Asus and Google are working on a variant to the $199 Nexus 7 that will be sold for half the price, according to Digitimes, citing "industry sources." Coming by the end of the year are a $199 version that will be thinner and more evolved than the Nexus 7 currently in the market, and a $99 lower-end variant. Asus though has quickly denied the report. The report comes just weeks after previous top Android tablet vendor Amazon refreshed its tablet line with a $199 Kindle Fire that has an improved display and processor, an 8.9-inch model that starts at $299, and a slightly upgraded version of the 2011 model that's priced for only $159. The world's top tablet maker, Apple, is rumored to be just weeks away from unveiling a 7.85-inch and cheaper version of the $499 iPad.
What Else You Need To Know
- The Nexus 7 overtook the Kindle Fire as the top Android tablet after the Jelly Bean-running tablet was released in July.
Other sources
If a $99 tablet were to be in fact prepared in follow-up to the Nexus 7, we have to wonder how on Earth would Asus and Google keep the costs so low to hope to make some kind of profit.- Adrian Diaconescu, Android Authority
What good is a $99 tablet if you're stuck with the same movies and TV shows and music that Google Play has today, when you can spend $200, or $300 or a little more and have complete access to iTunes.- Phil Nickinson, Android Central
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Are Google and Asus planning a $99 Nexus 7? Digitimes says yes, Asus says no
But while the Kindle Fire’s and Nexus 7’s solid builds and more than decent spec sheets have certainly helped this market shift, we have to be honest all the way and admit the price lowering has been key here.
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Google and Asus may be planning super cheap Nexus 7
According to the sources the cut-price tab will land before the end of 2012, as Google and Asus (the manufacturer behind the Nexus 7) eye up the lucrative Christmas market.
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A $99 Nexus 7 is rumored, but what might a price drop entail?
What good is a $99 tablet if you're stuck with the same movies and TV shows and music that Google Play has today, when you can spend $200, or $300 or a little more and have complete access to iTunes.
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Google rumored to launch $99 Nexus 7 tablet
A Nexus 7 tablet for under $100 would be an amazing feat, and coming in at a fifth of the cost of an iPad, we’re sure that a lot of people would scramble for a Google tablet.
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After The Buzz: Google Nexus 7
Most new-device launches go the same way: usually the press gets review units before they’re widely available, and we get to use them for a few days -or a week if we’re lucky- as we work on our review. Then press day arrives.
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Wild Rumor: Google/Asus Prepping $99 Nexus 7 iPad Mini Killer For 2012 Release
These models, once again, if they are real, will be answers to the smaller, less expensive iPad Apple is expected to announce this Fall.
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