Nearly every year since the launch of the Nexus 7 tablet Google has released a successor tablet that followed in the footsteps of the previous device from the year prior. The exception to this rule was last year when Google decided to launch two new Nexus smartphones instead of one Nexus handset and one Nexus tablet, making 2014’s Nexus 9 the last tablet from Google to carry the Nexus name. While the Nexus 9 had enjoyed its time in the spotlight with its powerful NVIDIA processor and nice looking build, it wasn’t without its fair share of negative press with its plastic build material and overall lackluster experience.
While there are many Nexus 9 tablets still out in the wild, the listing for the tablet on the Google Store is no longer there which more or less suggests that it is now finally gone for good. Instead of listing the device as out of stock, any web pages for the tablet listing are simply gone altogether. You can, of course, still buy the tablet straight from HTC themselves with both the 16GB and 32GB WiFi-only models in stock, as well as the 32GB LTE model if you were so inclined to grab this tablet specifically. They are at regular prices, though, meaning they start at $399 for the 16GB WiFi model.
The Nexus 9 may not be available from the Google Store anymore but it will be available from other outlets in addition to HTC as listed above. It’s also current on software, for now, and this includes the Nexus 9 LTE model which gained Verizon support after being updated to Android 6.0.1 back in December. If you don’t use your Nexus 9 much, you could alternatively flash it with Remix OS 2.0 as the Android firmware was just released for the tablet alongside the Nexus 10 by Jide earlier this month. With the Google Store listing gone and the search page displaying no Nexus 9 tablets or accessories in the results, it’s safe to say that Google has decided the Nexus 9 has reached the end of its shelf life. With that in mind, the Nexus 9 is also likely to be reaching its end of life on software and security updates in the future as well, and there is already speculation that Google may be preparing to unveil a new tablet at this year’s developer conference, although there is no evidence of this.