The Google Nexus 9 Review
by Joshua Ho & Ryan Smith on February 4, 2015 8:00 AM EST- Posted in
- Tablets
- HTC
- Project Denver
- Android
- Mobile
- NVIDIA
- Nexus 9
- Lollipop
- Android 5.0
GPU Performance
While Denver is new, the Kepler GPU in the Tegra K1 is mostly a known quantity by now. In the Nexus 9, the GPU is still a single SMX clocked to 852 MHz. In order to verify performance, we turn to our standard test suite. For the most part, our GPU-bound tests are meant to represent gaming performance although tests like 3DMark can have CPU-bound aspects while GFXBench tends towards being a pure GPU test.
The Nexus 9's GPU has effectively identical performance to what we saw in the SHIELD Tablet, which means that the Nexus 9 should be able to support a broad range of games without performance issues. There is a bit of a noticeable performance delta when comparing on-screen performance, but this is simply due to the higher resolution of the Nexus 9's display. The one notable exception is the 3DMark physics test, which seems to scale with core count quite well, and that causes Denver to fall slightly short of the quad A15 configuration.
NAND Performance
While storage performance can often be secondary to a smooth user experience, poor storage performance is extremely painful. This is similar to RAM, where the difference between 2 and 3 GB is generally academic, while the difference between 512MB and 1 GB is enormous. While there have been some issues with Androbench with the move to Android 5.0, it seems that the timer issues have since been resolved, so it's possible to resume using the results from Androbench to get a rough idea of NAND performance.
Here the Nexus 9 doesn't suffer nearly as much from full disk encryption that is forcibly enabled on the device; performance is noticeably higher than what we see in the Nexus 6. This seems to lend some credence to the theory that CPUs with ARM v8 ISA would be better suited to handling the need to encrypt and decrypt storage in real time. I tested the Nexus 9 with a custom kernel without full disk encryption to see how Androbench scores might change, but this didn't have a noticeable impact which seems to back this theory, although I'm still not confident that FDE is a good idea to enforce across all new devices.
The NAND itself, a Samsung eMMC package designated by the name BWBC3R, seems to be quite performant outside of pure sequential access, which seems to suggest that HTC hasn't skimped out in this area at all, and the use of F2FS is responsible for some of the best random I/O scores in any mobile devices we've tested thus far.
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UtilityMax - Sunday, February 15, 2015 - link
I don't fully understand you comment about the SoC? You think web browser is using the hardware somewhat differently from the dedicated apps?My comment is about the fact that there is not point to have most of the dedicated apps when you have a tablet with a screen the size of a small laptop or netbook. Just fire up the web browser and use whatever web site you need. Most dedicated mobile apps exist because the screen size of a cell phone is pretty small, which can make for an awkward experience even when you pull a mobile web site though a web browser.
UtilityMax - Sunday, February 8, 2015 - link
It's not entirely true that there isn't much in the tablet space, besides Nexus 9 and Galaxy Tab S. If your pockets are deep enough, you could always get the Apple iPad Air 2. Apple gives you a well balanced tablet with great build quality, fine screen, CPU/GPU performance, and battery life. The only thing that's missing is an SD card slot, but at least there is an option a 64 or 128GB model. Personally, I ended buying a Tab S 10.5 because it was truly difficult to resist it at only $400 sale price, plus $35 for a 64GB SD card. Despite all the disappointing benchmarks, Tab S provides a pretty smooth and fluid android experience with a great screen. Battery life is the only thing that's getting on the way. Five hours of web browsing or standby is pretty disappointing.wintermute000 - Monday, February 9, 2015 - link
Sony Xperia Tablet Z2. SoC is one gen behind but if you can get it for a good price, you're laughing. Fantastic build, clean stock software, lag free.sunil5228 - Sunday, February 8, 2015 - link
Brilliant ! Esp loved the segway into the Denver CPU and dual vs quad arcitechture comparisons,very eye opening. thankyou sirbdiddytampa - Wednesday, February 11, 2015 - link
Picked one of these up a couple weeks ago and love it. It performs phenomenally well, and looks great. It's a bit heavy for its size and the thin bezel on the sides makes it difficult to hold with one hand without touching the screen, but overall its a fantastic tablet. Highly recommend it.Ozo - Monday, February 16, 2015 - link
Thanks for the lucid explanation of Denver.Any insight into why Google/HTC dropped the ball on "wireless" Qi charging? Especially when it was finally added to the Nexus phone!?!
I was set to upgrade from my Nexus 7 (2013), but no Qi = no sale. :(
Fardreit - Monday, February 23, 2015 - link
I'll be honest: I don't understand 80% of what the reviewer wrote. But the 20% that I do understand is enough for me to appreciate the conclusions drawn. I value the informed reviews here much more than those at the 'fan' websites. At Anandtech, people really know what they're talking about, even if I don't.When I'm able to follow the high-tech insults you guys sling at each other, then I know I've made progress.
flashbacck - Wednesday, February 25, 2015 - link
Does the Shield Tablet use a similar DCO? I have noticed during it has performance issues during regular use. I wonder if it's this DCO that still needs work.ahcox - Thursday, February 25, 2016 - link
What is the accuracy of the image labelled "K1-64 Die Shot Mock-up"? Is it a colorized and enhanced version of a real die photograph or is it a pure invention? That 16 * 12 array dominating the picture seems a little off to me: surely there should be structures common to each 16*2 group forming an SMX? Kepler is not a simple tiled sea of cores.