[Note: Arun Prabhudesai had previously published on this blog as to how Google Nexus 7 may revolutionize Indian Tablet market. This is a contrarian view to that post.]
Google Nexus 7, the latest and greatest android tablet ever to come has been launched in US and it is literally flying off the shelves. Which to be honest is not all that shocking. If anyone analyzes the specifications of the tablet and gives a look at the new Android 4.1 (Jelly Bean) this will be clear to the person.
It has the latest hardware packed in a shiny slim package with which it strolls past its contemporary tablets aka every other 7-incher be it kindle fire or galaxy tab 7. Of course there are some omissions like lack of a back camera but these are wise ones as people generally do not take pictures with their tablets.
To top it all it has Android 4.1. Indeed, it is the best iteration of Android ever which says that Google is going from strength to strength where Android is concerned. After getting all the parts fit in right, since Android 4.0 they have focused more on usability, beauty and general suaveness of the OS making it as beautiful as it is useful.
With 4.1 they have made it far smoother and of course then there is Google Now. Hard-coding the voice to text in Android itself and integrating its search capabilities into the phone is a completely different way has increased its usability and potential both. Google Play has been given all the power in 4.1 to call the shots and thus making Nexus 7 a true content delivery package, as a tablet should be.
All this and I still believe that Nexus 7 will fail to produce the same effect in India as it has otherwise…
Currently, it is not available in India though a person can get it from outside at a price of 16-17K Rs. This is cheap considering the tablet is imported. When the tablet shall come it will be priced well below that.
Considering its $200 price point I am assuming it will be around Rs. 11K to Rs. 12K. At this price it will be killer tablet to have except-
- No mobile network connection.
- All the content not available in India.
- Aura of Apple still shines.
Let me take each individually. Nexus 7 has just WiFi. This must have helped it to maintain price but it becomes a glaring problem in any country where WiFi network is not around the corner. India thrives on mobile net connection right now. People are adapting 3G as well and 2G network has really seen a surge.
In fact, a study by Nokia Siemens shows that 2G adoption is going very fast paced and data consumption of 3G has already equaled 2G. In such a scenario Nexus 7 loses most of its sheen. Maybe they will launch a tablet with mobile net in which case the scenario will be different.
You can read my previous article, where I have given reasons as to why a tablet is not of much use without a continuous Internet connectivity. If the price increases by couple of thousand rupees for 2g / 3g connectivity, it will still easily be a fantastic all round tablet package.
Even if I assume that a person buying a tablet moves only in places where WiFi is available then too Google Play itself is not adequate and ample enough in India. Not all content is available to Indians and thus content consumption becomes a bit of a problem where Google is concerned.
Of course, a person will put his favourite things in the tablet but it won’t be the experience Google wants us to have…
Third is something you will notice if you ever go to purchase a tablet. A sales guy will come to you and tell you that no other tablet is worth compared to iPad. This might be true as well for now but it is not for different screen sizes. The aura of iPad though transcends that. The sales guy is not just telling you this to make more money, he actually believes that. Hence, a person will have to make a choice between the two which is not a fair fight.
The price point should beat that but combine this with the fact the only the people who can afford the pricey tablets generally have round the clock WiFi with them (In India) this becomes a competition.
Anyways, these are my views and of course only its arrival will determine the real situation, but I think Google should take a leaf off local companies and at least add some source for mobile network in the tablet. Besides, it should expand its content as well.
What are your views on this?