iPad Mini vs Nexus 7

[darngooddesign]

Originally Posted by batting1000

Gotta start somewhere. It'd be silly to make the 1st gen the best.

That doesn't make sense. The iPad 3 has Retina, but it isn't better than the 4 and the 5 will be better still.

[cheesygrin]

I've recently been considering this dilemma myself. I've never owned an Android device, so slightly tempted to go that way for the experience.

There's a couple of things you should consider, though:

On current devices, the Nexus has the better resolution display (though that in itself doesn't mean it is the best display - colour saturation doesn't seem as deep as Apple's displays). But, for now, the Nexus wins out on resolution anyway.

Apple is likely to keep the refresh cycle for the mini quite short, as with the other iPads. And the next version will almost certainly contain a retina display. For the absolute best experience at this size of tablet, I say wait for the next version. Apple are behind in the 7" market, so they'll need to up their game in terms of display res pretty quickly, especially since they're aiming at the higher end. I estimate a retina mini before summer 2013. If you can wait that long, that may be your best bet.

[batting1000]

Originally Posted by darngooddesign

That doesn't make sense. The iPad 3 has Retina, but it isn't better than the 4 and the 5 will be better still.

Exactly..

----------

Originally Posted by CoMoMacUser

I've been using the iPad 1 in my home gym for more than 2 1/2 years. When I'm on the treadmill, I use headphones to watch videos. When I'm lifting, I plug it into the stereo system to watch videos and listen to music that I don't have on CD.

That's different. You aren't going to bring your stereo system to an actual gym. Home gyms are different. You set it up and leave it there.

[Idbvideo]

My tablet experience started the day after the Keynote speach announcing the specs of the mini. I went out and bought an Nexus 7. I had that for about 3 weeks. I liked the OS, it was really configurable. I hated the apps and the Android Eco system on the grounds that most of the apps were phone apps and finding tablet apps was hit and miss. The deal breaker for me was that I use MS Outlook for my email, contacts and calender. Without setting things up differently and/or buying an app I could not sync my Outlook data. Itunes let me do this on my phone without any problems!

I then bought a 16Gb wifi only mini. I found that it was almost what I wanted, just had no GPS. That alone was not a biggie. My problem was that I hadnt expected that I would run out of room with 16Gb, after all my IP5 was 16GB and that has all the music I need on it and still had 5Gb left on that!

So I ended up with a 64Gb celular version. Yeah spent a lot of money and although my family have profited from it (giveaways) I am happy with the final purchase.

As for the Nexus 7 - it is a fine tablet let down by the infrastructure. Yes the screen size is smaller but thats not a major factor, web pages are easily read, zooming and scrolling/panning around web pages was smooth enough.

One other issue was that catch up tv apps were not available for the Nexus 7 but were for the Ipad.

It is of course horses for courses but you have to research to see what it is you would like and whch device will do it. Unlike me

[DesignIt]

I went and picked up the Mini and will be returning it for the Ipad 4 for $489 and no tax. I just can't get over the poor display; Especially knowing that Apple, along with everyone else, has a superior display. I will say that the Kindle 7" HD display didn't look THAT much better than the Mini's. Only if you looked real close at lettering, could you tell the sharpness difference.

The retina display on the Ipad 3 & 4 looks better than the Mini, the Kindle 7" HD and the Nexus 7.
Thanks again everyone!

[TallManNY]

Originally Posted by map1978

The N7 is HSPA+ where is the Mini is LTE...huge difference

I had the N7 for a few weeks, but decided to return it back to Staples.

Well that is one of the reasons I pointed out the advantage for the mini. It is a nice thing to have. However 3G is generally good enough for anything that isn't streaming video. And if we start talking about streaming video, then we hit out data limits. I've got LTE on my iPad. If I want to stream a couple of movies or basketball games per month, then I need the 5gb plan. And that still only gets me a couple of nights of streaming.

I was on 3G just like all of us for years. I think I won't feel to bad going back to it. But it is a knock on this device.

[tech4all]

Originally Posted by batting1000

Better and higher quality app selection
Software updates

Android gets software updates to.

Originally Posted by batting1000

Fluidity

JB is very fluild.

Originally Posted by batting1000

More stable

Same with JB.

Originally Posted by batting1000

Apple customer support

Never called Google support so I can't compare.

Originally Posted by batting1000

iPad mini is lighter and thinner

Not quite a difference if you ask me. N7 weighs 30-40G more...

N7:
198.5 x 120 x 10.45mm
340G (WiFi only); 347G cell

iPad mini:
200mm x 134.7 x 7.2mm
308G (WiFi only); 312G cell

Originally Posted by batting1000

Larger display, more screen real estate

Wrong.

Larger screen size? Yes. More screen real estate? Nope. N7 has about twice the resolution as the iPad mini.

Originally Posted by batting1000

Higher quality hardware design

Apple has the upperhand at that as they usually do.

Originally Posted by batting1000

Back facing 5 megapixel camera
HD front facing camera

True. But not huge enough to justify the cost.

Originally Posted by batting1000

Exactly. The iPad mini isn't a $200 tablet so it shouldn't be compared to $200 tablets. It's a $330 tablet. Then again, Apple does price things higher than their competitors.

lol you do realize the N7 out specs the iPad mini is many ways? So what makes the iPad mini a "$330 tablet?" Let me guess, aluminium body and the app store. That's a huge price to pay for materials. And the Play Store is damn right decent. It's catching up, if not caught up to the app store already.

Originally Posted by evoixdan

I bought the Nexus 7, and had my doubts because every android device I've owned has been buggy, and the touch interface is years behind apple's.

Once again, I was let down. The display is nice, but there's a glitch that pops up once a week, no matter what I would be doing. It would look like Shinobi is slashing through the back of the screen, basically.

Also, many many times i would have to tap the button I wanted repeatedly before it would register my input. Same with scrolling. Sometimes it wouldn't recognize my gestures.

That's unfortunate, my N7 has been bug free since I got it. I'm not calling you a liar or anything. Just saying your experience is not part of the norm.

Originally Posted by batting1000

Why would they put the Retina display on a first generation product? What would they put into the iPad mini 2, besides a better CPU, if the current mini had a Retina display?

Face it, you're just saying that because the mini doesn't have a retina display. If it, you'd be all over it. I've read these forums, people RAVE how much they love the retina display. And for good reason.

Compared to the N7, them mini lags in a high-res screen, CPU, and RAM to say the least. I'm not hating on Apple, just stating the facts.

[batting1000]

Originally Posted by tech4all

Android gets software updates to.

Not one non-stock Android device is currently running Android 4.2. Some devices are just getting 4.1.1 and some are just getting ICS. Look at the distribution numbers from Google. Half of all Android devices are running Gingerbread. More devices are running Froyo than all the versions of Jelly Bean combined.

JB is very fluid.

You still get those stutters and crashes. I agree it's catching up. It's almost there but not yet.

Same with JB.

^

Never called Google support so I can't compare.

...and you can't go to a store for support either.

Not quite a difference if you ask me. N7 weighs 30-40G more...

...and the iPhone 5 is only 28 grams lighter than the 4S, yet most notice a huge difference. Joshua Toplosky from The Verge went so far as to say he almost dropped the iPhone 5 when he took it out of the box because he was surprised at how light it was.

Wrong.

Larger screen size? Yes. More screen real estate? Nope. N7 has about twice the resolution as the iPad mini.

I guess Apple was kidding when they said (and showed) that the mini could show more content when doing things like browsing the web. Plus, higher screen resolution doesn't necessarily translate to more visible content. You can clearly see below that the iPad mini, although it has a smaller resolution, it still shows more content and is less cramped.

True. But not huge enough to justify the cost.

Depends. Some people buy the iPad [mini] to be their one and only media consumption device. Not everyone has a computer, camera, and smartphone (with a camera) in addition to an iPad [mini]. A back-facing camera might be worth some extra money to someone.

lol you do realize the N7 out specs the iPad mini is many ways? So what makes the iPad mini a "$330 tablet?" Let me guess, aluminium body and the app store. That's a huge price to pay for materials. And the Play Store is damn right decent. It's catching up, if not caught up to the app store already.

Android is a good example that specs don't matter. Look at the HTC One X. With a Tegra 3, that thing still lags when doing simple tasks. Yes, I know, it's the fault of HTC Sense. But if it has such a powerful CPU and a GB of RAM, why can't it handle that? I'm not saying the Nexus 7 is a bad device, nor am I saying that the iPad mini is definitely better. I'm just saying why I prefer the mini. It all comes down to personal preference and which works best for you. Android still has its slow moments, although I do admit it's catching up.

Face it, you're just saying that because the mini doesn't have a retina display. If it, you'd be all over it. I've read these forums, people RAVE how much they love the retina display. And for good reason.

Compared to the N7, them mini lags in a high-res screen, CPU, and RAM to say the least. I'm not hating on Apple, just stating the facts.

Of course I'd like it more with Retina. Who wouldn't? The fact of the matter is that Apple wouldn't have done it. I'm not saying that's the only reason why they didn't because there's other factors that play into it like performance, battery life, etc.

I really don't want to turn this into a back and forth argument where we each quote everything each other says because they tend to get rather annoying typing out long replies every 5 minutes.

[Booji]

I've had my Nexus 7 32GB, HSPA+ for a few weeks now and I'm totally loving it. We have three iPads in our family - a 3, 2 and a new Mini. The Nexus fits a unique niche.

I think the 7 is the ultimate travel device - its narrow form factor makes it easy to hold with one hand, and the soft plastic back with Gorilla glass in front means that you don't need to cover it. Android 4.2.1 is finally a mature OS and can hold its own to iOS. While not as smooth operating as iOS, Android is flexible and I love the fact it has a file system and I can easily transfer files to it. Google Play is actually pretty good and the buying experience for applications has been flawless.

[excommie]

One big advantage of the Nexus 7 is GPS on the 199 model with offline maps that work.
Another advantage - a lot of the apps that I had to buy for iOs are free on Google play store.
Other advantage is price, but that has been discussed.
A killer feature is the ability to run N64 emulation and use Wii remote - out of the bo - no jailbreak required. Kids love it - especially on trips - playing Mario Kart 64 on the Nexus 7 using Wii Remotes is priceless.

I don't see any stability issues nor any screen issues. To me Nexus 7 has a perfect combination of features for the price. I own several iOS devices and couple of macs - I was getting bored with them - Nexus 7 is a nice alternative.

[mantan]

Originally Posted by Booji

I've had my Nexus 7 32GB, HSPA+ for a few weeks now and I'm totally loving it. We have three iPads in our family - a 3, 2 and a new Mini. The Nexus fits a unique niche.

I think the 7 is the ultimate travel device - its narrow form factor makes it easy to hold with one hand, and the soft plastic back with Gorilla glass in front means that you don't need to cover it. Android 4.2.1 is finally a mature OS and can hold its own to iOS. While not as smooth operating as iOS, Android is flexible and I love the fact it has a file system and I can easily transfer files to it. Google Play is actually pretty good and the buying experience for applications has been flawless.

That's where the 7 shines for me. It's the ultimate, toss it in your bag, briefcase, pocket on the go the tablet. The soft plastic back and Gorilla glass makes it extremely durable. We own an iPad and a Mini...neither leave the house without a cover. I've literally tossed my 7 into a duffle bag on the way out.

There are ways the Mini is better. I think the screen size is much better for browing. and I've found typing/accessing links much more accurate as well.

It's all about fit and what works for you. My N7 is primarily a business travel companion and something I use to kill time while my kid is at practice all week. For $199 it was very easy for me to overlook the shortcomings that it has.