Thursday, November 28, 2013

Review: Google Nexus 7

Babywearing while using the Nexus 7
I'm a big fan of Android devices & have been using them for several years now. I have been a Google devotee for longer than that, using Gmail, Calendar, Google Docs/Drive, Chrome, Blogger, Analytics, Adwords--basically everything Google's got. So when Staples contacted me with the opportunity to try out an Asus Nexux 7 tablet, I jumped at the chance. My main devices are a net book & my Samsung Galaxy S3 phone--the only tablets I've had experience with are the rare occasions when I use my husband's Blackberry Playbook or a friend's iPad.

The Nexus 7 arrived, I started it up, updated the operating system, entered my Google account details & bam, all my apps were loading. Now the tablet had nearly everything that my phone has--certainly all the apps that I use regularly. I find navigating the menus & settings as easy to use & as intuitive as my Samsung Galaxy--nearly everything is the same software-wise.

The main differences, besides the obvious--the Nexus 7 tablet is a lot bigger than my phone--the things that stand out are how the keyboard works & how you 'wake up' the device. The space bar & home button are a bit too close, I find, so when typing one-fingered, I tend to have issues writing what I want to. I've got large hands, but fairly slim fingers, so I'm thinking this might be a bit of a problem for men with larger hands. The other complaint I have is when the screen has timed out & I need to use it again, I have to press the power button on the side. It's nearly flush & not easy to press. I find I need to use one hand to hold the tablet & the other to turn it on again--nearly impossible one-handed. This is a serious issue for a breastfeeding mama--I don't always have a second hand free to do this. However, to be fair, this issue is pretty consistent across other tablets too--it's not just with the Nexus.

The Nexus is a nice size in the hand, a lot like a pocket book, with a slightly grippy back. Reading on it (I use a great free app called Aldiko) is fabulous, especially during those late night breastfeeding sessions where I want to keep the room dim to discourage baby from staying up long. A lot bigger than my phone & my Kobo Mini, though significantly heavier than both. If you compared it to an iPad, it'd be 2.7" smaller screen. I'm not particularly technical--I just want my devices to be easy to use, surf social media, blog & hold lots of baby photos, so I don't have a lot to say about the technical specs. For more details on that, see the Staples Nexus 7 page.

The Nexus 7 is available for about $250 at Staples.

Disclaimer: This is not a sponsored post, however, I received a free Asus Nexus 7 from Staples Canada.

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1 comment:

  1. Google appears poised to reclaim any tablet ground lost since the introduction of Amazon's forked version of Android. It may not tread a lot of new ground, but the Nexus 7 is a solid performer and easily the best tablet a couple of hundred bucks or pounds can buy.

    ReplyDelete

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