It’s hard to pass up a good Groupon sometimes, especially when it focuses on a flagship Android device. Today, they’re offering up a refurbished Nexus 10 32GB for the price of $429.99, down from its list price of $499.99. That’s a total of $70 in discounts, plus on orders of $15 or more (or something like that), shipping is free. Kind of a win/win if buying a refurb’d device doesn’t bother you. 

The Nexus 10 is still a heavyweight in its respective category. With an extremely high resolution of 2560 x 1600, a dual-core Exynos processor, and 2GB of RAM, the Nexus 10 is still one beast of a tablet.

Buy. ($429.99)

Cheers NCSUgolfer01!

Refurbished Nexus 10 Tablets Show Up on Groupon, Priced at $429.99 is a post from: Droid Life

When the Nexus 7 launched with a combination of low price and decent specs, it was just what Google needed to give Android tablets a good name. When the Nexus 10 launched with one of the best displays in the industry and stock Jelly Bean, it made a good follow up to the Nexus 7, but sales so far haven’t done the same. 

Industry analyst Benedict Evans has done some snooping around the Google Play store and came to the conclusion that only 680,000 Nexus 10s are out in customers’ hands. When compared with the almost 7 million Nexus 7s reportedly sold, that number is disappointing. When you consider that Microsoft has pushed more Surface devices than that, the number becomes even worse.

What we’re curious to know, is what Google could have done to push Nexus 10 sales? Why is it that the N10 isn’t selling as well as the Nexus 7 or other tablets?

Via: BGR

Microsoft Surface Estimated to Be Selling Better Than the Nexus 10 is a post from: Droid Life

Since the release of Portenzo’s custom bookcases for the Nexus 7 tablet (review here), we have been major fans. Made from high quality materials, Portenzo cases are pretty much the definition of what I look for when I think about protecting or covering up my tablets. Once we heard they were beginning production of bookcases for the Nexus 10, we knew we would be picking one up. 

After a couple of weeks, we received our custom case for the Nexus 10 as a review sample. Options for the case seemed unlimited, as the choices between covers, colors, and engravings can basically turn your case into a pure work of hand-made art. The company uses american maple for the frames, works in a double-glued elastic band which “won’t ever come undone,” and are all made from a single sheet of premium leather right here in the U.S.

Being the minimal lover that I am, I opted for a plain black leather shell, a cutout for the tablet’s camera (an extra $5), with a lone red strap to keep the case from opening. It’s simple, gorgeous and feels fantastic.

While the Portenzo bookcases do add some weight and girth to the Nexus 10′s slim frame, to me it is worth that sacrifice in that I now have a built-in stand for the device, as well as the added protection. To sum it up, if you are a fan of bookcases, Portenzo should be your first choice.

Pricing can get steep, so if you are not looking to spend well over $100 (no one will blame you), then you can probably start shopping for a different line. With my options, the case ran $145.00. Not the cheapest accessory, but boy does it feel great.

Check out Portenzo’s product line here.

Gallery:

Quick Look: Portenzo BookCase for Google Nexus 10 is a post from: Droid Life

Last week, the Nexus 10′s first official accessory arrived in Google Play, a simple book cover. This tablet has been on the market for some time now, so it almost comes off as pointless to start pushing out accessories, but we’ll take it. It comes in two colors, grey and scarlet, priced at $30. 

The book cover is exactly like you would find for the Galaxy line of smartphones from Samsung. You take off the stock backing, reattach this new one with the cover added and you’re done. While this cover does not completely cover up the front side of the tablet (there is some room for the front-facing speakers), it does a decent job at staying on top of the N10′s display, protecting it from minor things.

To wrap it up, Google should have priced it at $20 and released it months ago, then everyone would be a winner. To catch my full thoughts, watch my hands-on video below.  There is even a guest appearance as well.

Play Link: Scarlet | Grey

Gallery:

Hands-on:

Click here to view the embedded video.

Brief Review: Nexus 10 Book Cover is a post from: Droid Life

Nexus 10 owners, your first official accessory is now available through Google Play. Launched moments ago, we’re getting a look at the Book Cover in both scarlet and dark gray at a retail price of $29.99. 

The Book Cover is similar in a way to Samsung’s Flip Cover in that it attaches to the back of the device and then flips off and on to not only protect your Nexus 10, but to wake or put it to sleep as well. If you were wondering what the point of that removable slab on the back of the tablet around the camera was for, now you know. You can remove that piece of plastic and then snap on the Book Cover.

This cover should help protect your N10 without adding much bulk.

Play Link

First Official Nexus 10 Accessory Now Available – Book Cover in Scarlet and Dark Gray in Google Play is a post from: Droid Life

Moments ago, Google introduced three new accessories to the Nexus 4 family. The N4 listings include a pair of wired headphones for $19.99, standard USB cable for $9.99, and a power adapter at $15.99.

The accessories aren’t necessarily anything groundbreaking from what we can tell, but the headphones do at least include flat tangle-free cords, aluminum backing, double rubber ear pieces, and a microphone for taking calls. The USB cable and power adapter on the other hand, are exactly what you think they are. Need a spare charger combo? I guess this is an option. 

Keep in mind that headphone purchases also include a $5.99 2-day shipping charge.

Play Links:  Headphones | Power Adapter | USB Cable

New Nexus 4 Accessories Arrive on Google Play – Headphones With Microphone, USB Cable, and Power Adapter is a post from: Droid Life

Click here to view the embedded video.

The newest commercial from Google for the Nexus 10.

Video: Nexus 10 is Your Perfect Baby Making Companion is a post from: Droid Life

Google has released the Android 4.2.2 “JDQ39″ binaries and will now begin pushing the code to the Android Open Source Project. These files, available for the full range of Nexus devices, will greatly benefit anyone looking to make their own ROM’s and or anyone hoping to see new ROM’s completed for any number of devices should be excited by this news.

If you dev, go grab it now.

Via: Google Developers

Android 4.2.2 “JDQ39″ Binaries Now Available is a post from: Droid Life

The final day is here! Our week long series of Nexus giveaways known as the 5 Days of Nexus finishes today, with a reader approved Nexus 10 16GB. We asked via poll which Nexus you would be most interested in winning, and 58% said that the Samsung-made Nexus 10 would be it. So here we are, giving away a tablet with an insane resolution to one of the amazing readers here at Droid Life.

This contest will run a bit longer, with a winner being chosen on Monday morning. The Nexus 10 is a solid prize, plus today is Friday, so we want to make sure that everyone has a chance to enter.

Good luck! 

Contest

Prize:  1 (one) Nexus 10 16GB tablet from Google Play.

How to enter:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

*Pro tip: You can re-enter the contest by retweeting through the widget each day until we pick a winner. So technically, you could do the four entries today, and then add on another three up until Monday morning, giving you a total of seven.

Winner:

A winner will be chosen through Rafflecopter on Monday, March 4 at 9:00AM Pacific.

Day 5 Contest: Win a Nexus 10 16GB From Droid Life! #5daysofnexus (Updated: Winner Picked) is a post from: Droid Life

With tomorrow being the last day of the 5 Days of Nexus giveaways, we figured it would be swell of us to let you, the readers, decide which device you want most. You can either go for LG’s Nexus 4, the ASUS Nexus 7, or Samsung Nexus 10.

So, what will it be?

Poll: What Nexus Device Should We Give Away Tomorrow? is a post from: Droid Life

Portenzo, makers of fine hand-made tablet cases, is now selling their Alano and BookCase varieties for the Nexus 10. We’ve taken a look at both the Alano, which is made from a single sheet of leather, and the BookCase, which is exactly as the name suggests. Our looks may have been for the Nexus 7, but the the Nexus 10 cases have the same options and are made with the same high-quality materials. 

With both the Alano and BookCase, you can customize everything from the exterior material to the elastic band that is used to keep it closed. You can add on the Intellistand option, personal embossing to the spine, or have it stay closed with magnets.

Alano N10 case starts at $125 and goes up to $180 depending on the options you choose. The BookCase starts at $60 and goes up to around $90 depending on options.

While those prices may seem steep for a tablet case, I’ve had the pleasure of using both Alano and BookCase and love them dearly. If you have some change to spare, think about the leather in the Alano – it’s about as high-end of a material as you’ll find in a case.

More:  Portenzo

Cheers Tony!

Portenzo Now Offering Hand-made Alano and BookCase Nexus 10 Cases is a post from: Droid Life

Welcome to the first of five contests for a week long series of giveaways we have dubbed the 5 Days of Nexus. With little interesting news coming out of Mobile World Congress, a stark contrast to years past, we thought it would be the perfect time to focus your attention elsewhere and reward the faithful Droid Life community with a bunch of free devices, all of which fall under the Nexus brand. That’s right, we are giving away nothing but Nexus phones and tablets to you, the DL reader. 

The first contest, today’s, will include a Nexus 4. After that we’ll hand out Nexus 7 tablets for a few days and finally top it all off with one last yet-to-be-determined device on Friday. It should be a fantastic week, especially for those who walk away one Nexus richer.

The contests will be easy to enter. Some will have ask that you partake in some sort of social media sharing, while others may simply ask that you comment in a post. We know that not all of you are down with Twitter, Facebook or Google+, so there will be options throughout the week for everyone involved.

Contest

Update:  Our winner is @jadam6118! Congrats, James!

Prize:  Nexus 4 8GB from Google Play.

How to enter:

1.  Follow us on Twitter (@droid_life) or Google+ (+DroidLife).
2.  Then do one of the following:

Tweet this message:

Follow @droid_life for a chance to win a brand new Nexus 4! http://goo.gl/5aTIq  #5daysofnexus #contest

or

Share the contest post on Google+

3.  Bonus points for commenting on this post.

Winner:

A winner will be chosen at random this afternoon at 4PM Pacific.

Day 1 Contest: Win a Nexus 4 8GB From Droid Life! #5daysofnexus (Updated: Winner Picked) is a post from: Droid Life

Well, I finally got Ubuntu Touch booted up on my Nexus 10, so here is a brief hands-on with the world’s newest mobile OS. This is a developer preview build and is intended for use only by developers or hardcore enthusiasts. There are barely any working applications and in terms of being a “daily driver,” you would be better off looking elsewhere. What I will say is that Ubuntu Touch is actually quite gorgeous and I could really see myself using it down the road once it becomes more functional/stable. 

As you will see in the video, I ran into a little issue where backing out of an app is somewhat of a challenge. Like we have mentioned a few times already, this is an extremely early preview build of what we can expect to see down the road from this OS.

If you feel like trying out Ubuntu on your Nexus device, check out our instructions, right here.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Video: Hands-on With the Ubuntu Touch Preview Build is a post from: Droid Life

This morning, the Ubuntu Touch developer preview was released for Nexus devices. At first, it appeared that the files could only be flashed if you were on a machine running Ubuntu, but now, anyone with an unlocked device running a custom recovery can get to flashing.

We have placed easy-to-follow instructions down below for anyone willing to try out the preview. Again, this is a developer preview and you will find bugs and non-working functions. Long story short, if you want to use your device as you would normally, stay away from these. 

Disclaimer: Your device will need to be unlocked and running a custom recovery to flash these zip files.

Instructions:

1.  Download the correct device zip file and place it on your internal storage.
2.  Download the phablet ARMHF zip file and place it on your internal storage.
3.  Reboot into custom recovery.
4.  Wipe data/cache.
5.  Install the device zip.
6.  Install the phablet ARMHF zip.
7.  Reboot and enjoy!

Device zips: manta (Nexus 10) | grouper (Nexus 7) | mako (Nexus 4) | maguro (Galaxy Nexus)

Phablet armhf zip: Download

If you have any questions, shoot them below and we will try to get them answered by our lovely community.

How to: Flash Ubuntu Touch Preview On a Nexus Device Using Custom Recovery is a post from: Droid Life

Not that finding a Nexus 4 is as difficult as it once was, but Google still wants the process to be simple, especially for those who want to buy the phone in person, rather than via Google Play. Through their newly launched Nexus Store Locator, users can search for both the Nexus 4 and Nexus 7, to find stores nearby.

As one would expect, the Nexus 4 finder will only list T-Mobile stores for now, since that’s the only retailer currently selling the phone. For the Nexus 7, I came up with a bunch of Gamestop stores, though the device is available at other electronics dealers. 

Via:  Nexus 4 | Nexus 7

Google Introduces the Nexus Store Locator to Help You Find Nearby Nexus Devices is a post from: Droid Life