2 people I know of got Nexus 7s when the iPad mini pricing came out. One has already bought an iPad mini to replace it and one is planning to.
I vote no.
I bought an Ipad 2 for my wife shortly after it came out. I absolutely love it when I use it.
I had planned on buying a Mini when it came out, bought the N7 instead. I really wanted to love it..great reviews, great price.
But the lack of tablet apps, the increasing laginess, daily crashes, inaccurate touchscreen, wifi range etc. have sucked the fun out of it.
I bought a Mini for my mom last week. I played around with it after setting it up and on the trip down made me realize how much more polished the product is than the N7. I really wanted to love the N7...and it has some great features, but there is no way I'd dump it for an iPad. Heck, I'm about to dump my N7 to get me a Mini.
In its current iteration? No way. Wait for the refresh that will be revealed in the next few months. The current N7 is irritatingly laggy.
That was one thing I forgot to mention in my opening post! I've had a look on Google Play and there aren't many apps I'd be missing out on, but it doesn't look like they've been optimised for the Nexus 7.
It definitely sounds like I'll be sticking with my iPad 2 for now!
I actually still have my iPad 2 and a Nexus 7. I use them both often for different things. But if I had to choose one, I'd choose the iPad.
The screen, battery life, and app selection are the biggest factors. Surprisingly the iPad 2 is still relevant with developers and Apple software releases. Probably not for long though.
Both cool devices with their own advantages/disadvantages.
If you jump ship entirely to android, you'll have to rebuy many apps in the Google Play store. Sure, some may be free, but that means they are ad supported and this can be jarring for someone coming from an iOS device.
Likewise, then jailbroke that sucker too. It's so nice to have a real file system again instead of that synch through iTunes crap and sandboxing. The N7 is light enough to hold in one hand for prolonged periods too.I replaced my first gen iPad with a Nexus 7 and haven't regretted it once. Go for it.
Is there a reason you are looking at the Nexus 7? What about the Nexus 10? I've seen the 32gb version go for as low as $380/$400 on eBay recently. Sure its more than $100 more than the Nex7, but it has a retina beating screen though some complain it is not as accurate reproducing colors compared the much more expensive iPad 3/4.
Ok, usable is 16:9, Point still remains. TERRIBLE aspect ratio for a tab.
Not to mention 7.9" 4:3 is much more surface area then the 7" 16:10....
I disagree. Only thing I prefer the aspect ratio on my iPad for is reading PDF files in landscape.
My iPhone and iPad are the only devices I have in my house that aren't 16x9. Except an old CRT TV in my basement.
Aspect depends on the content too. Videos will push the top and bottom status bars off the screen.
Don't get me wrong I still enjoy my iPad too. So I guess it's a matter of opinion but I don't think it's "terrible". I think many people don't realize the iPad is designed for mostly portrait while an Android tab is designed for mostly landscape. Even the first Android tablet had stereo speakers right and left so its obvious the direction it should be used. Meanwhile the home button on the iPad is on the bottom which is the obvious direction it should be used.
imo, yes.
I have hiccups on it time to time, but it's a beautiful device, way cheaper, and the open-ness of Android is better suited to a tablet, imo.
The iPad 2 is musty old hardware. The Nexus 4 has a quad core, 1 GB of ram, and really nice graphics performance. Higher screen resolution in a smaller package, too.
There is no better 7 inch tablet in the world.
The nexus may have better hardware and specs on paper but in real life usage I found it to be far slower and laggier than an ipad mini. Don't get me wrong, I love android, and my Galaxy S3 is perfect. But for some reason the Nexus just lags way too much for everyday usage. I do miss the sharper screen for sure.
Surprisingly the iPad 2 is still relevant with developers and Apple software releases. Probably not for long though.
The ipad mini and iPad 2 is basically the same specs underneath so I would expect it to be support for at least another couple more years.
I finally gave up on my N7 and bought a Mini last night.
Wow! I should have bought it in the first place. I REALLY wanted to love the N7. It was cheaper, I loved the durability and the tech specs seemed great.
But the bottom line is iOS is a MUCH more polished experience. No lag, tablet apps, accurate touch screen - it's just better. Maybe the new N7 will be better, but right now it's no contest.