Ahead of HTC and Google's likely announcement, here's what we want to see in the Nexus 9
There's rarely any smoke without fire in the tech business, and we can barely see or breath for all the rumours and leaks surrounding Google's forthcoming Nexus 9 tablet.
As the name suggests, this is going to be a long overdue full-sized replacement for the Nexus 10 - or the nearest we've come to one in the two years since its release, at the very least.
One notable difference is that HTC will almost certainly be the manufacturer this time around, rather than Samsung. The Taiwanese manufacturer makes a mean smartphone, but its lack of tablet experience has many wondering what the Nexus 9 will come out like.
We've started to get some spec suggestions through from various sources, but here's what we'd like to see from the Nexus 9.
HTC design
Nexus devices don't tend to be particularly flamboyant, but we hope Google gives HTC a little leeway to apply some of its own personality. After all, HTC is one of a select few Android manufacturers who can challenge Apple on the desirable premium handset design front.
We're guessing a metal body is unlikely, but wouldn't that be sweet? After all, who today makes a tablet that's anywhere near as nice to look at and hold as the iPad Air?
HTC certainly could. Whether it will be allowed to or not is another matter entirely.
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Super-sharp HD display
When the Nexus 10 arrived on the scene two years ago, it featured one of the sharpest full-sized tablet displays we'd ever seen. In fact, its 2,560 x 1,600 screen remains sharper than most.
We're not expecting the Nexus 9's display to go any higher on the pixel count. Although a QHD resolution would make far more sense on a large tablet than on a smartphone, it doesn't appear to be economically viable right now - especially for a tablet that's likely to be priced quite keenly.
But we would like to see an improved display with greater colour accuracy, brightness, and the same number of pixels as the Nexus 10. This would make for an even more pixel-dense display given the Nexus 9's smaller screen size.
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Tegra K1 CPU
This one seems to be a dead cert, with Nvidia recently letting slip that its new SoC will be powering the Nexus 9 in a court document. But it's worth mentioning anyway, because this is a seriously impressive component.
The Tegra K1 (which was first seen on the Nvidia Shield Tablet) is most notable for its advanced GPU element, which is based on the same Kepler architecture as desktop PC equivalents. That's the first time such a thing has been incorporated on a mobile chip.
The result of this is blistering 3D performance that absolutely thrashes everything else in graphically intensive applications and games. Even Apple's impressive new A8 doesn't come close.
MicroSD slot
Google doesn't seem to like expandable storage in its Nexus devices. There's no microSD slot in either of the Nexus 7 tablets or the Nexus 5 or Nexus 4 smartphones, and there wasn't one in the Nexus 10.
We understand that it's never a particularly elegant solution to limited storage (we'd much rather just have loads as standard), and that it can compromise the form factor of smaller devices.
But in a full-sized Android tablet, it's a little harder to excuse. There's space for it. It's useful. It's a rare thing Android tablets can potentially trump the iPad on.
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Improved Android tablet experience
Here's a stark truth for you: Android simply isn't as good on tablets as it is on smartphones.
Sure, Google has gradually incorporated more and more UI elements that capitalise on the extra screen space (though more needs to be done here). But when it comes to third party app support in particular, you often just get scaled up smartphone apps.
Google should use the Nexus 9 to really lean on / support app developers to come up with properly optimised tablet apps.
Of course, the one thing that would prompt this ahead of anything else would be if the Nexus 9 was a massive and instant success at retail. But Google really needs to be doing its part to 'encourage' developers to put a little more effort in.
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