Nexus 7
The $99 Nexus 7 is expected to run on Android 4.1.1 (Jelly Bean). Google

Rumours that Google and ASUS are planning a $99 Nexus 7 have been circulating for some time. Now it seems the cut-price tablet computer is almost ready for launch .

A list of features for an unknown tablet has been published by GLBenchmark. The tablet is thought to be Google's low-end Nexus 7.

The document reveals that the device, labelled ME172V, is made by ASUS and features a 7-inch display with screen resolution of 552 x 1024 pixels. It will be powered by a 1GHz processor.

The features list suggests that the upcoming Nexus 7 will have 8GB of internal storage space and 1GB of RAM. The tablet will use a battery rated at 4270mAh.

What is slightly confusing is the device's stated operating system - the older version of Jelly Bean-Android 4.1.1. Google has recently released Android 4.2.1 for its Nexus devices.

Interestingly, the data suggest that the low-end Nexus 7 will support microSD cards for additional storage space, a feature missing from the original Nexus 7.

This is surprising, as the accepted wisdom until now has been that Google is working to eliminate external storage from all its new Nexus devices. The fourth generation Nexus 4 smartphone, for example, does not have a microSD card slot. Matias Duarte, Director of Android Operating System User Experience at Google, has explained why in a way that suggests the company is working to produce devices with onboard storage only.

"We take a different approach," he said. "Your Nexus has a fixed amount of space and your apps just seamlessly use it for you without you ever having to worry about files or volumes or any of that techy nonsense left over from the paleolithic era of computing. With a Nexus you know exactly how much storage you get upfront and you can decide what's the right size for you."

Android