In the wake of Hurricane Sandy, Google quietly confirmed its latest developments with its increasingly popular Nexus line of devices, announcing a 32GB version of its Nexus 7 tablet with no increase in price, a new 10-inch tablet with a retina iPad beating 1600p resolution matching many high-end desktop monitors and the latest version of the Nexus smartphone, this one made by LG and a stark departure from previous models.
Enter the 32GB Nexus 7 and Nexus 10
After being sold ahead of street date, Google officially announced the 32GB version of the Nexus 7 Android tablet for $249.99. The tablet is otherwise changed from the original model launched earlier this Summer, with a 7-inch 720p display and Android Jelly Bean 4.2. The latest device in the Nexus tablet line is the Nexus 10, developed by Samsung using the Galaxy Tab as a reference.
The Nexus 10 features Android Jelly Bean 4.2, a 10-inch 2560×1600 display which beats the retina iPad’s native resolution of 2048×1536, a new Samsung engineered Cortex A15-based Exynos processor, 5.0 megapixel main camera with LED flash and 1.9 megapixel front facing camera, a choice between 16GB or 32GB of internal flash memory, 2GB RAM and a new Profile functionality that lets friends and family share the tablet without hassle. Pricing is set at $399.99 for 16GB and $499.99 for the 32GB versions.
The Nexus 4 is the domain of LG this time around and is heavily based on its latest flagship in the LG Optimus G, with the biggest differences being markedly lower internal storage space with 8 and 16GB versions while eschewing LTE support this time around, owing to the poor development of CDMA/LTE Android smartphones by carriers, which forced Google to allow Verizon to have more say in the design and final specifications of the phone compared to other versions of the phone. Of course this also led to substantial delays for key software updates and Verizon even went as far as blocking native mobile wallet functionality in order to support its own rival service.
Andy Rubin on the Nexus series and LTE:
“A lot of the networks that have deployed LTE haven’t scaled completely yet — they’re hybrid networks.. which means the devices needed both radios built into them. When we did the Galaxy Nexus with LTE we had to do just that, and it just wasn’t a great user experience.” “Tactically, we want to make sure the devices are available for every network on the planet.”
While his answer is diplomatic, it represents the trials that Google still has to deal with in terms of carriers for Nexus variants. The Nexus 4 will be available unlocked for $299 and $349 respectively with the only difference being storage size a la Apple. The 16GB Nexus 4 will also be offered by T-Mobile for $199.99 after new 2 year agreement. The phone features a 4.7-inch HD display, 8-megapixel camera, NFC, Snapdragon processor, and runs Android 4.2 Jelly Bean. Android 4.2 features improved Google Now functionality and Photo Sphere, which allows for 360-degree panorama shots. It will be sold starting November 13 via Google Play.
