Maybe because people couldn't give impressions due to the shipping...
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Nexus 7 |OT| Google's $199 7-inch tablet by Asus
- Thread starter ThatObviousUser
- Start date
Maybe because people couldn't give impressions due to the shipping...
Screenshots, baby.
outunderthestars
Banned
It blows every single tablet (without an Apple on the back) out of the water with its speed, grace, and build quality. I have never been a big Android fan after an unpleasant experience with the Droid X, but am in love with this tablet.
I hope there are more tablet specific apps built soon, as some apps use overly small/low res images and photos for their apps.
Everything loads faster than I imagined it would, and video/audio playback are both superb. It should replace the Kindle Fire and Nook Tablet, as well as stock android 7" tablets in everyone's bags.
Android 4.1 itself seems much closer to being a truly user-friendly OS while still having the customization that Android fans love. As an Apple fanboy, I am truly impressed. It is enough to make me want to switch my phone over to the next Nexus model released.
ThatObviousUser
ὠαἴÏÏιÏÏÎ¿Ï Ïαá¿Ï εἶ
Apparently my Nexus 7 was delivered today. Have to wait until Monday when I'm back home before I can play with it though.
Considering I ordered on the 29th of June, was charged on the 18th of July and still have no idea when mine will be delivered, is it any wonder there are so many complaining? Google has completely balls up this launch. It's been laughable.
And they aren't even acknowledging it in the slightest.
outunderthestars
Banned
Barkley's Justice
Member
Impressions from an iOS dude:
THE HARDWARE
The device is slick. It's actually heavier than it looks/I was expecting. It feels solid and well made, like the original PSP.
One of the things that throws me off constantly is the lack of a physical landmark on the front side of the device. For example, the iPad and iPhone has the On button. I subconsciously look for that button to orient myself as to which way is up and down on the device. The lack of such a button on the Nexus has me constantly picking it up upside down and trying to locate the power button. Granted, it has a camera on it, but it's not truly noticeable at a glance (a good thing, right? it disappears from your focus).
The back padding feels good and a great touch (no pun intended). Screen is bright, crisp and colorful. When I first got it, it looked like it was retaining a bit of prior screen activity? Perhaps a little burn-in from the testing lab before they sent it out, or simply the screen taking its first steps into a new world, I dont know. I no longer see the issue.
THE OS
As I said, iOS guy here. I really, really appreciate this new take on navigating. It's a completely different way of thinking and I like it. There are a few things that drive me nuts: There is a "Settings" area but then there are also settings menus within each app. Whereas on iOS all of the settings for everything is located in the "Settings" area. On the Nexus, I start to juggle settings: Is the feature I want to shut off in the app settings? Nope, it's not. Let me open the Settings app...Oh there it is. Etc.
Another thing I don't particularly like about Google's setup at the moment, which I was asking about earlier in the thread, was how integrated your Google account is. I mean...You are plugged into this device: Your Gmail, your Gchat, your Chrome bookmarks...If you're a single person and the only one using the device, I'm sure you could care less. But for me in a household where many people use these devices, having my Gmail exposed, IM's popping up, Chrome bookmarks and open tabs syncing...It's a bit intrusive. And there's no way to simply log out of your Google account. Once you attach an account to that device, it is attached. It would be great if there were user profiles you could log in and out of.
That said, navigating the OS is super smoove. Silky. The graphics fly across the screen, the experience is nice. The fonts are great, the sounds are great. It's really nice.
THE APPS
I haven't explored the Play Store much but I did grab a PlayStation emulator (FPse) and an MKV player (VPlayer).
The PlayStation emulator is solid. The Tegra 3 seems more than capable.
Same for MKVs. VPlayer handled a 720p video with subtitled extremely smoothly.
Android still confuses me regarding the way it manages apps. When I minimize an app, is it still drawing power from the device? I get the feeling if you leave too many apps "open" your battery will die fairly quickly. I just looked at my Nexus which had a full charge yesterday and very little use and now it's at 14% with a few apps left open "in the background".
I downloaded Advanced Task Killer which I employ regularly to shut everything down. Why this app even exists is the problem. I don't even know if it's working on Jellybean: I'll kill apps and then open it up again and there's 5 new apps that are open again for some reason, mostly Google apps. Again, that whole Google integration thing...It's a little scary.
WOULD YOU DITCH iOS?
Nah, I wouldn't ditch iOS. First of all, all of the apps are on iOS. That's one of (if not the) reasons to get an iPad or iPhone, right?
Also, I find Android rather inelegant. Now, now, chill for a sec...It's just preference. I prefer iOS, sorry. Especially on the phone. For tablets? I could definitely see myself using the Nexus or an Android tablet over an iPad; they do essentially the same shit. But I'm heavily invested in my iPad with apps and whatnot, so it would feel like a bit of rebuilding ($$) for little discernable gain.
Also, iOS is synced to all my shit (I'm a Mac user) so I love that.
SO YOU THINK IT SUCKS
Quite the contrary! I think the Nexus is amazing. And at $200, holy shit. It's one of those classic purchases. The ones where you look back and go, "Yea, that device was not only affordable, but it was fucking awesome too."
The 7" form factor will be big, I know it, and it definitely has a different feel from the 10" tablets. Anyone who doesn't already have a tablet, this is a great device to get. If you want a nice piece of hardware to browse the web, play movies, music, read books, email on, it has all of that. The only thing you might regret in the future is potentially looking longingly at all of those popular apps over on the Apple Store. But there's nothing holding back the Nexus from greatness.
THE HARDWARE
The device is slick. It's actually heavier than it looks/I was expecting. It feels solid and well made, like the original PSP.
One of the things that throws me off constantly is the lack of a physical landmark on the front side of the device. For example, the iPad and iPhone has the On button. I subconsciously look for that button to orient myself as to which way is up and down on the device. The lack of such a button on the Nexus has me constantly picking it up upside down and trying to locate the power button. Granted, it has a camera on it, but it's not truly noticeable at a glance (a good thing, right? it disappears from your focus).
The back padding feels good and a great touch (no pun intended). Screen is bright, crisp and colorful. When I first got it, it looked like it was retaining a bit of prior screen activity? Perhaps a little burn-in from the testing lab before they sent it out, or simply the screen taking its first steps into a new world, I dont know. I no longer see the issue.
THE OS
As I said, iOS guy here. I really, really appreciate this new take on navigating. It's a completely different way of thinking and I like it. There are a few things that drive me nuts: There is a "Settings" area but then there are also settings menus within each app. Whereas on iOS all of the settings for everything is located in the "Settings" area. On the Nexus, I start to juggle settings: Is the feature I want to shut off in the app settings? Nope, it's not. Let me open the Settings app...Oh there it is. Etc.
Another thing I don't particularly like about Google's setup at the moment, which I was asking about earlier in the thread, was how integrated your Google account is. I mean...You are plugged into this device: Your Gmail, your Gchat, your Chrome bookmarks...If you're a single person and the only one using the device, I'm sure you could care less. But for me in a household where many people use these devices, having my Gmail exposed, IM's popping up, Chrome bookmarks and open tabs syncing...It's a bit intrusive. And there's no way to simply log out of your Google account. Once you attach an account to that device, it is attached. It would be great if there were user profiles you could log in and out of.
That said, navigating the OS is super smoove. Silky. The graphics fly across the screen, the experience is nice. The fonts are great, the sounds are great. It's really nice.
THE APPS
I haven't explored the Play Store much but I did grab a PlayStation emulator (FPse) and an MKV player (VPlayer).
The PlayStation emulator is solid. The Tegra 3 seems more than capable.
Same for MKVs. VPlayer handled a 720p video with subtitled extremely smoothly.
Android still confuses me regarding the way it manages apps. When I minimize an app, is it still drawing power from the device? I get the feeling if you leave too many apps "open" your battery will die fairly quickly. I just looked at my Nexus which had a full charge yesterday and very little use and now it's at 14% with a few apps left open "in the background".
I downloaded Advanced Task Killer which I employ regularly to shut everything down. Why this app even exists is the problem. I don't even know if it's working on Jellybean: I'll kill apps and then open it up again and there's 5 new apps that are open again for some reason, mostly Google apps. Again, that whole Google integration thing...It's a little scary.
WOULD YOU DITCH iOS?
Nah, I wouldn't ditch iOS. First of all, all of the apps are on iOS. That's one of (if not the) reasons to get an iPad or iPhone, right?
Also, I find Android rather inelegant. Now, now, chill for a sec...It's just preference. I prefer iOS, sorry. Especially on the phone. For tablets? I could definitely see myself using the Nexus or an Android tablet over an iPad; they do essentially the same shit. But I'm heavily invested in my iPad with apps and whatnot, so it would feel like a bit of rebuilding ($$) for little discernable gain.
Also, iOS is synced to all my shit (I'm a Mac user) so I love that.
SO YOU THINK IT SUCKS
Quite the contrary! I think the Nexus is amazing. And at $200, holy shit. It's one of those classic purchases. The ones where you look back and go, "Yea, that device was not only affordable, but it was fucking awesome too."
The 7" form factor will be big, I know it, and it definitely has a different feel from the 10" tablets. Anyone who doesn't already have a tablet, this is a great device to get. If you want a nice piece of hardware to browse the web, play movies, music, read books, email on, it has all of that. The only thing you might regret in the future is potentially looking longingly at all of those popular apps over on the Apple Store. But there's nothing holding back the Nexus from greatness.
Not true.
When an app is suspended it shouldn't do anything unless that app has notifications on. Like Twitter updates every 10 minutes.
I just sent a reply emailto Google CS requesting to either cancel my order or refund my shipping. Will see how I go.
Will rebuy an iPad and buy an AppleTV. Google is so far behind in this race (especially here in Australia) and I was willing to wait for them but this has just proved they have so much to do to catch up:
- No Music
- No Movie purchases
- No TV shows
- No magazines
- No decent TV solution (Nexus Q should have at least feature matched Apple TV)
- Ridiculously poor logistics
- Rubbish customer service
Will rebuy an iPad and buy an AppleTV. Google is so far behind in this race (especially here in Australia) and I was willing to wait for them but this has just proved they have so much to do to catch up:
- No Music
- No Movie purchases
- No TV shows
- No magazines
- No decent TV solution (Nexus Q should have at least feature matched Apple TV)
- Ridiculously poor logistics
- Rubbish customer service
You need to get rid of task killers dude. They do nothing for you the stock OS cant do for you properly. If you want to close stuff, hit the multitasking button and swipe them away. If you want to kill other core operating system processes, open Settings > Apps and close them. I wouldn't risk using those shady task killers for anything these days.
They caused so many problems on older devices. Once 4.0 came along I'm pretty sure people stopped using those. They have no reason to exist, and you have no reason to use them.
As for multitasking, its multitasking. Those apps aren't closed unless the system needs to clear ram for a new function you are doing. AFAIK it takes a lot of open apps to force the device to that point. I may be off on that, Im sure someone can clarify, but I'm pretty positive about the task killers dude, dump that, those have been unnecessary since like November 2011.
marathonfool
Member
This would be a deal breaker for me. Is there no user profile like in Windows? For such a novelty device, I'm shocked the OS is geared toward a single user.
Advance task killer is actually the one eating your battery. You don't need to worry about apps running in the background, they don't. When apps need to do something in the background they'll start a service, and that service will do the heavy lifting and then disappear. (This is assuming devs are doing it right).
Apps will be reloaded into memory as soon as they are removed. That's the point of RAM, to have the apps ready to go when needed.
So task killers are actually make the system work more. Uninstall that task killer, you don't need it. You're intentionally telling the system to stay awake by using it, hence your battery draw.
The only thing ChromeOS does right.
ThatObviousUser
ὠαἴÏÏιÏÏÎ¿Ï Ïαá¿Ï εἶ
Decent impressions overall. Some points of correction:
Having applications open does not impact battery. What you should be watching is which applications are doing a lot of background data polling (Facebook is notorious for being a bad citizin in regards to this.)
To check which apps are draining your juice, go to Settings > Battery and Settings > Data usage.
You shouldn't be doing that, it drains the battery faster since apps have to completely reinitialize instead of just being restored.
I couldn't agree more. It shouldn't exist, since in 4.0+, swiping the apps away from the multitasking view does essentially the same thing, but is safer to the system.
I find it difficult to understand this, since the Nexus 7 is literally using a blown up version of the phone OS (not even the tablet interface!) Not only that, the amount of apps optimized for Android phones dwarfs those optimized for tablets.
Like which apps? I'm curious to know about the drove of fantastic iOS-exclusive apps you're pining for.
Having applications open does not impact battery. What you should be watching is which applications are doing a lot of background data polling (Facebook is notorious for being a bad citizin in regards to this.)
To check which apps are draining your juice, go to Settings > Battery and Settings > Data usage.
You shouldn't be doing that, it drains the battery faster since apps have to completely reinitialize instead of just being restored.
I couldn't agree more. It shouldn't exist, since in 4.0+, swiping the apps away from the multitasking view does essentially the same thing, but is safer to the system.
I find it difficult to understand this, since the Nexus 7 is literally using a blown up version of the phone OS (not even the tablet interface!) Not only that, the amount of apps optimized for Android phones dwarfs those optimized for tablets.
Like which apps? I'm curious to know about the drove of fantastic iOS-exclusive apps you're pining for.
Barkley's Justice
Member
Word. Deleted.
marathonfool
Member
What a huge oversight especially if they tightly integrated their services to the device. Does rooting void warranty? Can I use the device without tightly attaching all the Google services?
You dont have to log in to your google accounts at all to use them IIRC. I know when you start a device you get the option to sign in or create a google account. You could create a new one just for the family or skip it and just go right to the home screen. However, realize that these devices are all about apps and stuff.
AFAIK without using an account, you have nothing to attach store and book and app and movie purchases to. So I dont know how useful that would be. If for whatever reason you are against creating a google account, it would be a bad idea to buy a device that seems pretty tightly designed around them.
Barkley's Justice
Member
Well, we can start with games. Like Cave games. I play the shit out of those. Or how about I just run down the ones I've recently downloaded and see if it's on Play:
Gene Effect: No
Project 83113: Yes
Swift Stitch: no
Darkside: No
Darius Burst: No
Raystorm: No
It's just how it is, man. That's why there's a crazy iOS games thread on Gaf that is in its 4th thread of Not Doomed.
And I bought the Nexus as a developer. And knowing other developer friends, Android always plays second fiddle. You know that, right? I know you know that.
outunderthestars
Banned
How is that different than ios? A tablet is a personal device.
Depends on who you bought the device from. I'm not sure in Google's case but a lot do say it will. Either way you can unroot and they won't know you rooted so I've never worried about it. I've never heard of a case where someone couldn't get something fixed because they rooted.
Can you use the device without tightly attaching Google Services? Not really. You can have mutliple accounts on the device in stock, but it doesn't ask for passwords and it wont log you out of them. So if you don't care about whoever you are sharing the device with seeing your emails in the Gmail app you would be fine since you can switch accounts pretty easily.
Like this
I mean you can technically use the device without ever using a Google account but you won't have access to the App store, and I don't think that is what you are asking. I would root and install SwitchMe. Someone else in this thread had the same question and I think they did it. Maybe they can answer if it has worked the way they wanted.
Ollie Pooch
In a perfect world, we'd all be homersexual
This thing is great - really pleased with how slick everything feels. The setup in particular was really nice. The size is perfect, screen is crisp and I'm loving stock Android, makes you realise how much junk manufacturers throw top of it for their own devices.
Coming from an iPad, in Australia, you realise how much Google need to get their act together in terms of content (there's none, basically...a huge WTF that needs to be addressed, fast... what are they doing?) but I stream music with MOG and most video is stuff I've ripped myself so its not a huge issue for me. Really pleased overall.
Coming from an iPad, in Australia, you realise how much Google need to get their act together in terms of content (there's none, basically...a huge WTF that needs to be addressed, fast... what are they doing?) but I stream music with MOG and most video is stuff I've ripped myself so its not a huge issue for me. Really pleased overall.
OriginalThinking
Member
Just a quick thing, if you don't want your Google account tightly integrated you don't have to use It when you initially sign in. Instead of using the Gmail app just use the standard mail client instead. You'll sacrifice push but as long as that isn't a deal breaker you should be ok. You can also get apps which allow you to put pin protection on access to apps or parts of the OS. App locker is one such app. Dunno if it's optimised for Jelly Bean mind.
Overall hardware - Great! I've read the issues that some people have been having, particularly with the screen popping up past the bezel, but mine is fine. The build quality is beyond what I would expect for a device that cost £200. My Galaxy S3 would cost £500 unlocked for instance and it's hard to believe that the Nexus 7 is less than half the price given the specs and quality. The back feels nice in your hands. The size is pretty much perfect for holding in one hand. There's obviously plenty of grunt inside as everything feels super snappy and responsive.
Screen - Again, great. I've had no issues with backlight bleed at the sides, image retention, nor dead pixels. The screen is bright and sharp. Colours look a little more muted than they do on my S3, but images and videos look excellent. Text is crisp, so the device is fine for reading. The auto-brightness seems to work better than it does on my S3 as my S3 will occasionally readjust itself even though the light conditions haven't changed, while the Nexus 7 doesn't (an S3 software issue I'm sure, but still worth mentioning).
Sound - Very good. It's loud enough for my needs. The sound quality is a little better than I expected given the price and that there's not exactly room for a big speaker inside the hardware, but it's not superb by any means.
Battery - It initially took quite a long time to charge via USB, although I charged it a second time using the included power adapter and it was considerably quicker. I got about 9 or 10 hours out of the first charge, which is very good.
JellyBean - Coming from ICS on my S3, I can notice the improvements in JB, but it's not a massive difference - more a refinement, with a few nice little additions. The voice search is pretty amazing and so far it's recognised everything I've said perfectly. Animations are smooth.
The Good - Great hardware which has plenty of grunt, superb price, lovely screen, pretty decent sound, nice size and weight, and it's running the best version of Android yet.
The "hmmmm, could be better" - I think that the main power and volume buttons could be better placed, although it's a minor gripe and obviously a matter of opinion. There is a lack of tablet versions of apps, but it's early days yet. As no other Android tablet really sold in great numbers, hopefully this sells really well and inspires devs to create tablet-optimised versions of apps. If you're in the UK you don't get as good a deal on the free bundled content as you do if you're in the US, as you get a Jeffrey Archer book, the Transformers movie and £15 of Play Store credit. It would have been nice if the device had vibration. Also, some will count the lack of a rear-facing camera as a negative, but for me personally it's not an issue.
The Bad - Nothing really!
Buy or don't buy? - If you're already a fan of Android and you want a tablet of this size, it's a no brainer - buy it. If you've never used Android or you're not sure if the size is right for you, get your hands on one and try it.
Looks like this problem i'm having with the right side of the touch screen fucking up is being reported on
http://www.tested.com/news/53106-check-your-nexus-7-tablet-for-this-touchscreen-issue/
http://venturebeat.com/2012/07/20/is-your-nexus-7-having-touchscreen-issues/
Oh god what if this is on every unit!! Quick play graphically intense game and see if it does it. Sounds like a driver issue or something though. Hopefully can be fixed through an update.
Turn on the Pointer Location option in Settings>Developer Options to see the touch screen presses.
http://www.tested.com/news/53106-check-your-nexus-7-tablet-for-this-touchscreen-issue/
http://venturebeat.com/2012/07/20/is-your-nexus-7-having-touchscreen-issues/
Oh god what if this is on every unit!! Quick play graphically intense game and see if it does it. Sounds like a driver issue or something though. Hopefully can be fixed through an update.
Turn on the Pointer Location option in Settings>Developer Options to see the touch screen presses.
Not entirely happy with it yet. I'm OCD with my naming and some things just don't verb right. Also I'm too lazy to censor my personal life.
I really can't decide how to organise mine yet. Right now I'm only using one screen which has a Flipboard widget on it, 2 folders (games and the Google apps) and some shortcuts in the dock.
One thing I don't like about stock JellyBean compared to a launcher like Apex is that not every widget is resizeable.
OriginalThinking
Member
Dude, drop Reddit Is Fun and get Reddit News Pro. It isn't tablet optimised yet, but it's the best Reddit Holo client bar none.
I'm actually using it right now. Testing it out to see if it has all the things I want before putting it in that folder.
US and Canada.
OriginalThinking
Member
If we're on the OCD thing, is it necessary to put a link to settings in a folder when you can just drag down the notification shade and jump from there? Just as quick I'd wager ;-)
sonycowboy
Member
Not entirely happy with it yet. I'm OCD with my naming and some things just don't verb right. Also I'm too lazy to censor my personal life.
You are one broke ass MF..., but no debt is nice as well
I put it there so I see an obvious icon for a folder involving Settings. That folder mostly has apps for other crazy "settings". Rom Hacking stuff etc. This is my specific OCD. Something that is not actually OCD and i'm sure offends people with real OCD.
Agent Icebeezy
Welcome beautful toddler, Madison Elizabeth, to the horde!
I think one of my daughters fubared the offer for the $25 dollars, is there any way to recover it?
Whatever account logs in first I think gets the money. Factory reset (erases everything) and log-in to the account you want the money on and you should get it. You can even take advantage of this and log-in a bunch of different accounts with factory reset between each and get $25 on every one of them. Unless they have fixed this.
