With black friday and cyber monday coming up soon, you can expect electronics sales to go through the roof. And that is the reason I will help you buy the best portable tablet for you. Today, I will be comparing the Nexus 7 and the iPad mini, 2 of the best devices in the 'mini tablet' category.
The tablets are both 7.9 inches tall, but that's where the similarities end. The Nexus 7 is 16 percent narrower, giving it a very different look and feel. The Nexus' little bit more thickness doesn't matter too much as it is not fat.
The Retina iPad mini is actually heavier than last year's model. It isn't a huge difference in hand, but it also doesn't feel quite as feathery as the 1st-gen iPad mini. The extra heft has it coming out at 14 percent heavier than the Nexus 7.
We're looking at a familiar aluminum construction for the iPad mini, and a matte plastic build for the Nexus 7. The back of the Nexus 7 is quite similar to the LG Nexus 5. Neither tablet is uncomfortable in hand, but if you are used to using devices with one hand, the Nexus 7 should be better for you given its narrower design and lighter weight.
You have two color options for the Mini, and a standard black for Google's tablet.
iOS and Android each have their fans. The Android 4.4 KitKat update is still in the process of rolling out to the Nexus 7. So if you buy one today, you might still be on Android 4.3 Jelly Bean for a little while. The iPad mini on the other hand, comes with iOS 7 out of the box. An extra note for the Android critics, the Google Play Store underwent an update on 23rd November that will help widen the app library for tablets easily before you all start yapping :P
Here, you can see definitely that the Nexus' processor has more potential to work faster. The 64-bit chip on Apple products still doesn't makes any sense to me as 64 bit chips are supposed to provide RAM capacity higher than 4 GB but Apple uses just 1/4th of the maximum capacity.
The Nexus 7 doubles the iPad mini's 1 GB of RAM, making it better for multitasking.
Nothing mind-blowing in the camera department, but since tablets make for awkward cameras anyway, I don't think that's anything to worry about.
The iPad mini gives you a much bigger screen and a little better battery life, but you're also paying for it. It starts at US$170 more expensive than the Nexus 7(we did expect that, didn't we? :P).
Wrap-up
Size
Weight
The Retina iPad mini is actually heavier than last year's model. It isn't a huge difference in hand, but it also doesn't feel quite as feathery as the 1st-gen iPad mini. The extra heft has it coming out at 14 percent heavier than the Nexus 7.
Build and feel in-hand
We're looking at a familiar aluminum construction for the iPad mini, and a matte plastic build for the Nexus 7. The back of the Nexus 7 is quite similar to the LG Nexus 5. Neither tablet is uncomfortable in hand, but if you are used to using devices with one hand, the Nexus 7 should be better for you given its narrower design and lighter weight.
Colors
You have two color options for the Mini, and a standard black for Google's tablet.
Display
If you mostly use your tablet outdoors, I would suggest the Nexus 7 as I noticed a higher brightness level and that would help for reading in bright sunlight. The 2012 Nexus 7 and 1st-gen iPad mini both had a terrible display resolution. But no worries there anymore, as these latest models are razor-sharp. The Nexus 7 does display a wider range of colors but the iPad mini has a tad high pixel density. But don't worry, you won't be able to notice ;)
Software
iOS and Android each have their fans. The Android 4.4 KitKat update is still in the process of rolling out to the Nexus 7. So if you buy one today, you might still be on Android 4.3 Jelly Bean for a little while. The iPad mini on the other hand, comes with iOS 7 out of the box. An extra note for the Android critics, the Google Play Store underwent an update on 23rd November that will help widen the app library for tablets easily before you all start yapping :P
Storage
The iPad mini offers two extra storage tier options. Neither tablet has a microSD card slot.
Wireless
Both slates are sold in both Wi-Fi only and Wi-Fi + cellular models. The cellular models in both devices support LTE.
Battery
The above numbers show battery capacity, but we have some much more telling numbers. In our hands-on test, where we stream video continuously (with Wi-Fi on and brightness at 75 percent), the Nexus lasted 5 hours and 33 minutes. In the same test, the Retina iPad mini lasted 10 hours and 50 minutes. We wouldn't call battery life a huge concern on the Nexus 7, but it also doesn't compare to the excellent uptimes from the Mini.
Processor
Here, you can see definitely that the Nexus' processor has more potential to work faster. The 64-bit chip on Apple products still doesn't makes any sense to me as 64 bit chips are supposed to provide RAM capacity higher than 4 GB but Apple uses just 1/4th of the maximum capacity.
RAM
The Nexus 7 doubles the iPad mini's 1 GB of RAM, making it better for multitasking.
Cameras
Nothing mind-blowing in the camera department, but since tablets make for awkward cameras anyway, I don't think that's anything to worry about.
Release date
It's hard to believe, but the 2nd-gen Nexus 7 has already been around for four months. If Google sticks with its established cycle, we could see a 3rd-gen Nexus 7 about eight months from now.
Starting prices
I currently have a 1st gen iPad Mini and since having sold my iPhone and moved to Android, I think it's time to do the same with my tablet. I've been looking around and I definitely think I'm going to get the new Nexus 7... This article helped man! Thanks!
ReplyDeleteGlad I could help! :)
DeleteAs an avid Android evangelist, I gotta say this is one of the best side by side comparisons I've seen. Little to no bias shown, just straight facts. One thing to note though, with the Nexus 7 (2013), the battery life can be GREATLY increased by a custom kernel and judicious tweaking... But now we're talking outside the box hehe
ReplyDelete