Ainol NOVO 7 Flame vs. Google Nexus 7 – Review

Updated on Oct. 22, 2012

Lots of people are interested in comparison of Ainol NOVO 7 Flame and Google Nexus 7 .

Many customers who ordered Ainol NOVO 7 Flame shared with us the reasons they picked NOVO 7 Flame instead of Google Nexus 7 .  Here is the summary:

1. NOVO 7 Flame has the similar spec and built quality as Google Nexus 7 . Google Nexus 7 is built by the Taiwanese Computer Manufacturer ASUS. NOVO 7 Flame is built by No. 1 tablet manufacturer in China Ainol. Both are running a stock version of Google Android.

2. Although Google Nexus 7 has a more powerful CPU, but Ainol NOVO 7 Flame has a few nice features that Nexus doesn’t have. For example,

• the expandable memory,
• HDMI port to output HD video to your big screen TV,
• 5MP rear facing camera,
• and metal case .

3. In addition, Google Nexus 7 doesn’t support FLASH any more, while Ainol NOVO 7 Flame has a hardware rendering FLASH, super fast and smooth.

4. NOVO 7 Flame 16GB version ($159.99) is $90 cheaper than Google Nexus 7 16GB version($249.99).

In some sense, Google Nexus 7 is designed for Google – they want you to use their cloud computing service to store your information and files, you can watch YouTube in their app, but you won’t be able to watch any other FLASH video sites, while Ainol NOVO 7 Flame is designed for you – it allows you to add expandable memory when needed, shoot 5MP pictures, watch FLASH with hardware rendering, and to share your video with your family on big screen TVs. And most importantly, save you money.

We also collected feedback from testers and reviewers:

Review by CJ:

Quick Rundown:

- Rear Camera
Ainol NOVO 7 Flame has 5 MP Camera, Google Nexus 7-None, Kindle-None, Ipad - 5MP

- Front-Face Camera
Ainol NOVO 7 Flame has 2 MP Camera, Google Nexus 7 -1.2MP, Kindle-None, Ipad - Only VGA

- HDMI
Ainol NOVO 7 Flame YES,  Google Nexus 7-None, Kindle-None, Ipad -None

- Micro SD Slot – for portable storage
Ainol NOVO 7 Flame YES, Google Nexus 7-None, Kindle-None, Ipad-None

- 3G/4G Connection – such as through AT&T and T-Mobile
Ainol NOVO 7 Flame No (Yes through external 3G dongle), Google Nexus 7-No, Kindle-if rooted maybe, Ipad-No

Plus of Ainol NOVO 7 Flame – these specs:
5 MegaPixel High-Resolution Rear Camera gives you Auto Focus & Low-Light LED flash for Photos Plus Video Recording + 2 MegaPixel Front-Face Cam that comes with an Auto-Light-Sensor

HDMI 1080HD is just Plug-In and Display for HD movies – media downloads, personal videos & photos and such to large Screen TV’s & LCD’s

Micro SD CARD – good to store movies-music, videos & such and exchange between other electronic devices and computers.

One other main plus for Ainol Novo 7 Flame is that you can turn your tablet into a cell phone on a GSM wireless carrier such as T-Mobile using a 3G/4G* usb device and with the built-in Bluetooth – it’s good for a headset to be used.

You can also tether and use internet on the Flame tablet from a cell phone that has bluetooth as well–
Google has set-up the Nexus 7 so it’s almost impossible to do this.

The Novo 7 Flame also has a light-metal rear casing – a lot less breakable than plastic – which the Nexus has.

Things that are pretty much the same include a High-Res 1280×800 IPS Capacitive display — both have 16 GB Memory/1GB Ram — both have a Speaker/Mic and Bluetooth — and both have official Google Play installed — and both have with full access to 600k+ Apps on Android Market.

Review by Potato:

Comparing with Google Nexus 7, Ainol NOVO 7 Flame is powered by a CPU with lower frequency, but it can handle almost all the tasks you can run with Google Nexus 7. Google definitely offers better user experience of Google’s own apps, such as Google Ads .  Ainol NOVO 7 Flame’s customized Android 4 .0, however, can also meet your satisfaction.

Regarding the shortages of nexus 7, I believe no rear camera ranks the first. Although Google officially explain why they gave up rear camera (to reduce the cost), most customers think that is a big mistake. Another thing people complain a lot is there is no tf micro sd card support, which will bring tons of inconvenience in daily life. Ainol NOVO 7 Flame, on the other hand, brings us amazing dual cameras, 2MP front facing camera supporting photo, video shooting and teleconference. The super high resolution 5 MP rear facing camera on Flame shoots beautiful pictures. Ainol reportedly supports up to 64G expandable memory. What’s more, Google nexus 7 doesn’t support flash any more while Ainol NOVO 7 Flame runs flash fast and responsive.

As Ainol’s oversea distributor , uPlay Tablet received the first batch of NOVO 7 Flame and it is in stock . We ship worldwide with a flat shipping cost $14.95. If you need it in a week, you can pay additional $9.5 to upgrade to express shipping . No tax . We take order on our Ainol NOVO 7 Flame product page for only $159.99 (one day sale).