Nexus 8 Slated for Release in April 2014

[Prestidigitweeze]

According to the articles linked below, the successor to the Nexus 7 (2013) is going to be the Nexus 8 (2014). The change in form factor, they report, has to do with low sales figures for the former device as of December 2013, and with Google's desire to be competitive with the iPad Mini in a market flooded with Phablets and 7" devices.

Asus and Google are said to be working on this; the projected release for the new tablet purportedly will be in April 2014.

First link

Second link

Third link

Some of you might have seen this earlier story from last November which reported on a mysterious photo of the Nexus 8:

Link

[afv011]

The screen resolution sounds fishy to me, 2056 x 1600. That's a significant deviation from current tablets at 16:10, this is even more "square" than the ipads at 16:12 (4:3). If so, it would be significantly less pocketable than the Nexus 7.2, as it would be quite a big wider. I don't buy it. Could that be a typo for 2560 instead?

[Dulin's Books]

yeah it 2560x1200 but that isnt even right. it would be more like 2560 x 1600 to retain the 16:10 wouldnt it?

[Prestidigitweeze]

Of the four articles cited, only one mentions screen resolution. Even in that one case, the writer isn't reporting on the N8's resolution but speculating as to what it might be:

The screen resolution is expected to overwhelm the Nexus 7 2's 1920 x 1200 with pixel density of 323ppi and the iPad Mini 2's 2048 x 1536 with 324ppi. The best bet would be anywhere near a 2K resolution or 2056 x 1600, which experts is the screen standard that would proliferate this year.

The writer seems to think that "experts" [say] the new screen standard for many new devices will be 2056 x 1600, but they don't cite any source for that idea. And they certainly don't confirm that that will be the N8's resolution.

[afv011]

Originally Posted by Prestidigitweeze

Of the four articles cited, only one mentions screen resolution. Even in that one case, the writer isn't reporting on the N8's resolution but speculating as to what it might be:



The writer seems to think that "experts" [say] the new screen standard for many new devices will be 2056 x 1600, but they don't cite any source for that idea. And they certainly don't confirm that that will be the N8's resolution.

So, in other words, it's all vaporware... I think that a Nexus 8 sticking to the current 16:10 aspect ration would be a nice addition to the line of Nexus devices, but from what I can tell, there is no solid evidence in any of the links.

[Prestidigitweeze]

Originally Posted by afv011

I think that a Nexus 8 sticking to the current 16:10 aspect ration would be a nice addition to the line of Nexus devices, but from what I can tell, there is no solid evidence in any of the links.

There's so little "solid evidence" that I wouldn't have posted the story if (i) sites like CNN routinely reported unfounded rumors, (ii) an earlier story hadn't shown Google's own photo of the larger tablet, and (iii) four additional articles hadn't reported the same thing.

[Mivo]

Details aside, an 8" Nexus device aimed at competing with the iPad mini, and its format, doesn't seem far-fetched to me. It would be a good move, and there's definitely a potentially large market for it, seeing as people routinely seem to feel that 7" is too cramped, and 10" too bulky.

I've gotten used to the 7" of the Nexus 2013 and like its portability. But then, I also don't have a smartphone. If I did, I think I'd want a larger tablet as the phone would be the device that goes anywhere with me, and the tablet would be mostly for "couch potato" kind of activities.

In any event, if a Nexus 8 comes around, I'll still be tempted to buy one.

[eschwartz]

I might get one if it had a MicroSD slot...

But Google doesn't seem to like the idea.

That's the only changes that really interest me at the moment.

[Prestidigitweeze]

Originally Posted by eschwartz

I might get one if it had a MicroSD slot... That's the only changes that really interest me at the moment.

I felt that way for a very long time. Then I read about the meenova OTG/USB mSD adapter and realized I had a 64GB mSD taking a prolonged siesta in a nearby drawer. Both work quite well with my Nexus 7 (2013) (as do Mobile WiFi drives, though that solution seems a tad cumbersome). The mSD card mounts using either Nexus Media Importer or Total Commander and is then completely accessible and stays that way until you unmount it.

[Purple Lady]

Originally Posted by Prestidigitweeze

There's so little "solid evidence" that I wouldn't have posted the story if (i) sites like CNN routinely reported unfounded rumors, (ii) an earlier story hadn't shown Google's own photo of the larger tablet, and (iii) four additional articles hadn't reported the same thing.

All three articles said their source was DigiTimes which doesn't have a very good reputation as far as rumors that turn out to be correct. The picture is a woman holding it and unless she has hands like mine, that's not an 8 inch tablet. I'm only 5' 8" but I have to buy men's gloves because most women have very small hands and women's gloves won't fit.

I hope the rumor is true though. I only have two Nexus tablets, I could use another!

[EowynCarter]

Originally Posted by Prestidigitweeze

I felt that way for a very long time. Then I read about the meenova OTG/USB mSD adapter and realized I had a 64GB mSD taking a prolonged siesta in a nearby drawer. Both work quite well with my Nexus 7 (2013) (as do Mobile WiFi drives, though that solution seems a tad cumbersome). The card mounts using either Nexus Media Importer or Total Commander and is then completely accessible and stays that way until you unmount it.

Intersting, and not awfully expensive.

[Prestidigitweeze]

Originally Posted by Purple Lady

All three articles said their source was DigiTimes which doesn't have a very good reputation as far as rumors that turn out to be correct.

I originally mentioned that in my response but took it out because the post was getting a tad wordy. The CNN writer said that, despite DT's having a 50/50 track record, he felt the story was worth reporting because of corroboration with earlier stories in November and because of DT's source.

I hope the rumor is true though. I only have two Nexus tablets, I could use another!

The inexpensive asking price and end-of-life/holiday sales make them seasonably tempting! I might feel the same way about the Surface Pro and the iPad Mini when the ones with better screens and sufficient processors become old tech.

[Prestidigitweeze]

Originally Posted by EowynCarter

Intersting, and not awfully expensive.

You can also find really cheap knock-offs on sites like Deal Extreme, but I can't vouch for those as I haven't used them.

Also: If you have a Galaxy S3, S4, Note 2 or Note 3, the card in the Meenova will simply mount without any additional software.

[eschwartz]

Originally Posted by Prestidigitweeze

I felt that way for a very long time. Then I read about the meenova OTG/USB mSD adapter and realized I had a 64GB mSD taking a prolonged siesta in a nearby drawer. Both work quite well with my Nexus 7 (2013) (as do Mobile WiFi drives, though that solution seems a tad cumbersome). The mSD card mounts using either Nexus Media Importer or Total Commander and is then completely accessible and stays that way until you unmount it.

Thank you for this! +1, karma to you!

I may very well end up doing this.

How smooth is it (with the app installed)?

[Prestidigitweeze]

Originally Posted by eschwartz

Thank you for this! +1, karma to you!

I may very well end up doing this.

How smooth is it (with the app installed)?

E-book reading, movie watching, document editing -- all of it seems quite smooth.

The one caveat functionally is music because Media Importer makes you use their app for playing USB music files. The problem is that MI doesn't play FLAC files, which means that I end up transferring the files from the card, playing them with Neutron and deleting them from the internal SSD afterward (or whenever I need the space).

Media Importer lets you play everything else on the apps you choose; I'm not sure why music should be any different.