New Nexus 7 User

When it comes to hardware, I'm usually a late adopter. Just when most people expect to see the Nexus 7 refresh, I decided to buy last year's hardware. There are many things that deterred me from buying an Android tablet: from the aspect ratio to the hardware issues and the lack of tablet-optimized apps.


Google got serious about tablets last year when it launched 2 tablets and started to encourage developers to build tablet-optimized apps. Andy Rubin's stance didn't help. Now there are special sections for tablet-optimized apps in Google Play and that's a great thing. Tablets need apps that take advantage of the bigger screen, not bigger phone apps.

I usually don't write reviews, so don't expect a Nexus 7 review. It's light, compact, there are many apps that work well and are more useful than their phone versions. I'm still not convinced that 16:10 is the right aspect ratio for a tablet: Chrome feels cramped and browsing the web is not a comfortable experience, especially in the landscape mode.

I'm the one who writes tips and tricks, so this may sound surprising: any tips for a new Nexus 7 user? You had one year to find all the great apps, hidden features, workarounds and use cases.

Note: I'll be gone on a short vacation for about a week. I'll read your tips, but don't expect new blog posts.