Google Unveils new Nexus 7, Android 4.3 and Chromecast

Google has unveiled what's coming for this Summer season (similarities with the fashion world are to bound to become even greater when wearables come to market in a larger scale :) and we've finally got to see everything we were waiting for, like the New Nexus 7 and Android 4.3... as well a small unexpected device that might actually be the biggest thing ever: Chromecast.

New Nexus 7

No surprises here. The new and improved Nexus 7 make Google's Android mini tablet better than ever, with a more powerful S4 Pro quad-core CPU (up to 80% faster, and 4x more powerful GPU), which will be put to good use moving pixels around in the higher-resolution 7" (1920x1200 instead of the previous 1280x800). You also get stereo speakers, dual cameras, 2GB of RAM, and optional 4G/LTE.

All this in a thinner and lighter tablet.

Prices are raised a bit, and now start at $229 for the 16GB model; $269 for the 32GB model; and $349 for the 4G version.




Android 4.3

The new Nexus 7 comes with the newest Android 4.3 - which is also deplying for the rest of the Nexus family (Nexus 4, 7, 10, and Galaxy Nexus). Most of the changes are under-the-hood improvements like Bluetooth Smart (low power) support, OpenGL ES 3.0, faster app switching, etc, but you do get some visible changes like restricted user profiles that allow you to limit what your children accounts will be able to do (like blocking purchases to avoid nasty surprises).


Google Chromecast

But the biggest announcement popped up in the tiniest form: Google's Chromecast. This small HDMI dongle is similar to many of the recent compact media player "sticks" running Android, and shows that Google has taken a new approach to winning the battle for the living room screen.

Instead of the more powerful (and more expensive) TV boxes, Google has focused on the most basic features at an unbeatable price.

Chromecast might be underestimated by many, because all it does is act a a receiver for internet streaming. Allowing you to easily launch YouTube on your Android, iPhone, or Windows Phone, and with a single touch send the video stream directly to your Chromecast device and watch it on your bug screen TV.

Sure, the lack of local media playing might put some off, but on the other side it costs just $35.

A price low enough for most people to simply buy it and play around with it, even if they don't think they'll use it much.

... The thing is: they very much might find out they'll actually begin using it, a lot!

I sincerely thing this is a tiny trojan horse that has put Google in a very strong position to lead the offensive for the living room screen that so many have been trying to do. Time will tell us if it did, or if it becomes one more footnote on the history of technological blunders.

For me, I can't stop but wonder what this tiny Chromecast might provide next. Instead of just streaming video contente, there's nothing stopping Google from using it to stream interactive videogames (similar to OnLive), or even virtualized desktop sessions, offering an instant computer on any screen. Can you see just how insidious this tiny dongle might be? :)

Nexus 7 2.0 Specs Unveiled

Lots of people have been anxiously waiting for the upcoming expected refresh of the Nexus 7 mini-tablet. However, June came and went without even a hint about the refreshed Nexus 7 2.0. But, it seems that we're about to have news very very soon. According to a user that contacted Asus support center, a very amicable support staffer told him the Nexus 7 2.0 specs, and if it indeed is true, we're about to have very big new (again).

• 7" LCD with FullHD+ resolution1920x1200
• CPU Snapdragon 600 quad-core
• 2GB RAM
• 32GB Flash
• 5MP and 1.2MP cameras
• Android 4.3
• 4000mAh battery
• WiFi B/G/N - BT 4.0 - NFC
• LTE /GSM / WCDMA

The best part though, is that it will come out before the end of the month.

If Google can keep the expected $199 price point for the base model, we're looking at a real winner once again. I can imagine that this "delay" might have to due with either Asus being able to stockpile a few millions of them to prevent frustrations during the launch - although I bet it will still sell out, no matter how many millions they make (particularly if they open up availability for more countries - as they should!); or it could also have to do with a more stringent quality control to avoid the original Nexus 7 issues that plagued lots of users.

Hopefully, the new Nexus 7 2.0 won't suffer from assembly quality issues, nor thermal issues, nor poor flash memory performance.

I've been delaying my acquisition of a mini-tablet for a while, and this is the device I've been waiting for. :)

New Nexus 7 coming in July?

The popular Nexus 7 mini-tablet is nearing its first anniversary next July, and that makes for the perfect time to announce it's successor. According to Reuters, there's a new Nexus 7 generation coming... and it will keep on pushing the price barriers even lower.

It might be hard to remember how things were a year ago. The iPad dominated the tablet market, and Google desperately needed to attract customers to Android tablet's segment. There were low cost tablets out there, but suffering from lousy construction quality and severely under-powered. The Nexus 7 changed all that, and marked the beginning of a new Nexus era, where Google devices were priced at nearly "manufacturing cost value". The strategy worked, and has been working ever since (just look at the Nexus 10 and Nexus 4).

With the new Nexus 7, some say Google will push the low-cost point even lower, offering it for just $149 (with the $199 price point probably becoming the most attractive model, with more capacity as usual).

We still no nothing about what it will have, but the rumors point to the use of Qualcomm Snapdragon CPUs instead of Nvidia's Tegra. Even with a lower price point, I also suspect Google will update the screen to a FullHD screen (just like they went overboard on the Nexus 10 and it's high-density screen, while still keeping its cost down). I also hope this time the Nexus 7 will finally get to have a main back-facing camera.

... What about you? What would you like to see on the new Nexus 7?

Tablets Battery Life

If there's anything that may stand out when we use tablets, is that their larger batteries make it last and last, longer than our smartphones than can barely go a day (or two) without requiring recharging.

Now, some of the most popular tablets were put to the test and we can see just how long they can really last.

When it comes to 10" tablets, we find the iPad retina to be well ahead of the pack, with an impressive 811 minutes while browsing the web over WiFi. In second place we find the older iPad 2 (with 590 minutes), and only then do we find the Android Tablets, like the Xperia S, Galaxy Tab 2 and Google's own Nexus 10 (which trails the Surface RT from Microsoft). In the worst spot we find Asus's Transformer Prime (but it could fare better should you choose to dock it to the keyboard, with its secondary battery).

Impressive to see the difference we have from the Nexus 10 (488 minutes) to the iPad 3/4 (811 minutes)!

As for the 7", things are similar. Apple's iPad mini leads the pack with 783minutes, and the second is Amazon's Kindle Fire HD (591 minutes), followed by the Nexus 7 (550 minutes).

With this in mind, how much do you value battery life when it's time to decide wich tablet to buy? Would the longer iPad battery-life diret you to chose an Apple device over an Android? Or do you think even the average battery life is now "more than enough" for you to not to take it so seriously?

Nexus 7 LCD Screen Flawed by Bad Calibration

Google's Nexus 7 tablet has undergone Dr. Raymond Soneira detailed exams at DisplayMate Technologies and... it had everything going for it... but seems to have thrown it all away.

The fact that we're talking about a very affordable sub-$200 7" tablet didn't mean that Google and Asus cheaped out on the LCD screen. In fact, it uses a very high quality IPS panel with more than adequate 1280x800 resolution. And that shows up in the screen tests: good brightness levels (350nits), excelent contrast ratio, and color gamut, although it can't beat the iPad 3's 99%, still reaches a very acceptable 86%. And with all this, we'd be tempted to believe it couldn't be better for such an affordable tablet. But actually... it could.

The major flaw with the screen seems to be the grayscale calibration, that seems to be adjusted for "lower quality" LCD panels, and that causes the screen to lose a lot of detail in the brightest range of the spectrum. A technique that is often used by manufacturers to make their screens look brighter than they actually are... but that wouldn't be needed in the Nexus 7 LCD.

Let's hope this screen calibration adjustment can be fixed via a firmware update in the coming weeks... or else, it would really be a pity to have such a good LCD screen being deliberately kept away from its true potential due to incorrect calibration settings.

Nexus 7 Touchscreen Problems?

Besides some lose screens, it seems that the highly coveted Nexus 7 might suffer from some touchscreen problems as well.

Some users are reporting that after a few minutes of intensive gaming that heat up the CPU/GPU, the touchscreen fails to properly detect touch in certain areas. Something that might point to some heat-related issue, but becomes even more intriguing when you consider that it can be "fixed" by turning the screen off and on again (which makes it sound like a software glitch).

It remains to be be seen if this issue is affecting a large number of devices, or just a few random ones... And considering that the demand for the 16GB Nexus 7 has been over the top (and beyond what Google was expecting), let's hope they don't rush it out of the production lines and cause extra nagging problems to buyers.

As for me, I'm still waiting to receive my own Nexus 7...

The Planned Flaws of Google's Nexus 7

Google has unveiled its Nexus 7 and proved it was possible to bring to market a high quality tablet, with the latest quad-core CPU and  Android 4.1 at an unbeatable price of just $199. And right now, millions of people around the world are certainly pre-ordering it, or anxiously waiting for it to be available in their countries.

But, as the initial euphoria settles down, people start noticing that not everything is perfect with this Nexus 7. The 8GB model has only 5GB free space that will certainly be "tight" for most users (some games now use over 1GB of space!), and it lacks a microSD slot. Some hoped they could use its USB on-the-go port to expand its storage capacity but we recently found out that Nexus 7 doesn't support USB storage (at least for now), nor it has a MHL video out port to allow it to be connected to a TV (not to mention the lack of a "main camera" on its back.

Flaws that might make some customers pass it by, or not bother others at all. But while some might think that these options are explained by the need to keep costs down and under $199, I think these flaws were carefully planed by Google.

The thing is, there are a lot of other manufacturers building Android Tablets, and they all start with a major handicap in regard to any Google product: they're not Google!

If Google's tablet "had it all" (storage, camera, video out, etc) who would even consider buying anything else? The fact that is has the latest updates directly from Google alone is enough for most users to put it up on their priority list, let alone having any and everything you could wish/ask for.

So... this way, the market is open for other tablets, slightly more expensive, from all the major Android partners, offering what the Nexus 7 is lacking: a micro SD slot, a back-facing camera, HDMI out, etc.

Don't get me wrong, the Nexus 7 *is* an amazing piece of equipment, and I'll be waiting for the first chance to get my own. But... don't be surprised when other tablets start popping up, being even more amazing. :)

Google Unveils new Android, Nexus 7, and Much More

If sometimes we feel let down when having high-hopes for any presentation, and then finding that it wasn't really that special... that wasn't the case with yesterday's Google IO opening keynote. (Sorry for the links to my portuguese articles, but there was really a lot going on, and I didn't have the time to write them all over again in english - so, you'll have to rely on Google auto-translate tool - which you can also select manually on the sidebar on my portugues blog... sorry about that!)

So... what did Google had in store to show us? A LOT!

• the new Android 4.1 Jelly Bean
• the new Nexus 7 tablet
• an unexpected Nexus Q media streamer
• improved Google+ with events and tablet version
• and, last but not least, Project Glass - which now has a price and date to market

And... as usual, Google made it very worthwhile for all Google IO participants, that ended up receiving a Galaxy S smartphone, a new Nexus 7 tablet... and even a Nexus Q!


Some short thoughts about it all:

The new Android 4.1 has a lot of improvements, from the aptly named Project Butter, that promises to turn the Android experience as fluid as possible; to a much improved notification screen which gives access to lots of operations that can be made without leaving it; and a new Google Now that... well... it really sounds like science fiction, learning from your routines, and the providing valuable info: like suggesting you take another route to work because your usual one has traffic; or reminding you to leave now to make to that appointment on time, based on the time it takes for you to get there using your usual public transportation... and lots, lots more.

As for the Nexus 7 tablet, it really was what we were all expecting: a seemingly high-quality Android tablet, with the lateste Android 4.1 version, 7" LCD screen (1280x800), and a Tegra 3 quad-core CPU (12 core GPU), with 8/16GB versions... starting at just $199! Looks like we have a winner, and a lot of losers as well... who can justify buying a "low-cost" sub-par Android tablet like the ones we had until now, when you can have such a machine for this price?

With the Nexus Q, Google offer a very good looking media streamer, not in box format, but in a strangely spherical shape with a glowing ring of led lights around it. Looks very nice... but... I'm afraid it didn't quite "hooked" me. Apparently it requiring an extra Android device to control it, and although it has an integrated amplifier to connect it directly to speakers... it costs $299... a steep price to pay for such a device.
You can do everything it does (and more) with much cheaper media player streaming devices (like Apples own Apple TV at $99).

For the Project Glass, Google really had a treat for everyone. Doing a videchat hangout with people flying well above the Moscone center, which then sky dived down, landing on top of the building, and then rappelling down the building, and finally entering the auditorium in bikes. It really showed as a glimpse of what such technology will eventually provide in the future - with "always streaming" connections that will allow us to see what any other person around the world sees... (if he/she allows it, of course.)

To show that this is indeed coming, Google made these glasses available for pre-order for the atendees, for $1500, with availability starting early next year.


... And there's a lot more, but I think this will suffice for now... Be sure to check each of the links for further info on each of the new gadgets. :)