14 DAY TRIAL // The Nexus 8 was in the rumor mill a lot lately, as details about it have started pouring in. Now, new information suggests the device will come bundling Intel’s new 64-bit Atom chip processor. Well, like it was unexpected.
In late February, we told you the upcoming Nexus tablet to come out of Google was expected to arrive at the I/O 2014 developer conference set to take place between 25 and 26 of July.
At the same event, Google is expected to announce the next build of Android, version 4.5, but the report didn't make it clear whether the next Nexus 8 will come bundling the new OS or not. Even though it makes sense it will.
The Nexus 8 is actually the successor of 2013’s Nexus 7 tablet. Information coming out of Asia via sources familiar with the matter claims Google is being forced to abandon the manufacturing of 7-inch tablets, a decision prompted by disappointing sales in the Nexus 7 2013 department.
Paradoxically enough, the 2013 Nexus 7 has been hailed as being one of the best Android tablets out there, but it apparently didn't perform as well as Google might have expected.
Moreover, the increased adoption of the phablet-form factor is shaping customers’ taste in a different direction and tablet-manufacturers are forced to take-up the production of slates with larger screens, to differentiate the category.
At the moment, we can’t say the 8-inch market is really devoid of worthy products. Samsung’s new Galaxy TabPRO 8.4 or the LG G Pad 8.3 are pretty good examples of decent Android slates with 8-inch screens.
Anyway, earlier reports indicated the Nexus 8 would be arriving in April, date that was later moved to June. And there might be an ulterior motive for that being the case. According to the freshest information available reported by the AndroidPit, the Nexus 8 will be powered by Intel’s chip architecture and not by the already tested Qualcomm Snapdragon.
So, Google is apparently going to slip in a 64-bit “Moorefield” chip based on Intel’s 22nm 3D transistor manufacturing tech that might be clocked as high as 2.3GHz for all four cores. On top of that, we’re going to see a PowerVR G6430 GPU and Intel’s own LTE solution that brings advanced LTE connectivity.
The above-mentioned chip is expected to be made available for real-life implementation soon. This might translate into Q3 2014, which is in accord with the apparent release date for the Nexus 8.