14 DAY TRIAL // The Google I/O keynote came and went and we saw the company talk about a lot of interesting things, including Android Wear, Android TV and Android in car, but the biggest absentee of the party was the Nexus 8 tablet.
Previous to the event, the tablet was heavily rumored and a lot of people expected the device to make a debut at the event. Since this didn't happen, speculation arose that the tablet might not make it out into the wild after all.
However, some sources familiar with the matter put our minds at ease by revealing that the tablet was never meant to be unveiled at the Google I/O and will eventually make it out into the wild at some point. A specific timeline wasn't provided.
Anyway, now @evleaks claims to have posted the first picture of the tablet, although it’s not your usual product promo pic, but rather a macro shot of the aluminum panel.
The serial leakster goes on to provide a few extra details about the product, but we were familiar with some of it.
As we found out in the leak before Google’s I/O, the device will bundle a 64-bit NVIDIA Tegra K1 processor, bring about a 2560 x 1600 pixel resolution and 64GB of internal storage.
The model currently tested has an unusual 5GB of RAM, although the commercially available product is expected to arrive with less memory. Earlier information seemed to suggest that the HTC Nexus will only have 2GB of RAM.
Other specifications include two cameras (an 8MP one in the front and a 5MP one on the back) and HTC Boomsound front-facing speakers.
At the Google I/O, NVIDIA took a lot of the spotlight and the company claimed there was no place you could turn at the event without stumbling upon their new Tegra K1 platform.
Therefore, it makes sense that the now mythical Nexus 8 tablet will be making use of the same platform and will probably arrive with Android L on top of everything.
Prior to the event, we also reported that Google seemed to be attempting to clear out its Nexus 7 inventory. The device went out of stock in some locations around the world like Australia, while in the US the tab was offered with 3-month All Access free subscription to sweeten the deal.
So it seemed everything was being prepped for the HTC Volantis launch. But it appears Google has other plans. Well, this picture proves the device does exist and it is currently being tested. We hope to see the Nexus 8 out as soon as possible.
[Update]: It appears the HTC Volantis picture is a fake