Google Nexus 7 Tablet on Sale: Staples Takes Pre-Orders
Staples says it will carry the Google Nexus 7 tablet in its brick-and-mortar stores later this month, and that Google's 7-inch Android tablet is now available for pre-sale on its website. — The office-supply retailer's site …
Context & Ripple Effects
Google's 7-inch Nexus 7, announced at I/O on July 5, is reaching shelves through partners rather than a Google-only storefront. Staples confirmed it will stock the tablet in its brick-and-mortar stores later this month and opened website pre-orders on July 9, following GameStop's decision to take Nexus 7 pre-orders at the end of June.
The retail push matters because Google's hardware distribution has been the open question since spring: a March PC Magazine analysis argued Google's tablet store would not repeat the Nexus One's online-only missteps, and each new chain signing on is evidence for that thesis. The story also traveled unusually wide for a retail announcement, with pickups from Engadget, the Los Angeles Times, Business Wire, and five other outlets on the same day.
First-order effects
- Staples gains a launch-window traffic driver for its stores and site, while Google gets physical shelf presence for the Nexus 7 weeks after announcing it — no longer dependent solely on its own web storefront.
Second-order effects
- With GameStop already in line ahead of Staples, other big-box and electronics retailers face pressure to secure Nexus 7 allocation quickly or cede Android tablet foot traffic to competitors during the launch window.
Third-order effects
- If the pattern holds, Google's hardware playbook settles into partner-led retail distribution — the opposite of the Nexus One approach — making carrier- and retailer relationships a standing requirement for every future Nexus device rather than an afterthought.
The trend: Android hardware launches are shifting from Google-controlled online sales to broad third-party retail distribution, with major chains competing for launch-window allocation.