Would you say the 1st Gen Nexus 7 is still a good tablet?

[too lame to come up with a good username]

So the Nexus 7 was pretty groundbreaking when it first came out back in 2012. It reshaped the Android tablet landscape and it was almost universally critically acclaimed. But I'm curious, does anyone still think it's a good (or even great) tablet two years later? It's no doubt that the 2nd Gen Nexus 7 is still fantastic even after a year, but it seems like the 1st Gen's specs are what you find in super-low-quality bargain-basement tablets today.

Also sorry if something like this has already been posted before...

 

[B. Diddy]

It's fairly dated by now, but can still be useful for basic productivity and games. I still have one that I let my daughter use for games on long trips, and it keeps her completely entertained. But compared to the 2013 Nexus 7, it's noticeably slower.

 

[cjtraas]

We bought 3 of them for the kids (10, 12, and 15 yr olds) that year when they came out. Two years later they're still going strong with what the kids have put them through. I've even replaced the screen on one of them (dropped and cracked). The specs may not be comparable to high-end devices today, but they're still going strong. We love them. (Same goes for my N10 I bought on day 1).

 

[too lame to come up with a good username]

Yeah, I would still have my 1st Gen Nexus 7 if I didn't drop it on the sidewalk (which killed it). I was even planning on keeping it for a while, since I even bought a replacement battery for when the battery life started draining faster, since lithium-ion batteries die over time. Actually a year after I had it I noticed that the battery was draining a lot faster than it used to. But, since my 1st Gen N7 died, there was no doubt in my mind that I was going to replace it with the 2nd Gen N7.

My sister and her boyfriend bought the 1st Gen Nexus 7 a few months after the 2nd Gen came out because they liked the lower price and they don't care too much about tech specs as long as the device works. The speaker has blown on her boyfriend's N7, though, but he doesn't want to replace it yet. Admittedly I still like the look and feel of the 1st Gen, too. The big side bezels feel really comfortable in portrait mode and it doesn't really feel much heavier than the 2nd Gen. I like the slimmer profile of the 2nd Gen but the trimmed side bezels make it a bit less comfortable in portrait mode. Also the textured back of the 1st Gen is still really cool.

 

[MHBlink8]

My N7 is so laggy and slow. I've defaulted it and it helped a little but not much. I'm disappointed because it's only 2 years old, but I still use it to browse the web and my son plays games on it.
I considered buying a refurb 2013 N7, but am leary due to how the original's performance diminished. Guess I'll save up for the N9.

 

[B. Diddy]

The 2013 N7 is a completely different beast than the 2012 (I have both). I use my 2013 pretty heavily and it shows no signs of the slowdown that the 2012 exhibited.

 

[Groid]

My 2012 N7 has been getting pretty laggy lately. Everything still works, but I'm hoping for a rejuvenation with Lollipop. I've done system cache wipes and some app cache wipes, but haven't done a FDR. I'll probably wait to do that just before Lollipop.

 

[Bazza1]

Sad really. Here it is 2014 and we're talking about whether or not the 2012 model is worthwhile. Because the 2013 is 'better'. Until the next one comes out. Manufacturers and OS providers rely on our 'need' for the Latest Greatest to keep up their bottom line, despite the fact that most of us don't need anywhere near the horsepower and bells and whistles to do what we use our tech for. Oh sure, software and hardware upgrades should improve the useability (arguably can be hard to justify - look at the issues with KitKat and how it uses SD cards), but, really, are you sure you need it?

For my part, I have a 2012 model (running most recent KitKat) and it works as expected with the apps I want. Granted, I'm not using it to do massive photo manipulation, build movies or as some part of a midi interface, but it works as a movie & music player and streamer, internet browser (despite lousy mobile browsers), news and eBook reader, PIM and lightweight game machine.

If there is an upcoming 'issue', it's my understanding that Lollipop will not be released for the 2012 model. But only an issue if the current OS didn't work, but it does.

 

[B. Diddy]

Actually, it looks like the 2012 N7 will get Lollipop: Yes, even the 2012 Nexus 7 will get updated to Android 5.0 Lollipop | Android Central

 

[Bazza1]

Actually, it looks like the 2012 N7 will get Lollipop: Yes, even the 2012 Nexus 7 will get updated to Android 5.0 Lollipop | Android Central

Well, that is good news, providing it doesn't cause more issues than it solves - both on a software but strain-on-the-hardware POV.

That said, the 2012 is hardly a clay tablet only capable of running OS Cuneiform. A majority of the apps that run on 2013 run without issue on 2012.

 

[martint235]

My 2012 is still in daily use as my internet machine of choice at work (work desktop is locked down). I also use it for note taking in all my meetings so to me it's still performing perfectly well. I don't play games too much so maybe I don't notice lack of speed

 

[anon(684254)]

I have the same tablet and when using it compared to the Nexus 5 it feels slow.

I also use it to play Videos while travelling and nothing else right now. Might upgrade from this in the near future.

 

[dnafog]

I'm still using mine and still love it.
Recent updates have not slowed it down.
YMMV

 

[ShaneRay]

Yep. Still using mine and it works great for what I use it for. Granted, I have a custom ROM and kernel, but the last time I used it stock it worked fine.

All that said, it's not heavily used any longer as it's pretty much just docked at my bedside as an alarm clock. But, I'm usually on it for a few mins each night before bed browsing with Chrome (whose performance is so much better these days) and light usage of various apps. I can't imagine any average user complaining about its performance...

 

[Dubbayoo]

Mine is so slow all I use it for now is PBA Bowling.