Google's new Nexus tablets keep up the pressure on iPad

Google has updated its flagship Android tablet line to better compete against Apple's family of devices, updating the Nexus 7 and partnering with Samsung to release the Nexus 10. Apple has dominated the 10-inch tablet space for the past two years, and last week it unveiled its fourth-gen iPad with a starting a price of $500. But Google's new hardware for its flagship Android line is priced to compete -- the Nexus 10 costs as cheap as $400 for a 16GB model (a 32GB model is also available for $500). Launching November 13, the Nexus 10 features a 10.055-inch display with a 2560x1600 resolution (300ppi), a dual-core Cortex-A15 processor, 2GB of RAM, a 5-megapixel back camera and 1.9-megapixel front camera, front-facing stereo speakers, and a battery that provides up to nine hours of video playback. Though many game developers have told Gamasutra that they expect the new iPad Mini will soon dominate the 7-inch tablet market, Google isn't going to let Apple take over the space without a fight. It slightly updated the 7-inch Nexus 7 with HSPA+ wireless support, discounted the 16GB version by $50 (now $200 versus iPad Mini's $330 starting price), and created a $300 32GB model. Google and Apple's devices are also competing against Microsoft's newly-launched Surface and Amazon's Kindle Fire lines, the latter of which runs a custom version of Android. A recent report found that shipments of Android tablets have doubled in the last year, while growth for iPad sales have slowed. Along with its tablet announcements today, Google also debuted its Nexus 4 smartphone, a 4.7-inch device produced with LG, available for $200 with a two-year carrier contract. All of its new Nexus devices run the company's latest mobile operating system, Android 4.2 Jelly Bean.