New tablet (quick Nexus 10 review)

[g-man]

So wandering the idle of the local Wally-world, I came across a clearance table containing a couple of Nexus 10 tablets. At $259 it was nearly 50% off ($499 original msrp for the 32gb model), and one of them followed me home. For an economy tablet, my Nook HD+ was not bad, but even at a year(ish) old as a model, this Nexus rocks. Automatically prompted to update the os to Android 4.4 (Kit Kat), the interface is slick and effortless. The WiFi connectivity improves greatly on the already capable Nook, adding both signal strength and connection speed. The Gorilla glass is a nice touch, though the rubberized back is a bit weird. Battery life is not even on the same scale as the somehow electron hungry Nook, and the sleep function actually works. The nook had an annoying habit of randomly draining the entire battery overnight, even though it would go into 'sleep mode' the exact same way after short-pressing the power button.

The front side crushes SWMBO's iPad Air (which BTW was the agreed upon bribe for permission to purchase said Nexus...), as the screen is higher res and a more comfortable ratio for my taste. However, the wonky rubberized back screams that it was built to a price point. One that is significantly below the $589 iPad Air... However, in terms of interface and straight performance, I'd give the slight edge to the Nexus. A year older and discounted to less than half the price of the Apple product, and I'm happy as a clam.

Now if our Sprint contract could just expire so I can ditch the spec'd up but iOS neutered iPhone 5, I'll be in business. iPhone 6+? Hell no.