The rumoured Nexus 9 tablet has leaked in a set of pictures, showing it encased in a keyboard-equipped case.
HTC is said to be making the Nexus 9, thought to be codenamed ‘Flounder’ and/or ‘Volantis’.
Whatever name it’s currently going by, the Nexus 9 has been snapped in what look like press pictures for a case, named by Android Police as the Magic Cover.
Much like Apple’s Smart Covers for iPad, the source says that the Magic Cover will be available in two materials, leather and another in polyurethane in a wide range of colours. The screenshot below suggests that one portion of the cover is segmented and you’ll be able to fold it up into a kickstand – another cue taken from Apple.
It’s not just about making the tablet look pretty and providing a measure of protection though. The Nexus 9 connects to the Magic Cover via NFC, with a Bluetooth connection ensuring you’ll be able to use the keyboard after it’s hooked up. It features a standard QWERTY keyboard, but also includes some extra Android shortcuts too.
The case won’t drain your Nexus 9’s battery either – it’s said to come with its very own 450mAh cell which can be topped up using a microUSB port connected to your computer – or mains powered using your regular phone charger.
Tech site Slashgear thinks the keyboard-enabled case suggests Google will be aiming its 9-inch tablet as more than just multimedia junkies, hoping to snare those who’ve been tempted by Microsoft’s Surface Pro tablets.
The Nexus 9 would be the latest device to join Google’s own-brand Nexus lineup. Rumours suggest the specs include a 9-inch, 1080×920 display, 64GB internal storage and will be available in both WiFi only and a 4G iteration. It’ll run on an NVIDIA’s Tegra K1 processor if rumours ring true.
This may not be the only HTC tablet launched in 2014. The company is also said to be announcing another two larger mobile devices, dubbed the T7 and T12.
Hopefully these will be more of a success than HTC’s previous forays into the tablet scene – though we loved the 7-inch HTC Flyer it didn’t exactly fly off the shelves and the 10.1-inch HTC Jetstream tablet was never even released here in the UK.
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