There are a lot of tablets in the markets and new ones that are released everyday. The newest devices for Android is the just released updated Google Nexus 7
The Samsung Galaxy Tab 3 comes in three sizes of 7, 8, and 10 inch. But to stay consistent and have a good comparison we will look only at the 7 inch Tab 3 with the 7 inch Nexus 7. The first and easy comparison is the price point of $199 for the Galaxy Tab 3 and $229 for the Nexus 7. Although $30 higher, it will be clear in looking at the specs that you are getting a lot more on the Nexus 7 and the price difference is pretty low. We’ll give the Tab 3 a alight edge on price but by not much.
Hardware specs are everything but they can be revealing in some cases. In this regard the Nexus 7 blows away the Tab 3 in just about every respect. First let’s start with the most important factor which is the screen that you look at all the time. The Google Nexus 7 comes with a 1920 x 1200 HD display at 323 ppi compared to the 1024 x 600 WSVGA screen for the Tab 3. There is almost no comparison here as the Nexus 7 wins hands down with the best resolution screen of any tablet. The screen is very gorgeous with bright colors and bright display. The Tab 3 has a very disappointing screen resolution that is about two years outdated.
In other hardware specs the Nexus 7 also wins very easily. It comes with 16 GB of storage compared the 8 GB of Tab 3 although you can add an SD card for the Samsung tablet. There is 2 GB of RAM on the Nexus 7 which is double the 1 GB for the Tab 3. The Nexus 7 has the latest Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 Pro at 1.5GHz with an updated Adreno 320 graphic processor for gaming. Samsung has chosen to go with a 1.2 GHz Intel Core Duo which is a new direction for Samsung and away from ARM processors. It’s definitely an upgrade over the Galaxy Tab 2 but it is yet unclear if it’s faster over Qualcomm processors. Both tablets have the standard WiFi and Bluetooth although Nexus 7 uses the latest Bluetooth 4.0 while the Tab 3 uses the 3.0 standard. Both tablets are similar in weight and size. Overall the Nexus 7 is far superior in hardware specs compared to the Galaxy Tab 3.
When it comes to software it’s a bit more tricky on who wins here. The Google Nexus 7 is running the latest Android 4.3 software that was just released and will continue to get updates as they come. The Galaxy Tab 3 is running Android 4.1.2 and is a modified TouchWiz software. There are no timelines on when the Tab 3 would be updated to Android 4.3 as well. Having used both systems I personally think the Google AOSP software is much better and faster on a tablet. But if you are a big Samsung fan and are used to the phone then the TouchWiz maybe more familiar to you and easier to use. This is a bit of preference but I would give the edge to the Nexus 7 since it’s the most updated Android version.
As we can see, the Google Nexus 7 is running the latest hardware and software for a tablet devices and easily beats the Samsung Galaxy Tab 3 in that respect. I personally would choose the Nexus 7 just for the higher screen resolution which makes it a real joy to watch movies, videos, and browse the web. Google and Asus have done a fantastic job with the updated Nexus 7 and have set the standard for Android tablet. There also tons of accessories already available for purchase for the Nexus 7. With that being said, the Galaxy Tab 3 is still a very good line of tablets. If you are looking for a larger tablet like an 8 or 10 inch then the Tab 3 is a much better option and the hardware specs are also improved. Let us know what you think about these latest tablets.
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