Nexus 7 8GB tablet is $199. iTouch 8GB is $199. what's wrong with this picture?

[BlahBlahYouToo]

double the screen size, better resolution, better hardware and specs all around. same price.

google is barely making a profit with the n7 so I image apple is raking in the dough with the 8gb touch.

 

[superccs]

Ipads are like chinapads with nice screens... The hardware per $ ration is always horrible with apple products.

 

[ilkhan]

iTax.
Or, if you prefer, iProfit.

 

[Deeko]

Do recall that this generation of iPod Touch came out a year ago.

 

[hans030390]

Yeah, because I can totally fit a tablet in my pocket.

Also, technical specifications aren't everything.

 

[QueBert]

double the screen size, better resolution, better hardware and specs all around. same price.

google is barely making a profit with the n7 so I image apple is raking in the dough with the 8gb touch.

I think the infinity superior apps on iOS pretty much even out the paying the same for a much smaller screen. The best hardware in the world is great and all, but apps are more important imho. Android has what I'd consider just passable quality apps. I just sold my Galaxy Note and picked up an iPhone 4, while I will miss some things about Android, the shittastic apps won't be one of them. And for what it's worth, no Android device is as smooth as my iPod Touch, so hardware specs don't always mean you get the best performance.

 

[psych2]

I think the infinity superior apps on iOS pretty much even out the paying the same for a much smaller screen. The best hardware in the world is great and all, but apps are more important imho. Android has what I'd consider just passable quality apps. I just sold my Galaxy Note and picked up an iPhone 4, while I will miss some things about Android, the shittastic apps won't be one of them. And for what it's worth, no Android device is as smooth as my iPod Touch, so hardware specs don't always mean you get the best performance.

Started to read comment, disregarded after reading "infinity superior apps."

Ecosystems and software can be upgraded, but you can't upgrade hardware. Besides the Nexus 7 is selling out everywhere which will boost tablet app development. Apple tax is not worth paying when you only use a few good apps in a tablets life. P.S., we have XBMC now without the need to jailbreak or root

 

[QueBert]

Started to read comment, disregarded after reading "infinity superior apps."

Ecosystems and software can be upgraded, but you can't upgrade hardware. Besides the Nexus 7 is selling out everywhere which will boost tablet app development. Apple tax is not worth paying when you only use a few good apps in a tablets life. P.S., we have XBMC now without the need to jailbreak or root

Yep. a beta XBMC you have to compile yourself that doesn't run well on most devices and won't for a long time. No biggie that iOS has had it well over a year. As usual Android playing catch up with an app that could end up not even matching the quality of the iOS version. Do you not agree that the apps on iOS are vastly superior? If you don't I'm sure you're one of the ones who would have a serious debate with another on how Gimp is every bit as good as Photoshop.

 

[BlahBlahYouToo]

I think the infinity superior apps on iOS pretty much even out the paying the same for a much smaller screen. The best hardware in the world is great and all, but apps are more important imho. Android has what I'd consider just passable quality apps. I just sold my Galaxy Note and picked up an iPhone 4, while I will miss some things about Android, the shittastic apps won't be one of them. And for what it's worth, no Android device is as smooth as my iPod Touch, so hardware specs don't always mean you get the best performance.

i had an 32gb 4g touch but the screen was so small, I would only be playing the zynga word games on it.

i can't comment on smoothness since my N7 isn't here yet, but my gnex (old hardware) got got updated to JB and so far, while it's smoother than ICS, there is slight scrolling latency on graphic heavy sites. but the larger and higher res screen make it much more bearable than a 3.5" screen.

 

[bucwylde23]

I think that the current generation of iPod touch came out back in September 2010. I bought one then, and it's definitely showing it's age now.
Going from my iPad 3/Gnex it's a bit frustrating to use.

But it does music well and the ability to use all the iPhone apps is pretty nice. Just suffers from the same issue as the iPhone as having too small of a screen for anything other than music really.

 

[Eug]

Started to read comment, disregarded after reading "infinity superior apps."

Ecosystems and software can be upgraded, but you can't upgrade hardware. Besides the Nexus 7 is selling out everywhere which will boost tablet app development. Apple tax is not worth paying when you only use a few good apps in a tablets life. P.S., we have XBMC now without the need to jailbreak or root

It's a LOT easier to upgrade the hardware. You simply buy a new device.

It's a LOT harder to improve the software ecosystem, as evidenced by the state of Google Play today.

 

[akugami]

Ipads are like chinapads with nice screens... The hardware per $ ration is always horrible with apple products.

Not sure if you're serious...I know the iPads, and all Apple products, are usually premium priced but the build quality is night and day compared to a cheap tablet from China. I once had 8 "Chinapads" in the office for testing. So I know.

And really, compared to other premium brands, Apple is in the same price range. Go look at a Sony or other premium line of laptop and you'll see they fall in the same price range as Apple's Macbooks. Go look at premium cell phones and you'll see they're the same price as Apple's iPhone. Ditto on tablets.

 

[AstroManLuca]

Pretty simple. Apple doesn't do loss leaders. They profit directly from hardware. Google profits from collecting and selling personal data, hence they're willing to break even (or even take a loss) selling cheap devices in order to get more people to use their stuff. Amazon profits from selling ebooks, Prime memberships, videos, and music, enough that they're willing to take a loss on the Kindle Fire in order to get more users.

 

[Chiropteran]

Not sure if you're serious...I know the iPads, and all Apple products, are usually premium priced but the build quality is night and day compared to a cheap tablet from China. I once had 8 "Chinapads" in the office for testing. So I know.

Where do you think they make the apple hardware?

Hint: It starts with "Ch-" and ends with "-ina"

 

[Eug]

All computers pretty much are made in China. However, you can make the same sort of product with bad design, terrible materials, crappy parts, and no QA, or you can make it with good design, good materials, high quality parts, and decent QA.

This can be done all in the same factory, but product B will be much better than product A obviously.

 

[QueBert]

It's a LOT easier to upgrade the hardware. You simply buy a new device.

It's a LOT harder to improve the software ecosystem, as evidenced by the state of Google Play today.

I disagree on the 2nd point, but it's almost like Google and Android developers as a whole are just content with having apps that feel like they're Sourceforge projects. Android users will of course bring up Flipboard as being awesome UI wise, and always have to mention how 1 app, Dropbox is so much better on Android. As if those 2 points totally negate the 99% of apps that are ugly and clunky. A few years ago they use to say that the Android Market would improve it was just young and would catch up to iOS. Now years later they've pretty much all changed their stance to "the apps are perfectly fine"

Like I said I really miss the big screen of my Note, but the iOS apps feel like real apps and in the end that trade off was more than worth it. I've had 5 different Android phones and used Android exclusively over the past 3 years. I really did try my best to wait for the market to improve, but it's just not ever going to happen as far as I can tell.

 

[Mopetar]

I really did try my best to wait for the market to improve, but it's just not ever going to happen as far as I can tell.

Amazon's foray into the market with the Kindle Fire might help things. First, Amazon is taking an approach similar to the one Apple uses for their store. That things are more curated should probably ensure that in general, app quality is better.

Also, if Amazon tries to get developers to focus on ensuring that the app looks good on Fire or if the Fire becomes the leading Android tablet by a wide enough margin, it could give developers the ability to design for the Fire and have access to a large chunk of the market.

 

[T_Yamamoto]

I'd rather have a tablet than iPod touch.

 

[Ravynmagi]

Seems odd comparing a tablet with a personal media player.

I imagine the iPod is for people that don't want a smart phone, but wants access to all those apps in something that fits in their pocket comfortably.

Also while I'm sure Apple is making a nice profit off this, there probably is some additional cost in making things this small.

 

[AstroManLuca]

Amazon's foray into the market with the Kindle Fire might help things. First, Amazon is taking an approach similar to the one Apple uses for their store. That things are more curated should probably ensure that in general, app quality is better.

Also, if Amazon tries to get developers to focus on ensuring that the app looks good on Fire or if the Fire becomes the leading Android tablet by a wide enough margin, it could give developers the ability to design for the Fire and have access to a large chunk of the market.

You know, I've heard a lot of arguments for why Android apps are either not bad or are at least improving, but I've never seen the Amazon app store mentioned in that conversation. It's kind of a shitty app store, all the same apps as the Play Store but more frustrating to use and a lot of developers have abandoned their Amazon versions. Usually ones who offered the app for free and then regretted it later.

Personally I think QueBert is a little unfair to Android apps, he always says how HORRIBLE they are in comparison to iOS apps. I really don't see it myself. They're not that different, especially now. The new Holo theme for ICS (and the new guidelines to go with it) have streamlined Android apps a bunch. They look way better than they did in 2010.

 

[QueBert]

Personally I think QueBert is a little unfair to Android apps, he always says how HORRIBLE they are in comparison to iOS apps. I really don't see it myself. They're not that different, especially now. The new Holo theme for ICS (and the new guidelines to go with it) have streamlined Android apps a bunch. They look way better than they did in 2010.

Holo's a step in the right direction, while I don't like how it looks much, I would be good with it since it'll look the same on all apps. But at the moment though there are so few holo skinned apps that it's not even worth talking about. That'll change, but it won't be soon. holoeverywhere.com's an interesting site, they review holo apps and have a "what it could have been" where they mock up what current apps look like if they had been made with the holo guidelines for the UI. I was just on the site, it's 98% "what if" and a few reviews.

Perhaps in 2 years when Holo's the norm (yes I think it'll take that long) I'll switch back to Android. Apps still won't look polished like I like them, but consistencies worth a lot and if every app will sport the same UI I'd welcome back Android. But for the time being I'm back on iOS where the apps remind me of Office 2010, where my Android app's reminded me of Apache Open Office.

 

[AFurryReptile]

Google doesn't make their money off of the sale of hardware.

Google makes money off knowing and controlling every aspect of your online life, and selling it to advertisers.

 

[AznAnarchy99]

The Nexus 7 wouldnt be a nice portable music player.

 

[Eug]

Google doesn't make their money off of the sale of hardware.

Google makes money off knowing and controlling every aspect of your online life, and selling it to advertisers.

Apple makes its money off both.

 

[Puddle Jumper]

Also while I'm sure Apple is making a nice profit off this, there probably is some additional cost in making things this small.

Likewise Apple cut corners with the iPod Touch that Google didn't with the Nexus 7, namely the crappy TN panel in the Touch vs the Nexus' IPS screen.