iPad Killer or Kindle Fire Killer? The Nexus 7 Review

Review Background

Ever since I can remember I've been hunting for an inexpensive way to carry out my typical computational needs and desires. Five or so years ago, I thought that was only possible through older machines. So I bought an old iBook Clamshell. It worked... but it wasn't fast, it didn't support some modern software, and the battery life sucked (even after I bought a new one!). Because of this, the next device I purchased was a snow iBook. Same problem. Next! I bought a Netbook. Finally I realized that I wasn't going to get away with buy all these sub-200 dollar devices and having them work very well, so I buckled down and bought a MacBook. It lasted me more than three years before the hardware just wasn't good enough anymore, and the trackpad broke. Now, I have my Dell Vostro 3450- the best laptop I have ever owned. I ran Windows 7 on it for about a month or two before I decided that Ubuntu would work best on it.

But I have never been satisfied with a laptop and a smartphone. I still craved that middle-of-the-line device. The one that lets me do everything BOTH devices can do, and be smaller and cheaper. When the first iPad was announced and eventually released, I waited in line for one, figured out that it wasn't yet for me (I had planned to rid of my MacBook for it) and sold it to my sister. She loves it, it does everything she needs it to do, and she's happy with her purchase. I then realized that the tablet computer wasn't meant to replace anything at all. In fact, it's meant to be yet another device to carry around. And I still wanted one.

The market was still reletively shitty. Tablets went from $350 to $900 with no wiggle room. The tablet you bought, gave you the specs you paid for. And why shouldn't it? The lower end tablets running ancient versions of Google's Android OS were highly lacking in any real functionality beyond that of a basic browsing device and email device- and even then they struggled. So, Amazon released the Kindle Fire. I ALMOST bought the Kindle Fire. That is, until I tried one out. It was the slowest tablet I had ever used. There was a good deal of snapping back, lag, and annoyance. So I decided to wait for the rumored Tegra 3 devices to be released, the ones that were said to be faster AND cheaper too. Because hey, I've been waiting for this thing for a LONG ASS time.

It came. It finally came. And I'm positive of that. The Nexus 7 is THE budget speed demon I and so many others had been patiently awaiting for so many years. But is it more like an iPad or a Kindle Fire? Why should YOU buy one? Read on to find out.

Windows 8 Spells Out a Dark Future for the Platform

Windows has been built onto ever since Windows 2000, 12 years ago. Yeah, I said "built onto" as in, Microsoft has kept the same, unstable, decaying core of the operating system, simply adding on top of the framework new layers. Layers that are unneeded and unpractical still exist. Layers that need updating but are ignored still exist. It's like digging a hole in sand. It just keeps filling up, and you'll never get to where you need to. Windows 8 is bad. Real bad. Microsoft essentially took Windows Phone 7, Xbox's UI, and Windows 7 and mashed it into a bastard child only Steve Ballmer could love. Do you want to know what is wrong with the new Windows? Do you want to know your alternative choices? What about what you can and should do now to prepare? Read on past the break to find out why Windows 8 is a bad idea.

Apple 2012: Resolutionary, Not Revolutionary

Tim Cook, CEO of Apple probably said it best at last weeks' "new iPad" presentation when he said we are now totally immersed into a post-PC world, where Apple is at the forefront, and Apple has reinvented portable computing with it's iPad. But Apple also made a very interesting pun that not only applies to it's new iPad, but also to the company itself in this last year. It's not revolutionary... but rather, resolutionary. There have been countless huge changes to the company in this last year, but all the while, the company has been able to shift itself slowly in the right direction, making small changes to big things, and doing a great job at it.