Tablets gain momentum with Nexus 7 launch

Google will launch its first tablet this month, the Washington Post reported. The Nexus 7, with a price of US$199, has a 7-inch screen and a Tegra 3 quad-core processor and runs the latest Android operating system called Jelly Bean.

Google’s announcement came days after Microsoft’s tablet Surface was announced. Both are regarded as emulating Apple's iPad, which has been making hardware themselves to maintain the customer market for their software since 1979, the San Francisco Chronicle pointed out.

“Google is very likely selling the $200 Nexus 7 at less than cost, but will do so happily if that’s what it takes to win the love of would-be Kindle Fire buyers,” PCWorld commented.


The average tablet price dropped 21 percent in the first quarter of 2012, according to another report from the San Francisco Chronicle, citing a research from IMS. Since the debut of the iPad only two years ago, “the tablet market is well on its way to achieving critical mass over the next few years,” the report noted.

“Businesses must now communicate with their customers, whether B2B or B2C, across all new interactive channels,” said Randy Frisch, Chief Operating Officer of Uberflip, according to the Chronicle. Developing mobile communication strategies and having an appropriate mobile presence are necessary steps to reach customers, he said.

This “appropriate mobile presence” is heavily powered by the repertoire of each company’s application. “Apple, Google, and Microsoft want to sell you a device (in this case, a tablet) that is tightly linked to their own content store (Apple Store, Google Play, Windows Live), and that displays the books, music, apps, and movies bought at the store beautifully and seamlessly,” PC World analysed. It added that the device can suggest relevant content and sell it to consumers with only a few clicks.

After all, “the real competition is not about the devices in the long run but about Google Play versus iTunes,” Forrester analyst James McQuivey said, the Washington Post quoted.

About 25 percent of all U.S. smartphone users own a tablet today, meaning that the tablet industry witnesses a 100 percent growth in only one year, according to a research from comScore, Chronicle reported.

“The companies’ hardware partners should be watching the product announcements with a wary eye,” the Washington Post noted. For example, Nokia, the critical Microsoft partner, and Samsung, the Android partner of Google, need to be cautious that they are willing to go alone with their own hardware.


Despite the ambition of Google, analysts are concerned that Nexus 7 might lack application built for it – the same problem as other Android tablets, the San Francisco Chronicle noted.

Image: Google Nexus