Google Nexus 10

With the Nexus 10 built by Samsung, search engine giant Google puts itself into direct competition with tablet industry kings Apple – and Apple should certainly be looking over their shoulders, because this is one impressive tablet.

In terms of design, the Google Nexus 10 is pretty much an iPad clone, with the 10” screen centered within a wide black bezel. At 603 grams (21.27 ounces), the Nexus 10 is basically exactly the same weight as the iPad 2 and a good 50 grams lighter than the iPad 3/4.

So far, so good, but using the Nexus 10 for just a few minutes puts this tablet into the win column. Even tablet aficionados cannot help but be impressed by the rich, colorful display of 2560 x 1600 pixels, vastly improving on the iPad 3 touchscreen of 2048 x 1536px. The Nexus 10 may boast perhaps the single most remarkable screen in a tablet today – it is gorgeous.

The operating system running the Google Nexus 10 tablet is Android 4.2.1, the latest edition as of the device’s November 2012 release. This is powered by the ARM Cortex A15 dual-core 1700 MHz processor plus the ARM Mali T604 graphics processor, both the most advanced hardware in their respective areas. CNET among many others noted that the latest-generation ARM technology makes the Nexus 10 the fastest-running tablet available.

Also impressive are the back-facing 5MP and front-facing 1.9MP cameras. The latter includes an excellent 1920 x 1080px HD camcorder as well. The embedded Android 4.2 software Photo Sphere is a nice toy which lets users create panoramic images easily.

Speaking of software, this is a much-discussed negative in the Nexus 10, namely the lack of apps specific to the tablet and available for download. App stores are essentially void of Nexus 10 apps, and purchasers of this tablet must basically choose as to whether the $100 or more saved against an iPad 3/4 is worth the trouble.

One other minus to note - The Nexus 10’s charger is quite inefficient and thus recharging the tablet is a slo-o-o-o-ow process even when not in use.

These problems aside, the Google Nexus 10 can certainly be considered among the top two or three tablets on the market today – not at all a bad entry into 10” tablets for Google and we can only imagine how fantastic the next version of this device will be...

Tablet2Cases recommends to buy it now from $480.