About three weeks ago, pictures of what looked like a Nexus 9 keyboard accessory clearing the NCC were leaked on the Internet, and now we can take a look at the tablet itself, this time while passing through the FCC.
There were rumors even since February this year that Google would cooperate with HTC on a high-end tablet, but at that time no one knew exactly if it would be a Nexus 8 or a new Nexus 10. More recently, the mist was blown away and it became clear that it would be the Nexus 9 that will come from HTC’s hands. Considering that since the HTC Dream, the Taiwanese company and Mountain View haven’t collaborated on much, all these rumors were took with more than a grain of salt, but now it looks like HTC is again in Google’s graces.
Nexus 9, which will most likely be launched along the Nexus 6, this month, will be among the first devices to run Android L. It will presumably feature a 8.9-inch 2,048 × 1,440 display, a Tegra K1 processor, 2GB of DDR3 RAM, and 16GB or 32GB storage options.
Since the second generation Nexus 7 was also offered in the LTE variety, I wouldn’t be surprised if there were multiple versions of Nexus 9, differentiated by more than just the internal storage capacity.
The version that went through the FCC is model number 0P82100, which is believed to be the Wi-Fi-only variant. In that case, it’s a certainty that the 4G version will be released with a different model number, should HTC indeed consider making an LTE Nexus 9. Other than that, in the FCC picture the Android tablet seems to sport an aluminum body and front facing speakers. Will it be in fact a high-end tablet, or is it just an oversized Nexus 7? Either way, chances are that the Nexus 6 and Nexus 9 are the last products to be launched by Google under this name, as the company practically ran out of numbers (well, there’s still the 8, and it wouldn’t make much sense using 1, 2, or 3) and going over ten would be awkward.
Fortunately for people who can’t stand Apple, Google made a habit from releasing really powerful devices at unbeatable prices. This year, however, Google faces some new competition, in the form of Chinese manufacturers such as Xiaomi, whose 7.9″ MiPad has similar specs, but a higher pixel density due to the slightly larger resolution on a smaller display. That one is currently priced around $289 for the 16GB version, so Google might have a hard time beating that.
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