$199 Google Nexus 7 tablet confirmed, begins shipping next month

One of the highlights of Google's I/O 2012 was the announcement of the Nexus 7 tablet, priced at an attractive $199 for the 8GB model, and $249 for 16GB.

We reported on the rumoured announcement of this tablet earlier today, and can now report on its technical specs and features.

The 7" tablet from Asus will run the latest version of Android 4.1 Jelly Bean and is available for pre-order now in the US, U.K., Canada, and Australia. Buyers of the Nexus 7 will receive a $25 credit for Google Play to help furnish their new tablets.

The Nexus 7 runs a Tegra 3 chipset with a quad-core CPU and a 12-core GPU. Google’s Hugo Barra said customers should think of the Nexus 7 as a device with '…basically 16 cores.'

All of those cores kick out an impressive performance - the Nexus 7 boasts a 1,280 x 800 HD display while maintaining a light (340 grams) and compact form factor.

The Nexus 7 also features a front-facing camera and a full suite of connection options such as Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and Near Field Communication (NFC). Regarding the battery life, Barra stated that the Nexus 7 would deliver nine hours of video playback on a single charge and up to 300 hours of standby time.

As a final feather in the Nexus 7’s cap, it will be the first mobile device to ship with Google's Chrome as the standard browser.