Google Nexus 7 vs Apple, Samsung and other tablet rivals

With Google having unveiled its own-brand, Asus-built Nexus 7 tablet running its new Android 4.1 Jelly Bean operating system, V3 takes a look at how it compares to the rest of the competition on the market.

The Nexus 7 - around £159
To start with, let's take a look at the specs of the Nexus 7.

Set to arrive in the UK from mid-July costing £159 for the 8GB and £199 for the 16GB model, the Asus-built tablet features some pretty impressive specifications considering its modest price.

The unit boasts a 7in, HD 1280x800 touch-screen and is powered by an impressive 1.3 GHz quad-core processor with 1GB of RAM. Even better it will be the first device ever released running Android 4.1 Jelly Bean.

Jelly Bean is itself pretty impressive, giving the tablet several new features including Google Now, an improved user interface, enhanced voice search and an improved Google Play store that brings magazines and HD videos straight to the tablet.

It will also include integrated NFC, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, nine hours of video playback, Google's Chrome web browser, and a 1.2MP front-facing camera.

So, plenty for the competition to worry about.

Huawei MediaPad 7in - £320
The Huawei MediaPad is one of the main similarly-sized Android tablets currently on the market and acts as a pretty good demonstration of just how much value for money the Nexus 7 represents.

Featuring a 1.2GHz dual-core Qualcomm Snapdragon processor, backed up by 1GB of RAM and powered by the woefully old Honeycomb Android operating system, there's little about this tablet that matches Nexus 7 when looked at on paper.

Even the build quality is better on the Nexus, so it's hard to imagine anyone picking this over the Google tablet.

Winner: Nexus 7, by a clear distance.

Dell Streak 7in - £230
Released in March last year, the Dell Streak 7 is one of a select few tablets available in the same price range as the Nexus 7.

However, again the device just doesn't measure up technically. Featuring a 7in Corning Gorilla Glass screen of 480 x 800 pixels that runs at 133ppi, the device's screen looks significantly less crisp than the Nexus 7.

Additionally being powered by a dual-core 1GHz Cortex-A9 processor and running Android 3.2 Honeycomb, the device will feel slow in comparison - after all, there are now smartphones retailing for the same cost boasting better components.

Winner: Nexus 7, again without much competition.