Nexus 5? That’s old stuff. Let’s talk about the Nexus 8

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nexus 8You weren’t really naive enough to think that the leaks from Mountain View were going to end once the Nexus 5 went on sale, were you? No, sir, that’s not the way Google rolls these days. Having updated their Android.com domain with the release of Android 4.4, the above tablet, which we have so far not seen anywhere, was very visibly featured under the section A Library that goes with you.

Most of the web is considering the tablet to be an 8-inch one, particularly considering the slimmed down bezels from the top and bottom which I’m sure pretty much every one would welcome. While it’s difficult to estimate the size of the device from a single photo, if this is a real device that would be released significantly before summer 2014, it only makes sense that they build something in between their small and large tablet offering.

Is there a market for that size? I prefer 10″ tablets because I use them primarily for watching movies while travelling, and if the tablet is light enough, I don’t have fatigue issues holding it up for longer periods of time while reading. Having said that, the 7″ mark is where Android has excelled commercially. And if the tablet doesn’t take up any more space or weight than the current Nexus 7 and the cost is in the same vicinity, I’m quite confident that consumers would opt for the larger version.

[polldaddy poll=7530407]

Raveesh Bhalla

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134 Comments

  1. With a 7incher out, this seems moot
    Then again I still think this is just a photoshop and not an actual tablet.
    When the Nex5 was leaked in that video of kitkat statue unveiling the video got pulled…this has not been pulled yet, so maybe Google has no new products to hide here

  2. Are you sure this is a poll for tablet size??

    1. OMG. this guy.

    2. What else could it be? o.0

      1. you don’t want to know. We Americans are perverted.

        1. Lol, don’t give us Indians too much credit, we wrote the bloody Kama Sutra thousands of years ago.

          1. touché touché.

          2. That entire thing reminds me of this The Big Bang Theory scene
            http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yIaKtR-_fBE

          3. I thought you were hindu ._.

  3. 10 inches or gtfo.

    1. That’s what your mom said. lol jk.

      1. lol but seriously. she said that.

  4. i dont see how this would work..5,7,8,10? lets not be Samsung now.

    1. You’re forgetting the 4 LTE

    2. ahh copying the iPad mini form factor.

      Google just doesn’t know how to innovate, hence they look to Apple for ideas (transparent menus, siri ect)

      1. Ah yes of course! How can we forget how apple created the measurement of 8 inches along with the rectangle. I guess android must’ve also copied their pull down status bar, multitasking page, music app, and lock screen. Silly me

      2. On another note, you do know most hipsters are Apple fanboys like you, right?

      3. NOBODY RESPOND TO HIM

      4. Hahahahahahaha. You should be a comedian.

      5. Damn, and I was hoping this guy was gone. Hadn’t seen his trolling for a while.

        Transparent menus? Yeah, that’s surely innovative and no one has done that prior to Apple. Siri? Haha, Google had Voice Actions before Siri, man.

      6. Hilarious.

  5. Looks more like a moto tab to me, design wise.

  6. It’s not running 4.4

    1. Except it is (white notification icons)

      1. Old Play Store version?

        1. True, but could have been a prototype unit with KitKat, and the image having been taken quite some time back for promotional use.

  7. Hi face. Meet palm.

  8. Every ex-girlfriend has said “size matters” right before they walk out the door…. so on that logic, I vote 10 inch tablets

  9. Raveesh, you just opened up a veritable can of worms, filled with sexual innuendos poking fun at penis size.

    1. What can I say, I thought we guys were above it.

      1. Absolutely not.

  10. Only reason I haven’t purchase a Nexus 7. I rather it 8 inches or I rather get a 10 inch tablet.

  11. I wonder if the nexus 8 will cause as many sleepless nights as the nexus 5 did.

    1. Short answer: no.

  12. I want to talk about the new nexus 10! Why can’t we have leaked rumors of that damn it! I don’t get it… The nexus 10 was announced with the nexus 4 last year why the delay?

    1. If there’s no news, that’s how it goes. I think it’s probably because of the cost involved with the original, that they have not done a launch of a new one, and trying to change their marketing plans there.

  13. Funny Nexus 5 is old news when half of America can’t get their hand on one until 3-4 weeks from now..ha

  14. That picture is a Nexus 7 with a screenshot photoshopped on top of it. The screenshot is to tall so it doesn’t look like a Nexus 7

    1. This is what I’m thinking. I can’t see Google doing a 7 and an 8. That’s just a little odd.

    2. Yeah but why would Google do that? It’s still on the linked website BTW.

  15. Tablets Like It Big. Coming to Brazzers in 2014.

  16. An 8 inch tablet would be perfect. Hope I can get rid of the Nexus 7 for a good price. I wonder if this leak is actually hinting at a Nexus 8 and if so, when would it release?

  17. Biggest screen you can fit in the nexus 7 chassis IMO, but leaving a little thumb room on the bottom bezel.

  18. I just with they would make a N7 with tiny bezels. some may complain that you need bezel. I’d just like to try it without.

    1. I’d rather have a bit more on the sides in fact to make sure I can easily rest my thumb

      1. Release it with small bezels, then have a case that basically adds bezel for those who want it.

      2. See, for me, if it had no bezels at all I could just palm that thing. I had godzilla hands though. Anyways, it’s just something I’d like to try out.

        1. Had? o.0

          I understand that, and honestly I’m not nutty about how much bezel (though the Nexus 7 2013 does have way too much without having front facing speakers to justify it). A bit has got to be there for the cases to snap on comfortably. SuperMarino’s suggestion below is perfectly fine with me, since I’m sure I’d be in the minority in that respect.

          1. Have*, my bad. I didn’t check myself on that one, lol.

  19. Could this be a version of the new LG tablet w/the NEXUS treatment?

  20. It’s just a bad photoshop.

  21. Again, this is not a Nexus 8. This is a Nexus 7 (2013) with a terrible Photoshop job done on it.

    1. It’s running kit kat with a tablet version of kit kat and tablet version of the play store. No tablet currently runs kit kat unless you have a custom ROM on the Nexus 7.

  22. yeah. i’d sell my new nexus 7 for it. wheres new nexus 10

  23. I didn’t know I wanted an 8′ Nexus tablet until I saw this. Now I must have one and now I need to sell my 2013 Nexus 7.

    1. Sorry, but that doesn’t quite look like 8′.

      1. That’s what she said.

      2. That doesn’t look like a Nexus 7″

  24. So everybody want’s Google to copy crapple.

    1. sure, because crapple invented the 8″ tablet market, right?

      1. They came out with a crappy 7.9 first and than Samsung came out with the 8″ galaxy tab so you do the math.

        1. If we’re talking a milimeter here or there, Samsung came out with a 7.7″ tablet way back in 2011

          1. The only nexus 8 will be a phone

          2. Apologies, clearly you are older and wiser than me, and must hence be right while I must be wrong

          3. And don’t you forget it

  25. The slimmer bezels look nice, regardless of size.

  26. Only picked up my 2013 Nexus 7 a few weeks back but I’d consider buying this in about six to seven mounts time…

  27. No 8.9 inch option really?

    1. that would kind of be the bomb

  28. This tabled seems to be running a previous version of Google play store.

    1. Yeah, not the version that ships with kit kat.

  29. As long as they pick someone besides asus then I want.

    1. Lets give htc or sony a chance

      1. Sony makes good devices. Maybe HTC can make the next Nexus, they do well with phones.

  30. To all the people claiming its the nexus 7 butchered in Photoshop, if you zoom in really close and look at the status bar, you’ll notice its running KitKat and the nexus 7 doesn’t have KitKat yet, also I doubt they would go into that much detail but screw up the overal look of the tablet.

    1. It’s not a real tablet. It’s not running anything. That’s a screenshot that was dropped in.

      1. Could be a dummy device, but definently not a accidental Photoshop.

        1. Well it’s running a tablet version of kit kat, that’s for sure. Notice that the app selections in the play store are laid out in more of a tablet UI, so there is definitely a tablet out in the world running Kit Kat.

    2. Possibly not real, but I’ve been running KitKat on my Nexus 7 for a day and a half now… XDA got it ported over right after the source code dropped! Running really smooth too ;-)

  31. If it aint 13 inchs dont want it!

    1. Thats what she said… Bazinga

  32. Samsungs 8″ tablet is really nice size wise.

  33. G Pad is the 8 incher to get atm

  34. looks like a Photoshop to me.

  35. omg! this really isn’t news. I dunno what tablet that is but seriously who cares

  36. My initial reaction is it’s a bad photoshop. Either that or, see below.

    Nexus 8 = Nexus 7 replacement. We’ll probably see it in the spring or summer during Google I/O 2014.

  37. Actually 11″ to 12″ with the weight of a 10″ tablet is my ideal screen size.

  38. Crickey Google. Why don’t you release a New Nexus 4 (4″), a Nexus 6″, a Nexus 7, 8, 9, 10?

    Taste the rainbow a bit?

    1. I half expected a 4 to 4.5″ Nexus 4 refresh to launch alongside the N5, but sounds like not many people are buying those HTC and Samsung ‘mini’ phones so maybe the audience just isn’t big enough to justify the production cost.

  39. If they come out with Nexus I’m going to be pissed, I just bought the 7… would of preferred 8

  40. Actually, I’d go with 9 inches. I have a 9 inch android tablet right now, and the screen is really the perfect size. It’s amazing how 1 inch less makes it sized so much better.

  41. I would only go with it if it fit the the N7 dimensions, 2012 or 2013, as they are the perfect size, fitting nicely into my back pocket and inner suit pockets.

  42. 10″ for me. Don’t see the point of a small tablet.

    1. I didn’t either, until I got a Nexus 7.

    2. I never used my 10″ tablet because it was too awkward to carry, needed a bag with me but then might as well just take my laptop.

      Loved the fact the the nexus 7 could slip in my pocket, but wish they’d get those bezels wafer thin so the screen could get closer to 8-9″.

  43. 10 inch all the way!

  44. If this tablet doesn’t exist then it needs to. 7 inch is too close to a smartphone to care about for me and 10 inches is too hefty. 8 inch 1080 (yes, 16:9) is what I want.

  45. There is no Nexus 8. That is a bad photograph.

    On something else that might be slightly off topic….

    Evolution of phones:
    2012 – Nexus 4
    2013 – Nexus 5
    2014 – Nexus 6
    2015- Nexus 7 (??)

    They have to do a rebranding of the phone and tablet lines. In 2015 one cannot have both the phone and tablet to be called Nexus 7.

    1. They’ll keep it as the Nexus 5 I think.

      1. That wouldn’t make any sense. Why would they call the 6th Nexus phone the Nexus 5 again?

        1. Its the screen size, just like the 10 and 7. It could be more of a natural transition to a more constant naming scheme.

          1. No it isn’t. If that was true that means the Nexus 4 has a 4″ screen but it doesn’t. It has a 4.7″ screen which is closer to 5″. Why wasn’t last years Nexus phone called the Nexus 5? The Nexus 4 and Nexus 5 are the 4th and 5th Nexus phones.

          2. That’s my whole point. Its the only Nexus device not named for it’s screen size, so keeping it as the Nexus 5 from now on would make sense. What’s so hard to understand about that?

          3. You are assuming that the naming of the tablets is the same as the naming of the phones. The Nexus 4 was called the Nexus 4 because it is the 4th Nexus phone. The Nexus 5 is called the Nexus 5 because it is the 5th Nexus phone. Samsung has a similar system. Their tablets are named by the screen size. The S line of phones is in order based on the generation. Google calling next year’s Nexus phone the Nexus 5 again would be like Samsung calling next year’s S phone the Galaxy S4 2.

          4. Then what would be a possible alternative to naming the 7th gen Nexus phone the Nexus 7?

          5. That is an excellent question. We’ll have to wait and see. I don’t even think they can call next year’s the Nexus 6 because I think that name is copyrighted.

        2. Apple does it.
          1- iphone
          2- iphone 3G
          3- iphone 3Gs
          4- iphone 4
          5- iphone 4s
          6- iphone 5
          7- iphone 5s, iphone 5c

    2. But they had the Nexus S and Galaxy Nexus in between one and four. I’d imagine they’d probably go that route.

  46. This was debunked as a bad photoshop almost as soon as it came out. Great reporting phandroid. Geez.

    1. where was it debunked?

  47. There is no one best size for tablets. The ideal size depends on what other devices you carry, and where you use them.

    Just have one device? An approximately 5 inch phone is great. I’m coming down from the 5.6 inch Galaxy Note (1) to a 5-inch Fujitsu Arrows X (docomo F-02E), and the slightly smaller size is no problem.

    On mass transit, using a second device to make browsing and typing easier? 7 or 8 inches is great. I don’t see much difference. A thinner bezel makes a slightly bigger screen possible (though you have to be able to hold the dang thing without incidentally pushing buttons…)

    Pulling a tablet out of your bag to set on a desk? 10 to even 14 inches would be fine. Same goes for a waterproof tablet to watch in the bath: 10 to 14 inches.

    And for sketching with an active stylus? I think at least 12 inches is needed, at least for the way I draw (my 10 inch ThinkPad Tablet is a little cramped for my natural drawing strokes). The rumored Galaxy Note 12.2 is going to be a boon to artists.

  48. I love my Galaxy Tab 2 7″, great size. BUT if they made one in the same body size but with smaller bezels to get an 8″ screen in there, I’d go for it. Don’t really have any interest in a 10″ tablet, just a little too big to be easily portable. My Nook Tablet and GTab2 easily fit into my cargo pants thigh pocket for traveling, and I love that.

    1. What kind of phone you have to go with your 7 inch tablet. I bought a note 3 and and seriously debating selling my new n7

      1. That sounds like a smart idea, actually. I was thinking of when I get a phablet, what will I do with my Nexus 7 1st Gen.

        The only thing my Nexus 7 has going for itself is being able to be docked into my car and looking like a 7 inch touch screen radio. LoL!!

  49. If I’m getting a 5 inch phone, I just can’t see the point of a 7 inch tablet. I like my 10 inch tablet.

  50. Its not so much size that’s important to me but I want an android tablet that has the slim bezel of the iPad mini.

    1. You say say that until you need to hold it and your hand/fingers keep inadvertently registering touches on the screen because there is nowhere to hold it

      1. IOS has software to detect false touches.

        1. let me know when it catches all your false touches.

  51. Whatever it is, this looks good… Me want

    1. I believe it’s actually a Kindle, ‘shopped with stock Android KitKat on top.

  52. 7″ wide screen is perfect as a small tablet, and any tablet bigger should be 4:3, and 8.5-9″ seems like the perfect size for me. I loved Pantech’s original 8″ though it too slow, and the iPad is just too big.

  53. From a marketing perspective a 8″ tablet within 1 year of the last N7 doesn’t make much sense. It’s not like Google pushes these units in the same volume as ipads a N8 would significantly cannibalize N7. Google doesn’t seem to release new nexus devices that quickly. That’s more of Samsung’s style.

  54. It’s not a new sized tablet. it’s a poor job in Photoshop. Save the image, then zoom in on the bottom part of the tablet. You’ll see how the bottom parts of the interface do not match the angle of the actual hardware. It’s very simple to see that it’s fake.

    As for why they did it I’ll tell you. No mobile devices can output the same light levels put out by studio strobes. Obviously. But when they stage a shot of someone in a studio and they’re reading a tablet, there’s no practical way to get that shot and have the display on the device show up correctly.

    If anyone cares to argue the point, I can send some shots I did of some devices and getting a decent shot of the display involved having all of the lights in my studio off in order to get the device display to show up in a readable fashion. However, it also involved a long shutter speed to capture the shots…making something like they show an impossibility.

    Basically all photos you see like this are done in Photoshop. This one was just poor.

    1. Genuis

  55. The image on the tablet looks like a render

  56. I don’t see them building a 8″ nexus when they have the n7. If they was going to do that they should have made the current version a 8″.

  57. It’s 7in…the chicks got a small hand come on people.

  58. I really would like to see an 8″ tablet from google. I think 8″ is the perfect size.. I was about to get the LG 8.3 tablet and now this showed up ahah

    1. haha. same here.. now I’ll wait to see if its true

  59. I hope Google builds an 8. I’m sitting here going back and forth whether I should buy a 5 or not because then it would make my old 7 seem a little smaller. If an 8 came out the 3″ difference would be maintained so I’ve got my fingers crossed

  60. Im perfectly happy with my Nexus 7 thank you very much. Small enough to easily slip into my pockey while being big enough to comfortably watch movies and play games on that beautiful display. =) Unless they’ve managed to squeeze an 8″ screen with a PPI of no less than 300, into the same size chassis as the Nexus 7 I wont be getting one. No sir.

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