Over the last week I tried the new tablet from Google, Nexus 9 made in collaboration with HTC. I think it’s the first Android tablet that can be measured face to face with the Apple iPad.
This is not to say that so far there were no good tablets on the market equipped with the Android operating system. There are. As is the case in telephony, the largest variety of manufacturers behind the operating system has resulted in a wide range of products at different price points and with different features. Some more notable.
But so far none was clearly aimed at the same space as the iPad. Most manufacturers have opted, for example, displays widescreen 16: 9 format when a good movie but it looks uncomfortable to read when used in vertical format. There seemed to be a clear impetus for Google to encourage the development of applications that would make better use of the larger screen space. Nexus 9 does not completely solve the problem but it is a big step in the right direction.
Display and Design
The tablet costs 389 euros, the same price that has the first generation iPad Air (still on sale) and $ 100 less than the iPad 2. It’s a little Air more compact, with a 8.9 inch screen instead of 9.7 for the Apple tablet, but has the same 2048 x 1536 pixels on its surface. The design is simple and effective but unexceptional. The quality of materials is excellent, it is a bit thicker (thicker also other Android market tablets) and has a plastic finish on the back which although not particularly luxurious, is comfortable when holding a hand.
The picture quality is good. Although there are better screens on Android tablets from other brands such as Sony or Samsung, Nexus 9 offers color reproduction more than enough and a good brightness level. The tablet has two speakers at the sides of the screen. They are not very powerful but do their homework when it is in landscape format.
Behind the surface, HTC and Google have an interesting processor. This tablet is the only Nexus devices with 64-bit processor. Manufactured by Nvidia Tegra K1 is a platform especially designed to squeeze the 3D performance (games, mostly) environments. On a day to day is powerful enough, although somewhat less than the iPad Air 2 if a performance test (benchmark) -saving the specifically intended to represent 3D scenes runs -.
background whatever. As is the case with the phones, we’re at a level where one whit more power is not reduced in a better experience. Everything is more or less fluid in the Nexus 9 and that’s all that matters. The only “but” you can make is that for some reason some tasks are still choking. Zooming by pinching on a website, for example, not all fluid should be.
Software
So far what we have is a tablet price c
ontent (without being incredibly low), high but not spectacular performance. As I mentioned at the beginning, there are very good deals in the Android platform. Samsung is experimenting with tablets focused on productivity where it is possible to have multiple applications on screen. Sony has some fabulous designs and water resistant.
What makes Nexus September especially attractive is that boasts the “pure” version of the Android operating system. Unadulterated, unchanged. The tablet comes in fact with the new version of Android, 5.0, which for now is not available on any other tablet. Google also comes standard with many of its productivity applications, the new dimensions that are convenient to use. The Nexus devices are also the first to receive updates, so future versions of Android will come also before your competitors.
The platform is still an issue as to the truth of applications tailored to tablet. Many of the apps just scale the interface used in mobile, where screen dimensions, and even the format is different. Not encounter such a problem as many (and obviously Apple is among them) to believe. On a tablet the most common application is the browser and of course in this case it is adapted. In any event, Google has returned to market a tablet of over 7 inches with a 4: 3 instead of 16: 9 should serve as a spur and encourage developers to build better applications adapted
Camera, battery and accessories
Some loose details about my experience during the week:
The camera has an eight megapixel sensor and a lens aperture f / 2.4 . Like many other features of this tablet is correct but not outstanding. Taking photographs with tablets is a common practice and Nexus 9 delivers results in line with others in the market.
(My advice is if you like photography, do not take pictures with a tablet. If that’s all you have on hand, that of this year’s Apple, Google and other manufacturers have a highly significant increase in quality).
The battery slashing 9 hours of continuous use, which is not bad. For the type commonly used for a tablet at home, autonomy is not a problem.
Finally, Google has presented a range of accessories with Nexus 9 that contained a cover with keyboard, similar in philosophy to that used on your tablet Microsoft Surface. Those who are to work with the Nexus September will find that it is a very useful accessory.
Overall experience with Nexus 9 is positive. It is a solid and good specs tablet and use the pure version of Android creates a sense of security for the future. If I had to choose an Android tablet that would be at the top, if not the first. But the iPad Air 389 euros last year is an alternative to consider. Has a slightly larger screen and a collection of much larger applications.
In the end, as happens in telephony, the decision should focus on what platform you more comfortable one. If the answer is Android, Nexus 9 does not disappoint.
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