The verdict is in: smaller tablets are awesome. They have great one-handed usability, they are portable, and they’re great for reading and watching video. The Nexus 7 (which we reviewed not too long ago) and the iPad Mini the are two of the best options if you want a tablet that is smaller than the larger 10″ size. But they are also very different. The Nexus 7 is less expensive and is made of glass and plastic, which does indeed make it feel a bit cheap, but lends to a light and comfortable in-hand feel. The iPad Mini, on the other hand, is more expensive and has better build quality. It’s also wider, yet thinner, so those with smallish hands might find it less easy to hold with one hand. Then, the displays are quite different. The Nexus 7′s display is higher resolution but has poor color saturation, while the iPad Mini’s screen has fantastic color saturation but less-than-720p resolution. In this video, we extensively compare the two tablets.

[b]Update[/b]: Many of you have commented about the brightness. In the video, both were set to auto brightness with a baseline of 50%. It seems that the auto-brightness on the Nexus 7 is more power-conscious than the iPad. In the above image, both were set to 75% brightness with auto-brightness turned off. The Mini’s display is brighter than the Nexus 7 in every case.