Fraser Speirs:

The second thing I disliked about the hardware was the display. I’m aware that I may be spoilt by the retina display on my iPad but if one of the great strengths of the Nexus 7 is supposed to be as a reading device, we should critically evaluate the thing that you’re going to stare at. I don’t know if it’s the Android font rendering or the display hardware itself but I found the Nexus 7 less than pleasant to read on. In a side-by-side comparison of the same apps (Kindle, Pocket and Flipboard) I honestly preferred reading on my iPhone 4S.

So far, the Nexus 7 has made me really appreciate how capable my iPhone is. I can get an equally fast device, with cellular networking, a rear camera and do more with it in an even more portable package. The ‘do more with it’ discussion leads us right into talking about software.

A very interesting takeaway and argument. If you believe the Nexus 7’s smaller size to be an advantage over a larger tablet like the iPad or Galaxy Tab 10.1, the most important elements of the tablet (display, feel, networking) need to be as effective as those found on the larger tablets to be truly useful.

And as Speirs goes on to talk about, for the Nexus 7’s size to be fully appreciated when put in opposition to larger tablets, you need to have good software. And due to Android’s dearth of quality apps, he finds that the Nexus 7 straddles an uncomfortable line: not the most portable and not the most capable.