Jellybean 2.3 (4 pounds to go)

It's been a week and a half since I started using my Basis watch and Samsung Galaxy S4 but I feel like I need to see them a bit more before I can give a sufficient impression for others. My initial impressions are positive but the devices may not suit everyone.

Today, Google announced Android 2.3 Jellybean (Yup, not a new sweet name). Notable new functionality: Multi-Users with restricted permissions, Bluetooth Smart compatibility (for low-powered devices), OpenGL ES 3.0 support for gamers, and probably the most noticeable, Netflix 1080p support. While my Galaxy S4 will unfortunately take a few months to receive the new OS version, my 2012 Nexus 7 is already upgraded (Link for Nexus Devices).

Now the question is: Do I get the new Nexus 7 when it's released at the end of this month? The screen is much more dense with small pixels and the processing power is faster. But do I really NEED those things? I certainly don't need the rear camera. I found numerous people taking photos with their tablets on my trip; I found it obsoletely ridiculous and hilarious. I really hope it's not the wave of the future; I rather have Google Glass force an obvious nonsensical two eye blink gesture than see any more people take photos using their tablets. If I do buy the Nexus 7, it'll probably delay my purchase of my long-waited laptop.

I'm not sold on Chromecast which basically allows you to push media from your Android devices to your TV with a $35 Wifi-connected HDMI dongle (includes 3 months of Netflix!). This seems to be a bridge into the television industry for Google. Since newer television have applications for YouTube, Netflix, etc already, the benefit of this is just more accessibility. It is an improvement on features like Samsung's screen share since it takes advantage of the cloud (less computing power required; assumed better performance). It'll be interesting to see how this will merge/compete against Intel's WiDi.

I still have over 4 pounds of Jelly Belly's to eat.