iPhone, Nexus 7, Macbook Air

[iJcaP]

I've been an Apple fanboy for the longest time and I was thinking about getting a Nexus 7 for a change. What do you think?

I own an iPad (3rd Gen.) but it belongs to the institution I attend. When I leave in May, I could keep it, but I was thinking of other alternatives...

 

[samiznaetekto]

I've been an Apple fanboy for the longest time and I was thinking about getting a Nexus 7 for a change. What do you think?

I own an iPad (3rd Gen.) but it belongs to the institution I attend. When I leave in May, I could keep it, but I was thinking of other alternatives...

Don't even think about it, get it! Nexus 7 2013 is pure awesomeness. Former Apple fanboy here, N7 opened my eyes. Android is now really slick and elegant, beats iOS hands down.

I'm now a polygamial fanboi. I love 'em all!

 

[JackieInCo]

I bough the Nexus 7 2012 last February and realized that after buying my iPad in June, that I never should have bought the Nexus 7 . I still use the Nexus 7 but I've been trying to sell it and it seems like I practically have to give it away just to get rid of it. I keep lowering the price and no offers.

The Nexus 7 has it's good points and bad and all you can do is try it and decide for yourself. We can't tell if you will like it.

 

[GoingDark]

I'm not really an Apple "fanboy" - my daily driver is an HTC One - but I got an iPad specifically because I missed the robust iOS app ecosystem.

I've had a few Android tablets in the past, and they're perfectly adequate for the price and for limited consumption (web browsing, reading, watching videos, etc). However, there aren't that many "tablet-optimized" apps and the experience is far better on an iPad.

That said, the Nexus 7 is basically half the price, so the question isn't really "is the iPad better?" but rather, "is the Nexus 7 good enough?" For the most part, and at that price point, I think it is.

 

[weespeed]

I got in on the 32gb on launch and after the kit kat update, this thing awesome.
I have way to many tablets.
I have the original gsm Galaxy tab, HTC flyer (junk and I wish I never bought it), Touchpad, iPad 2, iPad air, iPad mini retina, and Dell Venue pro (still un opened, haven't had time to play with it yet).

After using the N7 originally there were some little things like occasional reboots and apps force closing after its been wirelessly charging. But after the 4.4 update its been great. No issues what so ever.

A little off topic. More like a rant.
I'm really disappointed with the new iPads.

The iPad air crashes occasionally and Safari crashes all the time. I gave that to my wife and she is considering going back to the iPad 2, because of the crashes.

I really love the smaller tablets and decided to get the mini retina.
I'm really disappointed with it the most, maybe because I'm comparing it to my N7.
Screen not as good as my N7. Its got this yellow tint thing going and its not as bright. It's heavy compared to the N7 and its not as easy or comfortable to hold with one hand. After using it for 30 minutes I always and up putting it down and using my N7.
Also lots of apps crash or just stop working and hang on the mini. I seem to have to close out the app re-open or manually reboot the mini to get the app working all the time.
Safari crashes and iOS will crash occasionally and reboot, really annoying.

This whole "it just works" doesn't seem to be true anymore. More like "good enough".
If I didn't get it on the target trade in with my iPad 1, I would actually take it back.

I don't know what's going on at apple. I don't want to even get into my Macbook Air. Thing is a little over a year old and has spots on the screen. Hangs on wake up etc.

I really do feel like I'm beta testing Apple's software.

 

[samiznaetekto]

This whole "it just works" doesn't seem to be true anymore. More like "good enough".
If I didn't get it on the target trade in with my iPad 1, I would actually take it back.

I don't know what's going on at apple. I don't want to even get into my Macbook Air. Thing is a little over a year old and has spots on the screen. Hangs on wake up etc.

I really do feel like I'm beta testing Apple's software.

Couldn't agree more. Something happened with Apple. It looks like it lost a lot of talent and the best software engineers left for Android or Windows.

 

[JH-]

Couldn't agree more. Something happened with Apple. It looks like it lost a lot of talent and the best software engineers left for Android or Windows.

I think all of our standards have also gone up a lot.

 

[Saturn1217]

I would just like to say as the former owner of a Nexus 7 2012 please don't base your decision on anyone's impressions of the 2012 version. It was an ok tablet for 6-months and then sucked so badly.

I upgraded to a 2013 version and it is night and day better. It has the best screen of any mobile device I have ever used ever. I say this having just recently purchased an iPad Air. While I really appreciate the iPad Air's bigger screen the screen quality (colors, uniformity etc.) is just better on the Nexus 7 2013. Speed is pretty good. Since it is a Nexus you will get a much better experience than buying another Android tablet that might be forgotten in a few months. If you want a small tablet the Nexus 7 2013 is a great choice. I prefer android for small tablets/phones (you have more control over font sizes in various situations like the web browser which is critical on smaller screens) and I prefer iOS for larger tablets where the tablet optimized apps start to make a bigger difference.

 

[xraydoc]

Couldn't agree more. Something happened with Apple. It looks like it lost a lot of talent and the best software engineers left for Android or Windows.

The iOS 7.1 looks to be fixing many of the bugs. I think iOS 7 needs more time to mature. I'm not excusing the bugs (they shouldn't exist in release software), but I do believe they are being addressed.

 

[JackieInCo]

The iOS 7.1 looks to be fixing many of the bugs. I think iOS 7 needs more time to mature. I'm not excusing the bugs (they shouldn't exist in release software), but I do believe they are being addressed.

Even Android KtKat is going through bugs with release software. If you own a Nexus device, you saw that happen over the last few weeks. They were releasing an update as they do in waves and pulled it due to bugs. They then released another version fixing those bugs.

Nobody is perfect, not Apple, not Google.

 

[MyMac1976]

I have a '12 Nexus 7 and it still works just fine

 

[kenypowa]

I would just like to say as the former owner of a Nexus 7 2012 please don't base your decision on anyone's impressions of the 2012 version. It was an ok tablet for 6-months and then sucked so badly.

It is true that 4.2 drastically slows down 2012 N7 due to software issues, they have been fixed in 4.3. And now my gen 1 N7 is running quite well with stock 4.4.2.

 

[DeathTheKid]

I have an N7 2013, and absolutely love it. On this size of a tablet, the "lack of tablet optimized apps" is not as big of a deal as it is on a 10 inch tablet. Anyways most of the top apps do have tablet apps and for ones that are not there is usually an alternative that is tablet optimized. (For example, the Facebook app is made for phones. However, there is an excellent Facebook client called Friendcaster that is built for Android tablets.)

One of the things I love about the Nexus 7, is the ability to customize to fit your needs. I do have an iPad 3, but the old lady has that now.

 

[bearda]

I would just like to say as the former owner of a Nexus 7 2012 please don't base your decision on anyone's impressions of the 2012 version. It was an ok tablet for 6-months and then sucked so badly.

I upgraded to a 2013 version and it is night and day better. It has the best screen of any mobile device I have ever used ever. I say this having just recently purchased an iPad Air. While I really appreciate the iPad Air's bigger screen the screen quality (colors, uniformity etc.) is just better on the Nexus 7 2013. Speed is pretty good. Since it is a Nexus you will get a much better experience than buying another Android tablet that might be forgotten in a few months. If you want a small tablet the Nexus 7 2013 is a great choice. I prefer android for small tablets/phones (you have more control over font sizes in various situations like the web browser which is critical on smaller screens) and I prefer iOS for larger tablets where the tablet optimized apps start to make a bigger difference.

I cannot agree more. I previously had a 2012 Nexus 7 and although it wasn't bad at the time I really preferred using my iPad 3 and ended up selling it. I did really like the smaller form factor, though. Almost bought an iPad mini, but the display was kind of a disappointment compared to the iPad 3. I was planning on buying a iPad mini retina when they were released but the N7 2013 was available sooner (and a lot cheaper) and I kind of soured to iOS 7 after using it on the iPad 3. I'm really glad I got the new Nexus 7, it pretty much hits all my needs and has a nice feel to it. After a month or two with the new Nexus I sold the iPad 3 and never looked back.

 

[LIVEFRMNYC]

The N7 2013 just feels so right in my hand. Display is the best or equal to the best, and it's extremely smooth. Back camera sucks though, but I doubt most care about that

 

[GoingDark]

Couldn't agree more. Something happened with Apple. It looks like it lost a lot of talent and the best software engineers left for Android or Windows.

I don't think it's a lack of talent, but rather an abundance of arrogance, and a lack of proper prep time. When Scott Forstall was canned at the end of October, that gave his replacement only six months to essentially redesign an operating system from the ground up (to be ready in time for WWDC in June). I don't care who you are, or how talented you are, that's simply not enough time. That anyone at Apple even thought it possible is where the arrogance sets in. They needed another six months.

In part, Apple is also a slave to their yearly release cycle - who knows what it would have done to their stock price or market perception if the new iPhone was six months late?