Nexus 9 review

For years, Apple’s iPad has set the bar for tablets. If you are making a tablet, the iPad is what you’ll be judged against and ultimately compete with. In light of this, Google has traditionally worked around Apple’s tablets: the small and cheap Nexus 7 carved out a niche for itself by filling a need Apple’s tablets didn’t.

Now small and cheap tablets are ubiquitous and Google doesn’t need to show other manufacturers how it’s done anymore. So for its new Nexus 9, Google took a different approach: it went straight for the iPad. The Nexus 9 starts at $399, has a display with the same resolution and aspect ratio as Apple’s tablets, and is made of more premium materials (read: metal). It also has a new, powerful Nvidia processor (the first 64-bit chip in an Android device), lots of RAM, and the latest and greatest Android software from Google.

With the Nexus 9, Google is putting forth its best effort to beat or match the iPad. But unfortunately, the Nexus 9 doesn’t beat the iPad in anything. And in many places, it doesn’t even keep up.

The Nexus 9’s design is at the same time reminiscent of Apple’s tablets and Google’s own Nexus 5 smartphone. Its 8.9-inch, 2048 x 1536, 4:3 ratio display sits right between the iPad Air 2 and mini 3 in terms of size, but with the same number of pixels and aspect ratio. You’ll see bars above and below video in landscape because it's not 16:9 or 16:10, but the Nexus 9 is so much better than Google's old tablets for reading and browsing the web in portrait that the tradeoff is well worth it.

Google commissioned HTC to build the Nexus 9, but it looks so similar to last year’s LG-made Nexus 5 that it’s very clear Google led the design direction here. The back of the tablet looks exactly like the back of a Nexus 5, only bigger, and the soft touch finish on my black review unit is virtually identical to the 5’s finish. HTC’s influence can be seen in the metal sides of the 9, though they look identical to the plastic sides of the Nexus 5.

In terms of size, the Nexus 9 sits right between the iPad mini and iPad Air, but it’s no more portable than the Air, despite having a smaller display. It’s slightly shorter, slightly narrower, and slightly thicker than Apple’s flagship, but takes up the same practical space in my shoulder bag (and doesn’t fit in the pockets of any piece of clothing I own). It’s virtually the same weight as the Air 2 and noticeably heavier than the mini 2 or 3, so it can be tiring to hold in one hand for long periods of time. Given that the Nexus 9 doesn’t offer any apparent physical size advantages over the Air 2, I’d rather have the iPad’s larger display than the 9’s jack-of-all-trades compromise.

Despite HTC’s manufacturing pedigree, there are many places where it feels like corners were cut on the Nexus 9. The power button and volume rockers feel low-rent and mushy and are too flush with the body. The plastic rear doesn’t hold a candle to the metal finishes Apple uses on the iPad, and there are flexes and loose panels on more than one of our review units. All of that would be excusable on a low-cost tablet like the Nexus 7, but the Nexus 9 costs as much or more than a competing iPad.

On a positive note, the Nexus 9’s front-facing speakers are loud and sound great. I wish every smartphone and tablet had front-facing speakers, it’s just such a smart design decision. The speakers do get covered by my thumbs when I hold the Nexus 9 in landscape, but that didn’t affect the volume or sound quality in meaningful ways. If there’s one thing Apple could learn from the Nexus 9, it’s that speakers belong on the front of a tablet.

The 9’s 8-megapixel rear camera and flash is par for the course for tablet cameras (i.e. not great and won’t beat a good smartphone), but more annoying is how slow it is to focus and take a photo. The front 1.6-megapixel camera is fine for what it’s designed to do: take selfies and do video chats.