New Nexus 7 Second Generation Could Be A Bust While Moto X May Be A Hit, Analyst Says

Google’s (NASDAQ:GOOG) latest second-generation Nexus 7 may not be as popular as expected, while the upcoming Moto X smartphone could turn out to be a success story for the company, according to an industry analyst.

Google launched the new Nexus 7 with impressive hardware specifications in San Francisco on Wednesday. The tablet, which runs on Android 4.3 Jelly Bean, has a 7-inch screen with a resolution of 1920x1200 pixels at a pixel density of 323ppi, which is a considerable step-up from the original Nexus 7 (1280x800 pixels with 216ppi).

The new Nexus 7 is powered by a new 1.5GHz Snapdragon S4 Pro processor, which is claimed to be 80 percent faster than the processor found in the previous Nexus 7 model.

However, Ming-Chi Kuo, an analyst at KGI Securities, said that the latest Nexus 7 is likely to be a flop with shipments estimated to be below market consensus.

Kuo said in a pair of research notes, based on a survey of the tablet industry, that shipments of the new Nexus 7 will be between 3.5 million and 4 million units in 2013, compared to market watchers’ estimates of 5 million to 7 million units over the same period, AppleInsider reported.

"While the second-generation Nexus 7 showcases Retina display and wireless charging, among other features, the user experience is little changed as compared to other Android tablets," Kuo wrote in the research note. "It is also more expensive due to higher component costs. These factors are leading to below-consensus shipments."

While Kuo is doubtful about the success of the new Nexus 7, he believes that Motorola’s next Moto X handset could score a home run. According to him, Moto X’s shipments could touch 5.5 million units in 2013, up from his previous estimate of 3.5 million units.

It could be Motorola’s "single most important" product for 2013 and could account for 40 percent of the company's smartphone shipments this year, Kuo said. Google acquired Motorola Mobility, which is making the Moto X, in August 2011 for $12.5 billion and completed the purchase in May 2012.

Moto X, which is expected to be unveiled at an event on August 1, likely features a 4.5-inch screen with 326ppi, a 10-megapixel rear camera, a 2-megapixel front camera and an "always-on" listening mode.