Hands-On With The Google Nexus 7

If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again.

Built specifically for Google Play consumption, the Nexus 7 tablet built by Asus seems to be Google’s answer to both the iPad and Kindle Fire. So how does it stack up and just how buttery smooth is Jelly Bean?

It’s nearly impossible to say after only a few minutes with the device but on a superficial level, it’s pretty nice. With an IPS display the screen is vibrant with fairly decent viewing angles. HD videos look sharp. Speaker placement is a bit weird but audio quality sounds pretty decent. The textured rear looks and feels high-end.

Jelly Bean is noticeably smoother and faster, including app launching. Due to the screen dimensions, I’m not really digging the magazine experience, though. The ability to go from the normal magazine layout to a text-only format is a nice feature akin to most every other read it later apps iOS and Android users have grown accustomed to.

Social sharing between the Nexus 7 and Q for audio and video is seamless and works quite well.

But that’s it for now. I’ll have a more in-depth look at the Nexus 7 later today.