Google debuts Nexus 10 tablet, Nexus 4 smartphone

Google on Monday announced a new 10-inch Nexus tablet and 4.7-inch Nexus smartphone with the latest Android 4.2 operating system, code-named Jelly Bean

Google on Monday announced a new 10-inch Nexus tablet and 4.7-inch Nexus smartphone with the latest Android 4.2 operating system, code-named Jelly Bean.

Google was expected to showcase the devices in New York City, but canceled a planned Android event because of Hurricane Sandy.

The Nexus 10 tablet and Nexus 4 smartphone will join Google's growing stable of hardware devices, which include the Nexus 7 tablet and existing Nexus smartphones

The Nexus 10 can display images at a 2560-by-1600 pixel resolution, which Google claimed is the "highest resolution tablet on the planet," the company said in a blog entry. Apple's recently announced iPad with a 9.7-inch screen has a resolution of 2048 by 1536 pixels.

The Nexus 10 tablet will offer nine hours of video playback and 500 hours of standby time, Google said. It weights 603 grams, has dual-core Cortex-A15 processor, a 5-megapixel rear camera, 1.9-megapixel front camera and NFC capabilities.

The tablet was made with Samsung and will be available for US$399 with 16GB of storage and $499 for 32GB of storage. The tablet will be available on November 13 in the Google Play Store in the US, UK, Australia, France, Germany, Spain, Canada and Japan. Availability in New Zealand has not been announced.

The Nexus 4 smartphone was made with LG, Google said. The smartphone has many new features with Android 4.2, including wireless charging and a new keyboard to make typing easier. Android 4.2 also has a new feature called "Photo Sphere" to create 360-degree images and supports a wireless multimedia streaming standard called Miracast, which allows users to wirelessly stream movies directly to high-definition TVs.

The smartphone does not have LTE capabilities, according to the specification page for the product. It has a quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 Pro processor, a 1280-by-768 pixel resolution screen, NFC, Bluetooth, an 8-megapixel rear camera and a 1.3-megapixel front camera. It weighs 139 grams.

Google also upgraded its popular Nexus 7 tablet, which has a 7-inch screen and a quad-core processor. The company has added a Nexus 7 with 32GB for $249, and reduced the price of its 16GB model to $199. Google will also sell a $299 model with 32GB storage and HSPA+ mobile broadband capabilities, which will be unlocked and work with multiple carriers worldwide including AT&T and T-Mobile in the U.S.

The tablet war has intensified in the last few weeks. Apple will ship the new 9.7-inch iPad (starting at $499) and 7.9-inch iPad Mini (starting at $329) later this week and Amazon is expected to ship new Kindle Fires starting at $199 later this month. Microsoft is now shipping the Surface tablet ($499) with a 10.6-inch screen and Windows RT, with other vendors like Asus and Lenovo also shipping Windows tablets.