Many expected Google to preempt Apple's anticipated Nov. 2 release of its 7.85-inch tablet, the "iPad Mini," and Microsoft's release of its first ever tablet device, the Surface, Oct. 26, with a new gadget or two to undercut its competitors. Now it seems we can confirm that. Google will release a 32GB version of its hugely popular Nexus 7 tablet, and its new Samsung Nexus 10 tablet Oct. 29, if a report from Tech2 is accurate.
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According to a recent report from Android Central, it appears that the 32GB Nexus 7 will be available at a price of $249, and will most likely be launched on Oct. 29, the date on which Google has scheduled an event in New York.
"We all know there's a 32-gigabyte Nexus 7 coming down the pike -- very possibly at the Oct. 29 event in New York City. And the box of one apparently has made its way into our forums. We've got one member, KidCuda, saying it's ringing up at $249, which is the current price of the 16GB Nexus 7," reported the website.
A member of the Android Central forum, the highly credibly named Stonerman34, leaked the information that the Nexus 7 has a release date of Oct. 29.
Further evidence of a Oct. 29 release date comes via Droid-Life, who claim a reader "took the item number that leaked over the last week (#100604), contacted their sales department, and was able to purchase the [32GB Nexus 7]."
The reader was then called by Staples who said they had to cancel his order due to contract details with Google, and he was told that he could re-order on Oct. 29.
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This, as well as numerous sources claiming to have already ordered or purchased the 32GB Nexus 7, seems to quietly confirm Google will roll out the device very soon.
It would certainly make perfect sense for the company to release its Apple and Microsoft competing devices now, as both companies are widely rumored to be releasing new tablets in the next few weeks.
According to MobileGeeks, prices for Apple's iPad Mini will start at 249 euros ($322) for a Wi-Fi-only 8GB iPad Mini, with other memory configurations of 16GB, 32GB, and 64GB also available. The high-end 64GB cellular version is listed at about $650, possibly because it has 4G LTE capability.
Microsoft's Surface tablet is larger in size than the Nexus 7 at 10.6-inches, but its 32GB entry-level model is priced toward the higher end of the spectrum at $499.
32GB Nexus 7 Specs
Several sites had previously reported that a cheaper Nexus 7 was planned for release in the U.K. and U.S. before Christmas, according to a retailer's ad.
TeckComesFirst reported that a U.K retailer, Argos, has advertised a 32GB version of the Nexus 7 in its holiday gift guide. The snippet from the purported holiday gift guide shows a 32GB ASUS-made Nexus 7 priced at £199.99 (about $323).
"In the US, several leaks have already suggested that the 32GB device will be available for around $250," reports ZDNet. "One US Staples Advantage promo was spotted by self-confessed 'Google/Android fanatic' Joe Sanchez, who managed to take a screenshot of retailer's online listing for the device before the page was removed."
The Nexus-brand tablets expected to be released by Google will compete directly with Apple's iPad Mini, and Amazon's Kindle Fire HD. And while the tablets are dwarfed in size by the Microsoft Surface's 10-inches, both tablets are expected to be sold well-under the $499 price point.
Although the machines are not as powerful or bulky as the full-sized iPad and the Microsoft Surface, many consumers have opted for 7-inch tablets due to concerns over portability and pricing.
Google Nexus 10 specs
Google's tablet will sport a 10.1-inch screen, with a pixel density that is higher than Apple's iPad 3, said Richard Shim, an analyst at NPD DisplaySearch.
The display will be 2,560x1,600 and will have a PPI of about 299, Shim added, confirming CNET's purported specs. If this is to be believed, Google have definitely made it a point to best the iPad's 264 PPI on Apple's 9.7-inch 2,048x1,536 Retina display.
"It's going to be a high-end device," said Shim. A stark contrast to Google's other rumored, lower-end tablet, the $199 Nexus 7, and upcoming $99 tablet.
While the Nexus 10's features certainly impress, perhaps the most intriguing part of all of this is Google's partnership with South Korean tech giant Samsung. Google will partner with Samsung for the tablet, and co-brand the Nexus 10 with the company, as well, according to Shim.
Google is also partnered right now with Asus for its hugely popular Nexus 7 tablet.
If the report is accurate, a co-branded tablet from Samsung and Google would flesh out the company's already beneficial relationship. The companies already co-branded the Galaxy Nexus Samsung smartphone together.
Shim described his information about the 10.1-inch Nexus tablet as "supply chain indications," which typically indicates a high likelihood that the product will come to fruition, according to Shim.
The Google ad Samsung Nexus 10, will have the highest pixel density of any tablet on the market, and will be released in the first half of 2013, according to CNET.
Many sources are reporting Google's Nexus 10 tablet will have a 2,560x1,600 pixel density, which CNET says will "push the display manufacturing tech envelope." That high of a pixel density would place the Nexus 10 at the top of the heap with a higher count than Amazon's 8.9-inch display Kindle Fire HD and Apple's 9.7-inch display iPad 3. It's also higher than the rumored screen specs we've been seeing for Microsoft's 10.1-inch Surface tablets.
"By stuffing that density into a 10-inch screen, the PPI jumps to just shy of 300," says CNET.