One of the worst hurricanes, Sandy, washed Google's much expected event yesterday. But the resilient company anyway made the announcement of its much awaited Nexus series of products.
Yesterday Google captured all three form factors with its latest Nexus family of devices Nexus 4, Nexus 7 and Nexus 10. Nexus 4 is already been praised as one of the best looking and the most powerful smartphone. Nexus 4 coverage has overshadowed the less talked about Nexus 10 tablet. So, how does this tablet stacks up against it's competitors namely the iPad and Microsoft Surface?
First thing that people want to see is which one has better hardware. Here is the hardware spec comparison.
| Specs | Nexus 10 | iPad Retina | Microsoft Surface |
| Price | $399 (16GB); $499 (32GB) | $499(16GB); $599 (32GB) | $499 (32GB) |
| OS | Android 4.2 | iOS 6 | Windows 8 RT |
| Size | 10.4 x 6.9 x 0.35 | 9.5 x 7.31 x 0.37 | 10.81 x 6.77 x 0.37 |
| Weight | 603g | 652g | 680g |
| Screen Size | 10 | 9.7 | 10.6 |
| Screen Resolution | 2560 x 1600 pixel, 300ppi | 2048 x 1536 pixel, 264ppi | 1366 x 768 pixel, 148 ppi |
| Speakers | Dual, Stereo | Mono | Stereo (poor) |
| Processor | 1.7 Ghz Samsung Exynos | 1.5 Ghz A6X | 1.5 Ghz Nvidia |
| RAM | 2GB | 1GB | 2GB |
| Cameara | Main 5MP, Front 1.9MP | Main 4MP; Front 1.2MP | Microsoft not disclosing specs |
| NFC | Yes | No | No |
| Apps | 675,000 (not all are tablet optimized) | 275,000 (tablet optimized) | 5,200 (Major apps not available) |
Design wise, Google has spent a lot of time with Samsung to give the tablet the right weight so that you can hold it in one hand for long duration. That's why they use plastic to make it lighter and easy to handle. The device has curves which sinks well in your palm and you don't feel you are holding anything. Unlike the pointed edges of surface which will be cutting through your palm if held for longer, or the slippery and cold iPad, the Nexus 10 is soft to touch. Nexus 10 is the thinnest tablet with mere 8.9 mm thickness and weighs just 603 grams so it's a pleasure to hold. Apple's iPad is thicker at 9.4mm and weighs more at 652 grams. Surface is 9.3 mm thick and weighs 680 grams.
There is no doubt that looking at the hardware, Nexus 10 is the most powerful and advanced tablet beating iPad for second spot and leaving Microsoft surface as the weakest and the most mediocre tablet.
The real goodies of Nexus 10 lie in the software department. Android 4.2 is undoubtedly the world's most advanced mobile operating system (and not the iOS as Apple wrongly claims). Looking at the core of Android 4.2 mentioned here and the hardware it offers for mere $399 (16GB) Nexus 10 is undoubtedly the best tablet in the market. It dwarfs Apple's iPad Retina display and the utterly disappointing iPad Mini in many areas. Microsoft Surface is not even in the competition.
So which one will you buy?
Swapnil Bhartiya
A free software fund-a-mental-ist and Charles Bukowski fan, Swapnil also writes fiction and tries to find cracks in a proprietary company's 'paper armours'. He is a big movie buff and prefers listening to music at such high volumes that he's gone partially deaf when it comes to identifying anything positive about proprietary companies. You can follow him on Twitter, Google+ & Facebook. You can write to him on editor at muktware dot com
