The Nexus 7 has certainly come a long way since it was first announced to the masses a few years back. Over time, this particular phablet proved to be quite the piece of hardware, offering a careful balance of performance and design in a single form factor. The latest word concerning the Google Nexus 7 (2016) is pretty interesting, as new rumors point to it running on the future-forward Andromeda OS with 4GB of RAM underneath the hood to keep it chugging along.

The upcoming Nexus 7 (2016) has been subjected to a fair number of rumors and whispers on the grapevine for good reason. This is a “hot device” no matter how you approach it, simply because it is from Google and has paid its dues in previous iterations. Word has it that the Nexus 7 (2016) is well on track to roll out before 2016 comes to an end.

It seems that there might be a shift in the naming convention, and the Nexus 7 (2016) might not even be called as such. After all, we have seen how the Nexus name has been dropped in Google’s new Pixel and Pixel XL smartphones, so we would not be too surprised if the next generation Nexus phablet too, will ditch the brand name and settle for something else. It could very well be manufactured by the folks over at Huawei, as this device arrives in a 7-inch form factor.

After all, Huawei has not remained too coy on their side. While we are unable to ascertain as to whether they recently confirmed that they are the ones behind an upcoming Nexus device for the year is a coy move on their part to drum up attention, or simply an oversight that was not meant to be shared with the masses. With Google having made a transition by getting rid of the Nexus 9 from its official online store, this could be a foreshadowing of what’s to come -- which means the Nexus 7 (2016) is in the pipeline. We do wonder how HTC is faring though, as the Nexus 9 was built by the Taiwanese firm.

Unfortunately for the masses, Huawei and Google have done a pretty good job in making sure that there are no leaked images of the upcoming Nexus 7 (2016). Search around, and the closest that you will be able to get to would be an artist’s impression or a render from a hobbyist. A leaked or blurry shot of the device on the factory’s assembly lines? You’d stand a better chance at winning the lottery.

Apart from that, some folks are not too shy to speculate that the upcoming phablet device will take the Google Pixel C route, which would mean the build as well as software will hail from Google without having to rely on a third party to perform the hardware acrobatics. Will we see the new Andromeda OS debut, or will it be Android 7.0 Nougat?

Speculated hardware specifications for the new Nexus 7 (2016) consists of a 7-inch display at Quad HD resolution which is also pressure sensitive as well, the speedy Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 processor mated with an Adreno 530 GPU, 4GB of RAM, 64GB of internal memory that can be further bumped up via a MicroSD card slot, and a 13MP shooter at the back. Hopefully something official will be revealed sooner rather than later.