With the addition of the iPad Mini, Apple now offers touchscreen devices in three different sizes. And now its competitor Google is doing the same, introducing a 10-inch tablet, an upgraded 7-inch tablet and a new smartphone.
Introduced Monday, the Nexus 10, which Google developed with LG, is the company's first tablet that competes directly with Apple's 9.7-inch iPad. Most significantly, it undercuts the iPad's price: A Nexus 10 with Wi-Fi and 16 gigabytes of storage costs $400, compared to $500 for an equivalent iPad. Google did not say whether a model with cellular data would be available.
Also developed with LG, Google's Nexus 4 smartphone has a 4.7-inch screen and wireless charging capability. Google highlighted its new camera software, called Photo Sphere, which allows you to snap a picture up and down in different directions and stitch them together into a 360-degree view. (For comparison, the iPhone 5 has a 4-inch screen and camera software that allow s you to create a panoramic photo by panning left or right.) The phone starts at $200 with a T-Mobile contract, or $300 unlocked without a contract.
Google also upgraded its Nexus 7 tablet, which was introduced earlier this year, to include a cellular data connection called HSPA+, which is the predecessor to the newest cell technology, 4G LTE. The model with HSPA+ and 32 GB of storage costs $300, and it's compatible with AT&T's network.
All the devices include Google's latest Android software, 4.2 Jelly Bean. Among its features, Jelly Bean includes Google Now, a personal assistant that keeps track of your searches to do things like display the score of your favorite sports team, or keep you up to date on the status of your flight.
