kind on this one since this is a rebadge of Asus abandoned MeMo 370T.

              Like that one it'll have a Mini-HDMI port

    2. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: You know that all looks okay to me

      IR, how quaint. 1980's technology.

      In my perfect world, everything would be using Bluetooth remotes like the PS3, as line of sight remote controls suck ass.

      1. A Known Coward
        WTF?

        Re: You know that all looks okay to me

        <quote>"In my perfect world, everything would be using Bluetooth remotes like the PS3, as line of sight remote controls suck ass."</quote>

        And bluetooth sucks serious battery.

        Seriously, a proprietary wireless protocol such as those used for many wireless keywords would be a vast improvement over bluetooth for a simple remote. Those wireless keyboards can get months of additional usage from the same batteries as a BT keyboard. However simple IR is still the simplest and least battery draining solution for remote control.

    3. Mike Wilson
      Thumb Up

      Re: You know that all looks okay to me

      Looks good to me too. I have been waiting for the contract on my feature phone to end (next Dec) so I can get a smart phone (probably Samsung Galaxy S III). If Google or anyone else offers a reasonably priced and reasonably ok tablet before then, I'll keep the phone and get the tablet.

      Leave small market for absurdly expensive ones to Apple.

    4. Jason Hindle

      Re: Looks okay to me too

      I was after a Kindle Fire because Apple's (love my iPad BTW) idea of an ebook reader is a bit too heavy and unwieldy for really comfortable book reading (love my Kindle Touch too). This device OTOH looks to have the size/weight advantage of the Kindle and ICS/Google Play to boot (and will of course run the Kindle App). It may just be perfect for a general purpose travel tablet.

    5. MrXavia
      Thumb Up

      Re: You know that all looks okay to me

      same here at that price, especially if I can add a microsd!

    6. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: You know that all looks okay to me

      Yes I like the high quality plastic that it appears to be made of. Just oozes quality.

  2. Anonymous Coward
    Thumb Up

    WOW, nice price, add a HDMI port and you can undercut the GoogleTV expensive box

    Add HDMI and googleTV box becomes redundant and cheaper.

    I look forward to this and regret not flogging my cheap scroll tablet a couple of months ago now.

  3. Victor Ludorum
    Coat

    That can't be right

    It's got rounded corners.

    1. JDX Gold badge

      Re: That can't be right

      Really? That's still funny?

      1. dotslash

        Re: That can't be right

        yes

      2. MrXavia
        Pint

        Re: Really? That's still funny?

        Yes, it is STILL funny!!!!

  4. Anonymous Coward
    Thumb Up

    Shame no 10in

    to cover both bases, but otherwise great stuff.

    And of course you get the full Android experience, not that cut down Amazon Fire rubish.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: Shame no 10in

      I agree, at only 7" it'll be quickly trampled by the next generation of increasingly larger screened Android phones.

      Let's see if Google didn't cut any corners - or added a few - to get to this price.

    2. Afflicted.John

      Re: Shame no 10in

      Just wait until the Autumn when the next 5 Nexus (Nexi?) get unveiled. I bet my cat that there will be a larger Nexus tablet in the mix.

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Re: Shame no 10in

        Hope you mean Autumn 2013, otherwise you cat hasn't got long to live. Poor kitty.

        Google won't release another tablet so soon, that would kill the sales for this one (which probably only goes on sale in Autumn anyway) and at this price they need all the sales they can get.

    3. Piloti

      Re: Shame no 10in

      Part of the reason I have never bought a tablet is because they are too big at 10inch to be portable.

      7 inch may just slip into a big pocket but a 10 inch thing needs a bag, so a decent, proper mobile [proper keyboard and multi tasking : cheap Nokia] plus a 7 incher would do my just fine.

      This may finally stop my trying to get my Psion 5mx working with Windows AND Linux.

    4. ukgnome
      Happy

      Re: Shame no 10in

      Can I just say - for the record that I agree with Barry

      +1 to you sir.

      As long as the price for the 7 incher is about £150 it's a goer.

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Re: Shame no 10in

        Barry will send you some of his famous shitpeas as a token of his appreciation.

    5. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: Shame no 10in

      Shame not a foldup screen (like in the Sky advert). :-P

  5. Sorry that handle is already taken. Silver badge

    Natty?

    Is natty good or bad?

    1. Mark #255
      Coat

      Re: Natty?

      Natty is reasonably complimentary. For example:

      "Those are natty clothes, you hoopy frood!"

      Coat? ITYM dressing gown.

      1. Sorry that handle is already taken. Silver badge

        Good Lord

        You'll have to slow down, I'm Australian; I only speak English!

  6. Andy Roid McUser
    Go

    sd slot ?

    I just want it to include an SD slot for extra storage. Forget the cloud when these are being used in our car by the kids.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: sd slot ?

      Google dropped SD cards in Nexus devices.

  7. Big_Ted
    FAIL

    WTF ? iPad mini.......

    Lets see, ipad mini doesn't exist exceptin some hacks and rumour mungers minds.

    The nexus has a different screen layout to an ipad

    The nexus has a black TEXTURED back unlike any Apple iDevice

    It will most likely have a micro SD card slot unlike the ipad

    Pricing looks to be half what a mini ipad would be

    So of cource you compare this to vapourware that will look nothing like it.....

  8. dotdavid
    Stop

    Price Conversion

    "And, yes, prices start at a take-on-the-Amazon-Kindle-Fire $199 (£128), for the 8GB version. The 16GB Nexus 7 will cost $249 (£160)"

    Woah there skippy. You mean $199 (£199) and $249 (£249), surely - no consumer electronics manufacturer uses the actual exchange rate.

    1. EvilGav 1

      Re: Price Conversion

      Nobody adds in the US sales tax or the UK VAT/import duty into the prices either.

  9. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    No rear facing camera

    So this will be no good for the people who like to go around doing Dom Joly impressions by taking pictures/video on their iPads - don't think they realize quite how ridiculous they look!

    1. uhuznaa

      Re: No rear facing camera

      A rear facing camera is very useful to take snaps of documents, scan codes or show things to someone over Skype. There's an awful lot of things a front facing camera is totally awkward to use for.

    2. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: No rear facing camera

      Heh, I was at a zoo the other day and some numpty was there taking pictures with his iPad.

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Re: No rear facing camera

        Maybe he worked at the zoo? I really can't see why anyone would carry an iPad to a zoo.

        1. Aldous

          Re: No rear facing camera

          same reason i saw a gentleman in birmingham takig photo's of the town hall with one or even worse the person that got mugged whilst using one as an mp3 whilst jogging in NYC last year.

          that reason? why use a perfectly capable device (mp3, camera etc) when i can show off my sparkly new toy

          1. Anonymous Coward
            Anonymous Coward

            Re: No rear facing camera

            Just saying there are perfectly valid reasons for those: gentleman could be updating the town hall records on his iPad, and how do you know the other person was actually listening to mp3s and not something else?

            People are really too quick to criticise with a mere brief look.

  10. the-it-slayer
    Coat

    7" payment system?

    Didn't think a tablet needed to replace one man's 3rd leg? Anyway, another fandroid fail to create any interest unless the software is going to be able to read my mind.

  11. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Fail

    Yet another tablet where they don't realise that 4:3 actually works much better on a device where you might want to read a web page in portrait mode. The iPad and the HP Touchpad understand this but the majority of Android tablets are still 16:9. Probably because the screens are cheaper or easier to get hold of.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: Fail

      But, but, but... How are you going to rework your opinion when Apple introduces a 16:9 (or similar) iPhone in the fall? Will it then be the bestest idea in the whole wide world and Android just copied Apple?

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Stop

        Re: Fail @AC

        The iPhone was never 4:3 to begin with, so no problem there...

        At screen sizes and most use cases of the iPad, 4:3 does make sense for portrait use since it's the closest to a sheet of paper.

    2. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: Fail

      16:10 or 4:3 does work better for tabletly things. You don't need to be an iOS user to know that, but just be someone who has used a netbook. The only downer to 16:10 is that it is usually width, not height, that determines which pockets the device can be put in.

      Its in the interest of Android users to make the point if they want it.

      (sent from my 16:10 Dell)

    3. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: Fail

      >Yet another tablet where they don't realise that 4:3 actually works much better on a device where you might want to read a web page in portrait mode.

      Web pages are tall - and the people designing these devices have used an iPad.

      >Probably because the screens are cheaper or easier to get hold of.

      Yep, that'll be the reason....nothing to do with widescreen, 'cos that'll never catch on. One day all screens will be 4:3, Apple are just trail blazing as usual.

  12. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    no... nothin

    no SD / micro SD slot.

    no GPS.

    no 3G.

    no mini/micro/nano USB

    therefore

    no OTG

    no camera (f... the camera, who cares ;)

    shame, because battery life, processor and resolution are... well, decent. And because it's google there will be lots of mods. But the above no-no list, or most of it, makes it a no-buy. But then, do I need one? No. Do I want one? Well, to read, and for kids to play with doodles.

    1. DrXym

      Re: no... nothin

      GPS is largely irrelevant in a tablet since they are used almost exclusively indoors. 3G is largely irrelevant too because most people will use them with wifi and if they needed 3G could turn their phone into a portable hotspot, or buy a mifi device and probably for less than integrated 3G.

      It will have to offer USB in some form even if its through an adapter. More serious is lack of micro SD if it lacks one of those. I think it's incredibly cynical to charge $49 extra for a poxy 8GB extra RAM.

      1. Khaptain Silver badge

        Re: no... nothin

        Couldn't disagree more.

        My 7inch tablet has been everywhere with me, it's been up mountains, kayaking, cycling, golfing and done lots of kms in the car. Yes 3G and GPS were an absolute requirement.

        A 7inch tablet remains a very portable device, you may not use it that way but it is important to realise that others do or might.

        ( I have moved on to the Galaxy Note because the screen definition alows be to do all of the above, relatively confortably, in a slightly smaller package. )

        1. Danny 14

          Re: no... nothin

          I was just about to say have you tried the note? Pretty much ticks all your boxes except it is a tad smaller - not too much mind.

        2. DrXym

          Re: no... nothin

          "My 7inch tablet has been everywhere with me, it's been up mountains, kayaking, cycling, golfing and done lots of kms in the car. Yes 3G and GPS were an absolute requirement"

          Then you're in a tiny minority. Anyone who wanted those things probably already has a smart phone that would provide them. 3G is available with mifi devices too and for much cheaper than tablets that bundle the 3G modem. Some tablets even support 3G dongles in USB master mode.

      2. SoftFox
        WTF?

        Re: no... nothin

        Err...7' Tabs MUST have GPS and 3G to be genuinely useful

        Mine goes everywhere with me. Used as a phone (although mainly texting), On the move mail, Calendar, Organizer, Map reader, Car Navigation etc..Same size as a Filofax and infinitely more useful. nobody complained about carrying them around..

        The whole point of 7' size tabs is their portability otherwise get a 10' one. Heck it will even slip into my other-halfs handbag if ask nicely...

        No SD card is also a bit of a bummer as well..7' Tabs also make very nice portable music/movie players..

        1. DrXym

          Re: no... nothin

          "Err...7' Tabs MUST have GPS and 3G to be genuinely useful"

          And you don't have a phone with this stuff. They really don't need this stuff, certainly not in a tablet which is aiming to be affordable.

      3. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Re: no... nothin

        ah, by my understanding of "portable" is a bit more extreme than moving my hairy ass from the shitter to the couch and back. Why would I want an oversized remote with an undersized screen, when I have, like a good consumer, I should have a gazilion-inch flatscreen telly and all other "essentials"? Maybe I don't expect to have a tablet with me on a 30 day ski touring trip on a glacier in a far, far away, but, you know, a bit further. than a my home router range, or a starbucks hotpoint.

        I do realize though, this is way too extreme to venture outdoors for the general public though ;)

        actually... I am trolling a bit, because there are decent tablets outthere, which tick most of "my" boxes. I was just hoping that Google would be a bit more... generous with the "consuming". Even if this costs me a little more.

        1. James Hughes 1

          Re: no... nothin

          @all the people who wander about a bit and are complaining of lack of GPS/GSM etc

          You can already buy tablets that do exactly what you want. Why not buy one of them? Oh, hold on, you wanted the cheaper price. Has it occurred that this has a cheaper price BECAUSE it doesn't have those (less than useful to most people) features? So people who simply want a cheap indoor tablet can have one, and people who want a more full featured device can, well, just go out and spend a bit more to buy something else?

          That said, I want uSD.

  13. Shagbag

    a rather natty mini-iPad design

    I haven't seen the mini-iPad.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: a rather natty mini-iPad design

      Import iPad photo into photo editor, rescale to smaller size. Simples.

  14. phlashbios
    Happy

    Nexus 7 ?

    They need to get Harrison Ford and/or Rutger Hauer to do the advertisements for it :-)

    1. Afflicted.John

      Re: Nexus 7 ?

      No. Rutger Haur would be the Daddy. Although, which model might Deckard have been? More advanced that is for sure...hmmmm.....

      WHERE'S RIDLEY SCOTT?!?!?!

      1. Lamont Cranston

        re: WHERE'S RIDLEY SCOTT?!?!?!

        Hammering nails into the coffin of the Alien franchise, last I heard.

        1. Afflicted.John

          Re: re: WHERE'S RIDLEY SCOTT?!?!?!

          Boo. Prometheus is brilliant. I disagree with your sentiments entirely...

          Though technically I think Alien Ressurection hammered the nails in the coffin...

  15. DrXym

    I bought a tablet the other day

    Capacitive, 1GB RAM, 8GB flash, 1.2ghz ARM, 7" display, HDMI output, USB, SD micro, VGA camera - £57 plus postage. The screen is a fairly crappy 800x400 resolution affair and the flash is a bit slow but for the price I can't complain and works well enough with most apps. I was able to flash it with a custom rom which so far is working admirably.

    I would therefore expect that a branded tablet using higher grade components could comfortably sell for $200 or less.

  16. jai

    WTF? NFC?

    So it's got a front camera, and no rear camera. That make sense, since who really wants to use a tablet sized device to take photographs (other than Galaxy S3 users, obviously).

    But by the same measure, who's going to want to carry around a tablet and use that to pay for coffee and underground tickets? I can see NFC being a great addition to a phone, but on a tablet? really?

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: WTF? NFC?

      The NFC there is probably to support Android Beam, the Android 4 feature that lets people share contacts or links to apps by touching the devices.

      I don't think it'll be enabled for payments.

      1. DrXym

        Re: WTF? NFC?

        NFC seems pretty pointless to me too. All I can think is perhaps it comes free with the radio module they use for the wifi / bluetooth so why not support it.

    2. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: WTF? NFC?

      a tablet has merits for this near field coms, you can clobber the poor sod across the counter with it, if this nfs doesn't work, while with a mobile, you can't even shove it up his arse, it will slip out sideways.

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Happy

        Re: WTF? NFC?

        Thanks for that what's what's-a-handle, I now consider tablets essential for NFC use!

  17. Only me!
    Unhappy

    Give me strength

    Ahhgggg.....and I am still waiting for my £249 Xoom to get the OTA update to ICS.

    (Yes I know I can go to xda and do it myself, but why should I ...... ok that's my go at the google hardware mob moto out the way)

    Back on topic. This tab does look a nice bit of kit for the dosh

  18. David Simpson 1
    Devil

    Why all the moaning about 3G ? I can use my Android smartphone as an access point - if you can't anage to set that up with your phone then you're on the wrong website.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      I bet you don't leave it doing that for very long, AP mode burns through the phone's batteries...

  19. Emo
    Thumb Up

    *Throws money at screen*

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Screen responds: Please use Google Wallet, sir

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