Google Stops Taking Orders for 16GB Nexus 7

Demand for Google’s 7-inch Nexus 7 tablet seems to have well exceeded the tech giant’s expectations.

Last week, Google posted a message to its online store saying that shipments of the 16GB model were delayed one to two weeks. Now, the store has stopped taking orders altogether.

Those who want to purchase the $249 version of the tablet are told to sign up to be notified by e-mail when it is back in stock.

The 16GB version is also sold out at GameStop, Kmart, Sam’s Club, Office Depot, Staples, B&H, Best Buy in Canada and, according to The Guardian, Tesco in te UK. The only place to get the device online at this point may be eBay.

Google is still accepting orders for the 8GB version however, which costs $199.

The 7-inch, Asus-built tablet, which began shipping earlier this month, is the first to run the latest version of Android, codename Jelly Bean. It has a 1280×800 HD display (216 ppi) and a quad-core processor. It has received widely positive reviews from the press — our own Peter Pachal called it “the Android media tablet the Kindle Fire was supposed to be.”

Are you in the market for a Nexus 7? How are you planning on getting your hands on one?

Source: Mashable

iPad vs. Nexus 7: Which Wins in a Tablet-Destruction Derby?

Google’s latest and greatest Android tablet — called the Nexus 7 — is a slick, lightweight and easy to use device according to early Mashable tests. It’s lightning fast, a great video player and costs much less than the new iPad. Then again, the iPad which is widely seen as the tablet world’s gold standard, comes with super-sharp retina display and has that cool Apple cache.

But which device is more durable?

 

To find out, SquareTrade, an independent warranty provider, just put the Nexus 7 and new iPad through a series of three destructive tests. All three scenarios were modeled after easily encountered real-life foibles. First, the devices were dropped from chest height, then from tabletop height and finally they were dunked in a bathtub.

All three tests are captured in the freshly uploaded YouTube video above. The Nexus 7 proved to be the more hearty tablets in all three instances.

When dropped from chest height, the Nexus 7′s screen appeared fine although it suffered some minor scuffs to its black backing. The iPad’s backing didn’t come out much worse for wear but its screen cracked big-time. Dropped from table height, the Nexus emerged with small dings but remained largely intact. One corner of the iPad sustained major damage (in both drops, it seemed to fall onto one corner) but this time its screen was unscathed.

But the most surprising result came from SquareTrade’s underwater test. The iPad’s visual display and touch screen continued to work after submersion, but all audio functionality disappeared. The Nexus 7, however, came back to dry land working totally fine.

How much abuse to think a tablet should reasonably be expected to withstand? Do the results of this video surprise you? Share with us in the comments.

Source: Mashable

Nexus 7 holds up better than iPad in drop, water-dunk tests

Computerworld - Drop and dunk tests of both the new Apple iPad and the Google Nexus 7 show the Google device is more resilient.

The tests are described in a 2:50 YouTube video produced by SquareTrade, a company that offers third-party warranties for electronics.

In the video, two separate drop tests onto concrete show the iPad came out in worse shape than the Nexus 7 with damage to the glass front of the 9.7-in. iPad both times.

In the dunk test into water in a bathtub, the Nexus 7 survived intact, with video and sound still working, while the iPad lost its ability to play sound.

In the first drop test, both devices were dropped at the same time onto concrete from about five feet, about chest high. In the second drop test, both were slid off a concrete bench to a concrete sidewalk from about two feet.

In both drops with the two devices, the 7-in. Nexus 7 got scuffs to the rear with no glass breakage, while the iPad suffered front glass damage with minor scuffs on the metal back.

In the dunk test, both devices were dropped for a few seconds into water while they were running. The iPad came out with touch capability and video still working, but no sound. The Nexus 7 had video and touch controls after the water dunk, as well as sound. "Wow, that's impressive," a tester says in the video after hearing the sound still working on the Nexus 7.

On its Web site, the company offers a two-year warranty for the $499 iPad, (16GB version with Wi-Fi only) for $99, with no deductible. A two-year warranty for the Nexus 7, priced new for $199 is $18.99, but no information was provided about the amount of the deductible on the site's quote tool.

The SquareTrade warranties for iPad are described as providing protection from "drops, spills and more."

SquareTrade said in the video that nine out of 10 of its tablet claims are due to drops and spills. Also, one in three reported broken tablets have cracked screens, the company said.

Source: Computerworld

Want the New Nexus 7 Tablet? It’s Out of Stock Virtually Everywhere

Eager to get your hands on Google’s brand new Nexus 7 tablet? You may be in for a wait.

Just a few weeks after the search engine giant unveiled the sleek and powerful Nexus 7 during its Google I/O annual developer conference, it’s been hard to find since hit shelves on Friday. The paucity of supply seems to indicate strong demand, however it’s possible that Google is deliberately under-stocking the model to create a buzz.

Retailers such as Staples, GameStop, Best Buy in Canada and Sam’s Club have already sold out of the 16GB ($249) device. Even the Google Play store touts a message that the Nexus 7 will ship in one to two weeks, revealing a backorder for demand.

Although Google has exclusively been selling its less-expensive 8GB ($199) model through its own online store, it also appears to be on backorder. It’s unknown at this time when retailers will carry the 8GB model or when any version of the Nexus 7 will be back in stock.

In the weeks leading up to the launch, consumers have jumped on pre-orders via Google and other retailers, so some should be receiving the device any day now.

Anticipation surrounding the first tablet that will run on Android’s next-generation Jelly Bean mobile operating system has been massive. As the first 7-inch tablet with a quad-core Nvidia Tegra 3 processor and optimized for watching movies, playing games and reading e-magazines, it has been touted as a potential Amazon Kindle Fire tablet killer. But the question remains if Google can get consumers to buy e-books, music and movies on its own Google Play platform.

To get things started, the device comes pre-loaded with the 2011 film Transformers: Dark of the Moon and issues of various publications including Popular Science and the Food Network. It also comes with $25 credit to use in Google Play.

Did you try to get the Nexus 7 this weekend? Do you plan to pick one up soon? Let us know in the comments.