Battle of the Portable Tablets: LG G Pad 8.3 vs. Nexus 7 (2013)

Customers looking for a portable tablet, which they can fit in their pants pocket, have a wide-range of possibilities on the market. Two of the best small-framed tablets available on the market today can be considered the Google Nexus 7 and LG G Pad 8.3, so if you were given a choice between them, what would you choose?

To help you answer that question, let’s take one thing at the time and see which tablet offers the optimal functionalities for perspective slate owners.

Display

The LG tablet comes with a slightly larger 8.3-inch display and a resolution of 1920 x 1200 pixels (Full HD), while the Nexus offers the same in terms of resolution but on a 7-inch screen.

But the extra 1.3-inch screen space does matter, as the Nexus manages to boats a 323 ppi compared to LG’s 273. On top of that, it should be noted that smaller screens consume less power than larger ones.

Furthermore, the Nexus 7 is coated with a protective layer of Corning Gorilla Glass, to prevent scratches, while the LG slate isn't.

Software

While the most recent Android 4.4.2 OTA update is available for the Nexus 7 (2012 and 2013 editions), LG G Pad 8.3 owners will have to wait a while before getting the same treatment. Of course, there’s the alternative of going for the LG G Pad 8.3 Google Play Edition which ships with Android KitKat out of the box.

Performance

The LG G Pad 8.3 is powered by a 1.7GHz quad-core Snapdragon 600 processor combined with 2GB of RAM, while the Nexus 7 is equipped with a 1.5GHz quad-core Snapdragon S4 PRO combined with 2GB of RAM, so in this department the LG wins.

However, if you apply everything we just said to the real world, it should be highlighted that software optimization has a big impact on performance, and since the Nexus 7 will always be among the devices getting updated first, you probably shouldn't view the difference in processing power as a big turn-off, when the Nexus is concerned.

LTE

So far, the LG G Pad 8.3 hasn’t offered the LTE function; yet, a version of the tablet sporting Verizon LTE in tow has been spotted going through the FCC recently, which means an LTE capable model is on its way. But while we wait on that, the Nexus 7 already boasts LTE functions.

Battery life

The LG tablet has a 4600 mAh battery while the Nexus sports a more modest 3950 mAh, but since the latter has a smaller screen, the difference shouldn't be noticeable. On top of that, the Nexus can be fitted with a wireless charging accessory, which makes it easier to pump power into this baby.

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