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Yes, I know a Nexus 7 review isn't exactly a review of the latest thing at this point. But, with the release of the Kindle Fire HD, Nexus 7 reviews are in vogue again.
My experience using Google Play was nearly flawless. The device shipped quickly. Unboxing it proved easier than some reviewers had led me to believe (when did tech reviewers lose the ability to use scissors?). It did not, however, come with my account preconfigured, even though I had selected that option.
I had my skepticism about the 7-inch form factor before, but I was wrong, and so was Steve Jobs, no sandpaper for filing down your fingers is required. 7-inches is a great form factor for a tablet, but only if the hardware and software is done right, and Google and Asus did this right. I find myself reaching habitually for the Nexus 7, and thinking about relegating my larger tablet to notebook-replacement duty.
It's more comfortable to hold, and more ergonomic to use, and its performance is smooth yet powerful, like a luxury brand muscle car that seems gentle until you need that extra bit of oomph. That luxury feel is reinforced by the dimpled plastic back, which has a leathery feel more pleasing than the "slab" feel of most tablets. It's actually a shame to have to cover it in a tablet case.
It's remarkable how many hardware features they could fit in for the cost, with its quad-core processor, 12-core GPU, high resolution display, Bluetooth, NFC, magnetometer, GPS, gyroscope, 1.2mp front-facing camera, and a surprisingly good (but not outstanding) speaker. And yet it still gets good battery life.
The price is even better than it looks on the surface. For now, it comes with a $25 Play Store credit (soon to be discontinued), a $10 Google Wallet Prepaid card (also to be discontinued), a $20 copy of Transformers: Dark of the Moon, and some free books, magazines, and music. It's a complete package to get you started with the Google content ecosystem.
Between some better hardware features, a newer version of Android, more apps, some cool freebies, and an elegant design, the Nexus 7 blows away the original Kindle Fire (even the cheaper re-release), and is more than a match for the 7-inch Kindle Fire HD. It's not perfect, but no tablet can be.
A lot of this will depend on what you want from a tablet, of course. If your goal is pure and refined consumption and you already buy your content from Amazon then your choice is obvious. If you want greater productivity, more freedom and variety, more bleeding edge technology, and still plenty of content to consume, the Nexus 7 is your go-to in that price range.
It is a 7-inch "tablet of the highest quality" as Eric Shmidt suggested, and it's little wonder that even professional Apple fans have admitted that it's not just a great budget tablet, it's a great tablet period.
And because it's a "pure" Google tablet (free from all sins of fragmentation), it will stay current longer than similar devices. The Fire HD will likely still be running a forked Android 4.0 by the time Nexus 7 owners are enjoying version 4.2, 5.0, or some other new version.
I believe the tablet market is far more suited to a few established names like Apple, Amazon, Google, and Microsoft than the smartphone market, where carrier availability, subsidies, and co-marketing were more important. Most people buy Wifi tablets. They tether to smartphones if necessary. Brand recognition for Android depended on the OEM's, and in that area even Samsung dropped the ball.
Given the advantages Apple and Amazon enjoy in retail presence and advertising, and Microsoft in the PC market, Google will need to keep up their momentum by releasing more Nexus devices of similar quality and throwing their considerable marketing weight behind them.
Google's OEM partners need to stop forking Android and work closely with Google to build more tablets of the highest quality and with access to the latest updates. Asus took the risk and is now reaping the rewards, and so are their customers.
Would I recommend the Nexus 7 to others? Yes, but it depends on what you need, of course. It's a light, powerful, affordable tablet that seems impossibly priced for what it offers, and will receive Android updates directly from Google. It offers content, productivity, and bleeding edge performance. It remains the best overall tablet in its price category, and some might even argue that it's the best at any price.
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