Google Nexus 10 review

When Apple introduced the famed Retina display to the third-generation Apple iPad, it far outstripped what the competition could do, either on tablets or even in desktop monitors. In fact, it's taken almost a year for a real competitor to turn up, and Google and Samsung to join forces to produce the Google Nexus 10.

Incredibly, the display on the Nexus 10 has an even higher pixel density than the iPad's. Its 10in screen uses an IPS panel with a resolution of 2,560x1,600, giving a pixel density of 300ppi, some 14 per cent higher than the iPad's 264ppi. The result is a screen with stunningly crisp graphics and super-sharp text.

We simply can't do the screen justice here, it's really quite astoundingly sharp

It's also a good-quality screen. We measured its maximum brightness as 436cd/m2 and contrast as 807:1, so brightness is similar to that of the iPad but contrast isn't quite as high. In our subjective tests, we felt colours weren't quite as vibrant as on Apple's tablet, so images didn’t have quite as much punch.

Not as classy as the iPad but better than Samsung's recent own-brand efforts

The tablet isn't as lovely to behold as the iPad, but we still like it. Instead of metal, the Nexus 10's chassis is built entirely from grippy rubber-coated plastic. The black chassis is curvier than the iPad's, and the bezel around the display is broader as well. At 603g, it's 49g lighter than the iPad, which makes it very comfortable to hold. We've no problems with build quality, and the fact the glass on the front is Corning's tough, scratch-resistant Gorilla Glass is another big bonus. The Nexus 10 feels like it would survive a drop better than the iPad.

It isn't short on features, either. Around the edges you'll find Micro HDMI, a 3.5mm headphone output and a Micro USB port. You can only charge the Nexus from scratch with the included charger, but it can be topped up via USB if you leave the charger at home. Wireless connections, meanwhile, can be made via Bluetooth, NFC or dual-band 802.11n Wi-Fi. There's GPS, a 5-megapixel camera with flash on the rear and a 720p webcam on the front. The main camera takes pretty impressive pictures, but composing shots using an unwieldy tablet is never easy. The only thing missing is a memory expansion slot to add to the Nexus' 16GB (or 32GB) of storage.