With a slew of budget-friendly Android tablets vying for consumer attention, the competition in the smaller tablet space is heating up. Samsung launched its Galaxy Note 8.0 tablet at the MWC 2013 in February and is looking to take on the 7-inch tablet offerings from other companies.
One of the best-selling tablets is the ASUS-made Nexus 7 for Google, which packs in impressive features and does not cost the Earth. Samsung's Galaxy Note 8.0 is looking to up the ante and throw the gauntlet down to the popular Nexus 7.
With two robust Android-powered tablets gearing up to battle it out for top honors, we take a look at how the Galaxy Note 8.0 and Nexus 7 stack up against each other:
Form Factor
The Galaxy Note 8.0 measures 8.30 x 5.35 x 0.31 inches, making it taller, wider and thinner than the Nexus 7, which sports 7 .81 x 4.72 x 0.41 inches dimensions.
Weight-wise, both the Galaxy Note 8.0 and Nexus 7 are on even keel and weigh 0.74 pounds and 0.75 pounds (Wi-Fi version), respectively.
Processor
The Nexus 7 packs in a 1.3GHz quad-core Tegra 3 processor. By contrast, the Galaxy Note 8.0 tablet features a more powerful quad-core Exynos processor that is clocked at 1.6GHz.
Display
The Nexus 7 sports a 7-inch HD IPS display, whereas the Galaxy Note 8.0 has a bigger 8-inch TFT Super Clear LCD screen. Both the tablets have a 1280 x 800 pixels resolution.
However, the Nexus 7 has a pixel density of 216 pixels per inch (ppi), whereas the pixels density for the Samsung offering is 189ppi.
Storage and Memory
Both the Nexus 7 and Galaxy Note 8.0 are available in 16/32GB versions. However, the Galaxy Note 8.0 has a clear edge on the Nexus 7 as it comes with an expandable memory option of up to 64GB via a microSD card, unlike the latter.
Memory-wise, the Galaxy Note 8.0 ramps things up and has 2GB of RAM, double of what the Nexus 7 offers (1GB).
Software
The Nexus 7 runs on Android 4.2 Jelly Bean and Google rolled out the Android 4.2.1 upgrade in October 2012. The Galaxy Note 8.0 comes pre-loaded with Android 4.1 Jelly Bean, with Samsung's TouchWiz UI on top.
Camera
The Nexus 7 houses a 1.2-megapixel front-facing camera and no rear-facing snapper. The Galaxy Note 8.0, on the other hand, has a 5-megapixel rear-facing camera and a 1.3-megapixel front-facing snapper, bettering the Google offering on both counts.
Battery
A 4325mAh battery powers the Nexus 7 and offers 10 hours of usage. By contrast, a slightly bigger 4600mAh battery fuels the Galaxy Note 8.0. The usage support offered is currently not known.
Availability and Price
The 7-inch Nexus 7 is available via the Google Play Store in three variants 16GB (Wi-Fi), 32GB (Wi-Fi) and 32GB (Wi-Fi and HSPA+) for $199, $249 and $299, respectively. Google previously offered the 8GB version but has discontinued the same.
Samsung did not reveal the price or exact date of release of the Galaxy Note 8.0 tablet at launch. The Galaxy Note 8.0 is rumored to cost between $249 to $299 and will be available worldwide form Q2 2013.
While both the Nexus 7 and Galaxy Note 8.0 pack in exciting features that will lure consumers, the Samsung offering also has the S Pen stylus in tow, which could tilt the scales in its favor.
