The Joplin Globe, Joplin, MO

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June 27, 2012

Google announces Nexus 7 tablet for July release

Los Angeles Times (MCT)

As expected, Google on Wednesday revealed the Nexus 7, an in-house-developed Android tablet that is now available for purchase.

The 7-inch-screen tablet will run Google’s latest Android operating system, code-named Jelly Bean, and will feature a 1,280-by-800 pixel high-definition screen. Google said the Nexus 7’s video “looks stunning.”

The device is available for purchase online from Google’s Play marketplace and comes with 8 GB of storage for $199 or 16 GB for $249. It will ship in mid-July and is available to customers in the U.S., U.K., Canada and Australia.

The Nexus 7 runs a Tegra 3 quad-core processer and a 12-core graphics processing unit. Google called the Asus-built device “super thin,” saying it weighs only 340 grams. Google’s Hugo Barra, who introduced the device at Google’s developer conference in San Francisco, said the device fits in one hand.

A tablet also comes with a $25 credit for the Google Play store; a digital copy of the movie “Transformers: Dark of the Moon”; the electronic book “Robert Ludlum’s The Bourne Dominion” by Eric Van Lustbader; and subscriptions to various magazines, including Popular Science.

The Nexus 7 has a battery life of nine hours of video playback, but it can last 300 hours on standby. It will feature a front-facing camera and comes with Wi-Fi connectivity, Bluetooth and NFC.

The Nexus 7 will also be the first Android device to come with Google Chrome as its default Internet browser, a change users have been calling for.

Google made it clear it is going after hard-core video gamers with the Nexus 7, saying tablets aren’t just for casual gamers. But other content from Google Play will be showcased in the Nexus 7. Barra said the Nexus 7 will feature users’ content “front and center.”

And Google also updated its Maps service for the tablet. The Nexus 7 will be able to access Google Maps offline and will also run a feature called “Compass Mode,” which will let users see inside places.

 

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