Specifications of Google’s long-rumored 7-inch tablet have leaked out ahead of the company’s annual I/O Conference that kicks off this Wednesday. The tablet is being manufactured by Asus but Google will brand and sell the unit, much like they are doing with unlocked Galaxy Nexus smartphones through the Google Play Store.
Gizmodo claims to have received a training document that details everything one would want to know about the Nexus 7 tablet. At the heart of the system is a quad-core Tegra 3 processor clocked at 1.3GHz, 1GB of RAM, a GeForce 12-core GPU and the option of either 8GB or 16GB of onboard storage.
The 7-inch IPS display features a 178-degree viewing angle and runs at a resolution of 1,280 x 800. There’s a 1.2MP camera on the front for video chats and we are told that the unit will provide nine hours of battery life from a single charge.
Additionally, the leaked document says the Nexus 7 will be the first device to ship with Android Jelly Bean, the successor to Ice Cream Sandwich. Pricing is set at $199 for the 8GB model and $249 for the 16GB variant, making the unit a solid competitor to Amazon’s Kindle Fire and the Barnes & Noble Nook Tablet.
There is no word yet on when exactly Google is planning to make the tablet available for purchase but hopefully it won’t be too long after the announcement. Most expect Google to reveal the new hardware at this week’s I/O Conference. If so, we’ll know more details come Wednesday.
