Google Nexus 7 First Look
Steinmueller Photo | 07-18-2012 
We bought the Nexus 7 because we find the iPhone too small for:
- Showing images when on the road
- Writing notes and email
- Reading PDF documents
So then why not the iPad? It is too big and heavy for our normal smaller photo bags and if we need more we would take the Mac Book Air.
About the Nexus 7
- 340g (iPad 600, iPhone 140). Clearly much lighter than the iPad and big enough to watch images.
- 7" is a nice size. Fits easy into our photo bags.
- UI looks nice after home page customization. Default had too much busy marketing content.
- Google Play is easy to use
- Well built device. Rubbery back helps to hold the Nexus in your hands.
- We have the 16GB version because 8GB would easily filled soon
- Waiting for the Google Nexus 7 hard shell case
- Operation is so far very snappy. As good as our iPads.
- Not sure we like the mini USB connector. The apple connector is easier to fit and has proven to last.
We discuss the features we wanted briefly. The oder is from top to lower priority for us.
Be in our photo bags all the time
Works just as we hoped for. The size is big enough to enjoy showing photos and small/light enough to carry in our photo bags.
Data network connection
Home WiFi easy to connect and use. On the road we use it tethered via iPhone.
Easy to copy images to/from our other computers
We would like the Nexus to act as a Mac disk drive but did not find a solution yet. For now we get along with the Mac Android File Transfer and WiFi File Explorer application. We really like that we can create our own folders on the Nexus 7. The video, PDF and photo apps will scan all folders for pictures and find these folders. We consider the data organization with the iPad/iPhone and iTunes to be too limited.
Present photo portfolios on the road
We use the QuickPic app with about 3,300 images. Overall it works even better than the Photos app on the iPad. We had massive issues with the iTunes sync for images. On the Nexus the images are in the folders as we put them.
Show our own videos
Videos needed to be MP4 and then worked just fine.
Read and send short emails
Seems to work just as we liked. Much easier to edit an email compared to the iPhone.
Browse the web
We use Chrome on our Mac. So Chrome on the Nexus is just fine for us.
Take notes (Evernote)
Works as we like. Love Evernote because it syncs very well to all devices.
Maps and GPS
Google Maps on the Nexus are great. We still need to check the offline maps and the Navigation app.
Watch videos (Netflix and others)
Netflix works so far as expected.
Skype
Seems to work. Needs more testing.
Extra storage
No SD cards but also no priority right now. The 16GB will do for us for now.
Take pictures
Not really our plan. We use the Sony RX100 or iPhone if I want to photograph and very portable.
Use some imaging apps
Did not try and it is also not really any priority for us.
Tips
Screenshots: Hold power and volume down button for some moment at the same time. Screenshots are the in the Picture->Screenshots folder.
Conclusion
So far the Nexus 7 does what we want it to do and does it well. Overall the first experience with the Nexus 7 and this new version of Android is excellent. On top the price is clearly right.
What would we like enhanced?
- External storage with micro SD Cards
- Back camera with 5MP would be a bonus
We plan to update this article in the future if we learn more. Your feedback would also very welcome.
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