Google unveils Nexus 7 tablet device

Google has announced its first tablet device, theNexus 7,at a developers conference in San Francisco Wednesday.

The slim, 340-gramtabletunveiled at the start of the three-dayGoogle I/O conference will run the company's new Android 4.1 Jelly Bean operating system.

In Canada, it will sell for $209 for an 8 GB version and $259 for a 16 GB version and should shipwithin two to three weeks if pre-ordered attheGoogle Play online store.

The devicehas a 1.2-megapixel front camera, a Tegra 3processor, a seven-inch (17 cm) 1280 x 800 HD display and a battery life of eight hours.

It wasmanufactured by the Taiwanese computer company Asus.

Kindle competitor

The device is the second newtablet to be launchedthis month afterMicrosoft's Surfacebut is a more likely competitor to Amazon's Kindle Fire, which runson Google's Android operating system, rather than Surface or the much more expensive iPad. (Microsoft has said its tablet will be similarly priced to the iPad.)

TheGoogle tablet will be able to access content from Google Play, formerly the Android Market, the company's onlinestore for music, movies, booksand mobile applications.

Google announcedthe addition of TV shows, movies and, eventually,magazinesto Google Play Wednesday ina long-overdue attempt to catch up to the much wider selection of content on offerin theApple and Amazon online stores.

Streaming orb

Day 1 of the conference also saw the launch of Nexus Q, an orb-shaped media streaming device that connects to the internet through your wireless network and streams content from YouTube and Google Play.

It plugs into your TV, stereo system or speakers andis controlled by an Android smartphone or the Nexus 7 tablet.

It has 1GB of RAM, 16GB of flash memory and runs on the same processor as the tablet.

The Nexus Qwill start shipping in two to three weeks in the U.S., at a price of $299 US, but is not yet available in Canada.

Google alsohighlighted severalupgradesin the new version of its mobile operating system, Android 4.1 Jelly Bean, including a geo-aware app called Google Now that shares some similarities with Apple's Siri service.

The apptaps into all kinds of data relevant to your current physical location and provides you with up-to-date information on everything from the time of the flight or busyou're waiting for to menu recommendations at whatever restaurant you happen to be eating at.

Overall, Google said Jelly Bean will be a faster operating systemwith a more user-friendly home screen that keeps your apps better organized.

It also has a new camera application that allows you to review photos at the same time you're taking them and a voice-dictation app that works offline.