So, I ended up purchasing a Nexus 10 a week ago to play around with, in hopes of replacing my iPad 3. Here are a few of my observations, as a long-time Apple user and (overall) Apple fan, coming to Android via the Samsung Galaxy Note II, Nexus 4, and Nexus 10...
- I really enjoy Android 4.2. It seems really contemporary compared to the stale, boring iOS, which is essentially the app drawer of any Android version past Gingerbread (which is when the app drawer was established? I am not sure, as I'm pretty new to Android). Lockscreen widgets are really cool, even if it seems like the execution was a bit half-baked (why can't I split up the screen to have both Google+ and new mail? Especially given the screen real estate of a 10 inch tablet, it seems like a wasted opportunity). Although this is trivial, I am addicted to live wallpapers. Widgets in general are awesome, and while Microsoft's live tile idea seems like a better solution to the problem of non-demand (get it? As in, getting your info when you don't demand it by going into the app... anyways) information streaming, it kind of sucked on the Lumia 920 I had before returning it as it barely worked properly.
- Holding the N10 in portrait, as I tend to do with any tablet, is not as awkward as I had imagined. It does seem tangibly larger than the iPad when holding it in either portrait or landscape mode, which is a plus over the Surface (which, in my opinion, is basically not usable in portrait mode). However, it seems that Google intends for the primary use of the tablet to be in landscape, hence the branding of the tablet on the back as well as the front-facing camera location. This is not a knock, per se, against the tablet as the branding must be placed either landscape or portrait (as you know, Apple has emphasized portrait in tis regard; most likely due to their usage of the 4:3 ratio rather than the 16:10 of the Nexus 10, making it more like holding a piece of paper).
- Although the N10 does not have the perfect, A4 paper ratio that the iPad has, reading books from Google Play is enjoyable on the N10. The N10 feels lighter than the iPad, making it more comfortable to hold during long reading durations; in addition, the soft-touch plastic that Samsung used feels great. I'm not one to knock against something that uses plastic if it feels nice (to me, the HTC Droid DNA, Lumia 920, and the 8X all feel great in the hand and are made with plastic). It provides great grip and doesn't feel as cold as aluminum, like the iPad.
- However, when placing it in portrait, the volume rocker does not work as one would expect when changing the volume. Again, I really can't knock the N10 for this as the iPad has the same problems when changing the position (turning it to landscape causes a reversal of what would appear to be standard increasing/decreasing volume level). It seems that one has to pick a "primary" position, be it landscape or portrait, and stick with it (Apple designed primarily in portrait, and for the N10 Google chose landscape to be the primary use mode).
- One RIDICULOUSLY GIANT problem: the N10 constantly. reboots. itself. I am aware that this is a widespread issue, but no proposed fix from the internet appears to help my situation. Last night, the tablet was basically unusable due to the diminished time between reboots (in once instance, it was only a minute between separate reboots). When it reboots, in fact, it may take multiple tries to boot back into Android 4.2 (example: Google appears on the screen, Nexus logo appears...beeeeep... Google appears again, Nexus logo appears again...beeeep.... etc). It is, quite frankly, ridiculous. No Apple product has given me what appears to be untested software. I'm not sure what type of testing Google does for Android releases, but if I am paying $500 for a device I don't want to feel like a beta tester. I understand it comes with the Nexus territory, and that Google is probably working on a fix, but seriously? Is this going to happen every time I accept an OTA update from Google?
- In terms of tablet app optimization, nothing appeared to really stick out to me. I definitely get the sense that iOS apps are more polished than their Android counterparts, which is unfortunate... As an Android user, I do not want to feel like a second-class citizen in tablet land. But, with the initial sales from the holiday showing that once again, the iPad put out a very strong showing, can this situation ever change? In essence, it appears that one trades Apple's walled garden for an open playground at Google, but a playground with slightly rusty toys compared to the few that remain in the garden. If that makes any sense...
- Build quality of the N10 is not up to Apple standards, as is to be expected. That definitely seems like an area Apple will win every time. Why, though? Why can't an Android tablet be built to Apple standards? The Nexus 7 that I had before returning it for the N10 was nice, but felt like a toy compared to the iPad mini. Combining this with the fact that I went through four Nexus 7 units before finally giving up and returning it (and not exchanging it), with each one having it's own hardware issue, I can't help but feel that Apple consistently puts out high-quality, if overpriced, hardware. However, the build quality is decent. Like I stated earlier, the injection-molded plastic feels great in your hands. I did get a unit that had some hardware blemishes, such as a raised area on back plastic where it meets the dimpled plastic (which, unfortunately, i can feel every time I hold it in portrait) and uneven glass sealing (the bottom left corner doesn't appear to be fit as tightly to the plastic frame as the rest of the glass, causing it to feel a bit lopsided unfortunately). Since this is not as widespread as the N7 issues, I'm confident that an exchange for another unit at Walmart (sigh... if they have any left) can give me a flawless unit. The Nexus 4, on the other hand, reminds me of an Apple product in terms of its build quality.
- Battery life: no complaints. In regular use, it appears to last about as long as the iPad 3. However, standby battery draining is where the iPad remains king. I could go without turning on my iPad for multiple days and only taken a small hit in battery life. This does not appear to hold true for the N10, but in terms of screen-on time, they appear to be even.
- I do like the screen of the N10 better than the retina display of the iPad, but I feel like this has to do with the display technology more than the resolution; the two appear to be equally matched in that regard when using each at a normal distance away from my face. My iPad 3 screen would turn an unsightly shade of pink when used in direct sunlight, while the N10 does not display this. I'm not sure if my iPad 3 screen was unique in this quality, though. Everything on the N10 screen pops and is crystal clear. The screen of the iPad, however, appears to be under a coating of glass (yes, this sounds obvious as it is under a sheet of glass, but compared to the iPhone 5, Nexus 4 and Nexus 10, where images appear to be right on the glass instead of under it).
Overall, the N10 is a great tablet. I really enjoy it, if that wasn't apparent in my quasi-review. I'm still on the fence on which one I want to keep, though. The Nexus 10 dazzles in terms of feeling like something that is... more capable, I suppose, than the iPad. In terms of tinkering with it and such. But that is an Android vs. iOS issue. I absolutely love the Nexus 4, and I feel like Android is my OS of choice on a phone. On a tablet, however, I feel the decision is much murkier in terms of developer support. Not to mention, the price differential between an iPad 4 and N10 is minimized given the breadth of acessories, optimized apps, and build quality. On the other hand, I hate to feel chained to Apple due to what appears to be a preference for the iPad by the masses. I was hoping by writing this, I could make the decision more clear to me, but I think it just made it worse.
- I really enjoy Android 4.2. It seems really contemporary compared to the stale, boring iOS, which is essentially the app drawer of any Android version past Gingerbread (which is when the app drawer was established? I am not sure, as I'm pretty new to Android). Lockscreen widgets are really cool, even if it seems like the execution was a bit half-baked (why can't I split up the screen to have both Google+ and new mail? Especially given the screen real estate of a 10 inch tablet, it seems like a wasted opportunity). Although this is trivial, I am addicted to live wallpapers. Widgets in general are awesome, and while Microsoft's live tile idea seems like a better solution to the problem of non-demand (get it? As in, getting your info when you don't demand it by going into the app... anyways) information streaming, it kind of sucked on the Lumia 920 I had before returning it as it barely worked properly.
- Holding the N10 in portrait, as I tend to do with any tablet, is not as awkward as I had imagined. It does seem tangibly larger than the iPad when holding it in either portrait or landscape mode, which is a plus over the Surface (which, in my opinion, is basically not usable in portrait mode). However, it seems that Google intends for the primary use of the tablet to be in landscape, hence the branding of the tablet on the back as well as the front-facing camera location. This is not a knock, per se, against the tablet as the branding must be placed either landscape or portrait (as you know, Apple has emphasized portrait in tis regard; most likely due to their usage of the 4:3 ratio rather than the 16:10 of the Nexus 10, making it more like holding a piece of paper).
- Although the N10 does not have the perfect, A4 paper ratio that the iPad has, reading books from Google Play is enjoyable on the N10. The N10 feels lighter than the iPad, making it more comfortable to hold during long reading durations; in addition, the soft-touch plastic that Samsung used feels great. I'm not one to knock against something that uses plastic if it feels nice (to me, the HTC Droid DNA, Lumia 920, and the 8X all feel great in the hand and are made with plastic). It provides great grip and doesn't feel as cold as aluminum, like the iPad.
- However, when placing it in portrait, the volume rocker does not work as one would expect when changing the volume. Again, I really can't knock the N10 for this as the iPad has the same problems when changing the position (turning it to landscape causes a reversal of what would appear to be standard increasing/decreasing volume level). It seems that one has to pick a "primary" position, be it landscape or portrait, and stick with it (Apple designed primarily in portrait, and for the N10 Google chose landscape to be the primary use mode).
- One RIDICULOUSLY GIANT problem: the N10 constantly. reboots. itself. I am aware that this is a widespread issue, but no proposed fix from the internet appears to help my situation. Last night, the tablet was basically unusable due to the diminished time between reboots (in once instance, it was only a minute between separate reboots). When it reboots, in fact, it may take multiple tries to boot back into Android 4.2 (example: Google appears on the screen, Nexus logo appears...beeeeep... Google appears again, Nexus logo appears again...beeeep.... etc). It is, quite frankly, ridiculous. No Apple product has given me what appears to be untested software. I'm not sure what type of testing Google does for Android releases, but if I am paying $500 for a device I don't want to feel like a beta tester. I understand it comes with the Nexus territory, and that Google is probably working on a fix, but seriously? Is this going to happen every time I accept an OTA update from Google?
- In terms of tablet app optimization, nothing appeared to really stick out to me. I definitely get the sense that iOS apps are more polished than their Android counterparts, which is unfortunate... As an Android user, I do not want to feel like a second-class citizen in tablet land. But, with the initial sales from the holiday showing that once again, the iPad put out a very strong showing, can this situation ever change? In essence, it appears that one trades Apple's walled garden for an open playground at Google, but a playground with slightly rusty toys compared to the few that remain in the garden. If that makes any sense...
- Build quality of the N10 is not up to Apple standards, as is to be expected. That definitely seems like an area Apple will win every time. Why, though? Why can't an Android tablet be built to Apple standards? The Nexus 7 that I had before returning it for the N10 was nice, but felt like a toy compared to the iPad mini. Combining this with the fact that I went through four Nexus 7 units before finally giving up and returning it (and not exchanging it), with each one having it's own hardware issue, I can't help but feel that Apple consistently puts out high-quality, if overpriced, hardware. However, the build quality is decent. Like I stated earlier, the injection-molded plastic feels great in your hands. I did get a unit that had some hardware blemishes, such as a raised area on back plastic where it meets the dimpled plastic (which, unfortunately, i can feel every time I hold it in portrait) and uneven glass sealing (the bottom left corner doesn't appear to be fit as tightly to the plastic frame as the rest of the glass, causing it to feel a bit lopsided unfortunately). Since this is not as widespread as the N7 issues, I'm confident that an exchange for another unit at Walmart (sigh... if they have any left) can give me a flawless unit. The Nexus 4, on the other hand, reminds me of an Apple product in terms of its build quality.
- Battery life: no complaints. In regular use, it appears to last about as long as the iPad 3. However, standby battery draining is where the iPad remains king. I could go without turning on my iPad for multiple days and only taken a small hit in battery life. This does not appear to hold true for the N10, but in terms of screen-on time, they appear to be even.
- I do like the screen of the N10 better than the retina display of the iPad, but I feel like this has to do with the display technology more than the resolution; the two appear to be equally matched in that regard when using each at a normal distance away from my face. My iPad 3 screen would turn an unsightly shade of pink when used in direct sunlight, while the N10 does not display this. I'm not sure if my iPad 3 screen was unique in this quality, though. Everything on the N10 screen pops and is crystal clear. The screen of the iPad, however, appears to be under a coating of glass (yes, this sounds obvious as it is under a sheet of glass, but compared to the iPhone 5, Nexus 4 and Nexus 10, where images appear to be right on the glass instead of under it).
Overall, the N10 is a great tablet. I really enjoy it, if that wasn't apparent in my quasi-review. I'm still on the fence on which one I want to keep, though. The Nexus 10 dazzles in terms of feeling like something that is... more capable, I suppose, than the iPad. In terms of tinkering with it and such. But that is an Android vs. iOS issue. I absolutely love the Nexus 4, and I feel like Android is my OS of choice on a phone. On a tablet, however, I feel the decision is much murkier in terms of developer support. Not to mention, the price differential between an iPad 4 and N10 is minimized given the breadth of acessories, optimized apps, and build quality. On the other hand, I hate to feel chained to Apple due to what appears to be a preference for the iPad by the masses. I was hoping by writing this, I could make the decision more clear to me, but I think it just made it worse.
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