As an encore to last year’s Google Nexus 7, ASUS has stepped up its game with a refreshed tablet that improves upon its predecessor in almost every fashion. This new tablet was just released in July of 2013, and it should be billed as Google’s flagship 7″ tablet for the next year or so. To get an idea of what this thing is packing, here are facts surrounding the device.

What we know

CPU/GPU: In this round, ASUS elected to integrate Snapdragon’s S4 Krait SoC clocked at 1.5 GHz in lieu of the Nvidia Tegra architecture. This means significant gains in performance and battery life. Paired with a powerful Adreno graphics core at 400 MHz, this tablet can handle rather demanding 2S and 3D graphics without even breaking a sweat.

RAM: For memory-hungry Android applications, 2 GB of DDR3L (low-voltage) memory is included on board, which is double the previous generation (and more energy efficient).

Storage: This tablet comes in 16 GB and 32 GB varieties, with no included microSD expansion slot. If you know you’re going to need plenty of storage space, buy the 32 GB variant.

Screen: Following in Apple’s footsteps with Retina-style displays (to an extent), ASUS has incorporated a rather impressive 1920×1200 pixels within the 7″ panel. This makes for impressively sharp details and higher levels of clarity.

OS: Google has decided to make Android 4.3 (Jelly Bean) available out the gate for the new Nexus 7. In addition to improved security and app-sandboxing measures based on SELinux, TRIM support is also included to eliminate gradual slow-downs to the internal SSD over time.

Sensors: For pinpoint accuracy in motion tracking, both an accelerometer and a gyroscope have been included for interactive multimedia, augmented reality, and entertainment applications.

Cameras: This time, the Nexus 7 packs both a front 1.2megapixel camera and a rear 5 megapixel camera, both of which can be used for video conferencing and regular image / video capture, respectively.

Wireless: Every model of the new Nexus 7 comes with built-in dual-band 802.11 a/b/g/n Wi-Fi support. If you’re on the road a lot, an optional LTE-capable model is expected to arrive later in September for Verizon, T-Mobile, and AT&T customers to enjoy.

GPS: The new Nexus 7 is capable of connecting to GPS satellites in order to help guide you to where you need to be.

Battery: A rather decent 3950 mAh battery can net you around six to eight hours of battery life, with up to a week of standby as well. You can also wirelessly charge the tablet
using Wireless Qi-compliant charging pads, like the one from Energizer.

SlimPort: Pushing the Nexus 7 tablet display to another screen, like LCD or projector, can be accomplished via SlimPort, which works over the micro-USB port included on the tablet.

What
features do you find most impressive with the Google Nexus 7 (2013)?
Share your opinion in the discussion thread below.