Nexus 7 (2013) - Mini Review
by Brian Klug on July 27, 2013 12:54 AM EST- Posted in
- Tablets
- Snapdragon
- Qualcomm
- Android
- Mobile
- APQ8064
- Nexus 7
- Android 4.3
One of the biggest complaints I had about the original Nexus 7 was connectivity, as it only included 2.4 GHz 802.11b/g/n support. The hilarity of that situation was only compounded by the fact that Google could only demo the Nexus 7 at that Google I/O plugged in through USB-OTG Ethernet adapters because 2.4 GHz is effectively impossible to use at conferences. With the new Nexus 7, dual band (2.4 and 5 GHz) WLAN is now included with a WCN3660, Qualcomm’s companion WiFi 802.11a/b/g/n, BT 4.0, and FM Tx/Rx combo (though FM features aren’t enabled on the Nexus 7 2013).
Performance is correspondingly improved, and if you’re in an urban area where 2.4 GHz is congested beyond use, this makes the difference between an unusable brick and working tablet. Many have asked, why not WCN3680 (the 802.11ac enabled successor to 3660), the answer is of course, you’re talking about a ~$200 tablet, stuff like this understandably has to be n–1 without making the bill of materials untenable.
There’s also GNSS (GPS+GLONASS) on the WiFi only model which I tested, this goes through WCN3660 and into the baseband on APQ8064 in this configuration I believe. I’ve had nothing but great success with Qualcomm’s GNSS being the fastest out there to 3D cold fix, that holds true with the Nexus 7 (2013), even walking around the urban canyon scenario that San Francisco poses to GNSS.
Charging
The Nexus 7 (2013) is Qi (pronounced: “chee”) enabled, the de-facto wireless charging standard of the now. The Qi charger area is dead center in the middle, using a coil inside of the NFC one. That makes positioning easy.
I tossed the Nexus 7 on my Energizer Qi two-position mat when I got home, and it works perfectly, of course Qi can only charge at up to 5 watts. The in-box supplied charger is a 1.35 A variant, which isn’t anything special. Connected to my special linear power supply and battery charge downstream port controller which negotiates the proper standard, I saw the Nexus 7 (2013) draw a max of 1.32 A (6.6 watts), which makes sense given the supplied charger. I don’t have a 0–100 percent charge time number yet.
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bznotins - Sunday, July 28, 2013 - link
My video library is 8TB. Since this doesn't have capability for 8TB of SD storage, it's not an option for me.deathgod1 - Sunday, July 28, 2013 - link
I'm sorry, what's your point?deathgod1 - Sunday, July 28, 2013 - link
Ignore above, typed in the wrong window.phillyry - Tuesday, July 30, 2013 - link
he's probably being sarcastic:People harp about not being able to fit their entire media collection on their smartphone or 7" tablet and it seems that he's pointing to how ridiculous it is.
user777 - Thursday, August 1, 2013 - link
It is possible to share any folder or external HDD at your laptop and to use like WiFi Network LAN storage using ES File Explorer. It is possible to play any movie using streaming (without downloading) from the Network LAN storage (MX Player or BS Player). It is even possible playing movie from WiFi FTP server.bleached - Tuesday, August 20, 2013 - link
I have a 8GB Nexus 4 and have a couple GB free. Google music or other streaming options for video and music make storage space unnecessary. I can save a couple GB of music for the rare times I don't have a connection and don't really watch videos on my phone because that sucks 16GB on my tablet is fine because I mostly use it at home and can save a few movies on it if I am going out with it and will need them or can tether my phone for Netflix.superflex - Monday, July 29, 2013 - link
He asked about replaceable memory, not storage.You're not too bright.
phillyry - Tuesday, July 30, 2013 - link
no. removable storage. memory is RAM, which is never user accessible in a table or smartphone.phillyry - Tuesday, July 30, 2013 - link
*tabletjt122333221 - Saturday, July 27, 2013 - link
In my opinion, this one isn't missing anything - it's got one of the best displays for a tablet it's size, one of the best processors available (quad core based on the S300 Krait core), a pretty good graphics processor, and it's going to get constant updates from Google. Some people don't agree with it not having a Micro SD card, but there are services you can use so you don't need one (cloud combined with 32GB of storage can greatly stretch your data).