Yesterday, Verizon announced it was getting into the tablet business and their first product is the Ellipsis 7 – a 7-inch HD in-plane switch (IPS) Display, 1.2GHz Quad-Core Processor, a 3.2MP camera, 1GB RAM, 8GB of Internal Storage with a microSD slot for added storage, and run on Android 4.2.2 Jelly Bean. It will feature LTE connectivity and as a mobile hotspot, it will support for up to eight devices. It will go for $250 with a two-year contract.
All of that is good, for Verizon, but this begs the question of Verizon’s refusal to activate the Nexus 7 tablet released back at the end of July when we were told that it was LTE compatible and would be on Verizon’s network in September. Was Verizon simply doing a delay tactic because their own tablet was coming out and it did not want the competition?
Customers found that by taking an active SIM card out of one device and placing it in the Nexus 7, the tablet would work, but Verizon would not activate a SIM card specifically for the device. Verizon issued a statement that said:
The Google Nexus 7 is not yet a Verizon 4G LTE-certified device, though it entered our process in August and we expect it will be certified shortly. Once the device is certified, we will work with Google to enable the device to be activated on our 4G LTE network.
This continued, even with a customer writing to the FCC to find out if Verizon was violating FCC rules by not officially activating on their network, and as an update the same individual has just written them again, adding the information about Verizon’s new tablet line. Nobody has heard back from Verizon or the FCC, and now suspicions are high. But there is a valid explanation as today, our friends at Android Police, receive this updated explanation from Verizon:
During the certification process for the Nexus 7, Google, Asus and Verizon uncovered a systems issue that required Google and Asus to undertake additional work with the Jelly Bean OS running on the device. Since Google was about to launch its new Kit Kat OS, rather than undertake this work, Google and Asus asked Verizon to suspend its certification process until Google’s new OS was available on the Nexus 7.
So folks, if all of this is true, then it looks like there was a real issue and it will probably take a few more weeks, if we are lucky, to see the Nexus 7 (2013) officially certified and ready for Verizon to activate the tablet on its network. Wouldn’t this have been a lot easier on everybody if Google, ASUS, or Verizon said something earlier and kept everybody informed? Let us know in the comments or on Google+ what you think about the way Verizon handled the situation and if you are still waiting to buy and use your Nexus 7 on the Verizon network.