Finally the wait is over, I bought my first tablet. I’ve been waiting for the right one for over a year, I want a tablet with powerful specification and yet at a reasonable price. The iPad is way over my budget, and I don’t like the gimmicky line-up from Samsung. The first Nexus 7 almost meet my requirements, but I want a better display and a more powerful CPU.

The new Nexus 7 is just the right answer. It has higher pixel density than Apple’s retina display, the same resolution as my 24″ monitor. The CPU is top of the line quad core Qualcomm processor, on par with the flag ship smartphones like Galaxy s4 or HTC one. I bought the 16G model since the 32G model is not yet available in Canada, and lack of a micro slot is probably the biggest down side of the nexus 7. I intend to use it mostly at home, where I can stream files directly from my computer, so I am not very concern about the storage size. When I am traveling, I am get an USB cable and use external thumb drive, it is not very elegant but it works fine.

I pre-order my Nexus 7 from Bestbuy.ca and I got my tablet delivered right on July 30th, the first day that the Nexus 7 is on sale. (It already sold out, for now) I ready have an Android phone, so setting up the Nexus 7 is pretty straight forward. Log into my Google account and all my existing apps are downloaded and installed automatically. The tablet is up and running within 10 minutes. It feels just like my old phone, except it runs much smoother and has a bigger screen. I can’t tell anything real different in the new Android 4. , in fact I miss those little handy customization of Cyanogenmod 10.1, such as lock screen shortcuts, scrollable dock bar, etc.

The Nexus 7 lacks the wow factor, when I show it off to my colleagues, their comment is yet another Android tablet. My wife is not impressed by its relatively small size, she thinks only a 10″ iPad is a real tablet. It seems the only person fascinated by the Nexus 7 is baby Marcus, he prefer it over my old Android phone and mom’s iPhone 5, probably just because the Nexus 7 is bigger. I am quite happy with my new tablet, I don’t have to sit in front of the computer to surf the web or watch video. I am actually writing this blog using the tablet lying on the sofa. Typing with the on screen keyboard is not as fast as using a real keyboard, but good enough for light usage.

I am looking for a few accessories for my Nexus 7. First I need case and cover if I want to carry it with me outside of the house. Then I need to get a Bluetooth keyboard, so I can replace my laptop for simple note taking or writing tasks. Last I want to get a USB docking station to charge the tablet on my desk.