How to Set Up Your Nexus 7 1

How to Set Up Your Nexus 7

If you’ve got a new 7-inch Nexus 7 tablet for the holidays, you’re in luck now that you have an extremely useful tool for things like reading, playing games, and watching videos. If you don’t know what to do after taking the Nexus 7 out of the box, we’re here to show you how to set up your new tablet and get it ready for the days to come.

Here we’ll walk you through setting up the Nexus 7 and tell you how to turn on security and parental controls, offer some tips on using the Nexus 7, and show you some apps to get you started.

The Nexus 7 setup process should only take 15 to 30 minutes, so those lucky enough to get the Nexus 7 can have the Nexus 7 set up and ready to go before traveling this holiday season.

Learn how to set up Nexus 7.

In addition to setting up the Nexus 7, we recommend checking out some of the great Nexus 7 cases available on the market to help protect your new device. Some will even act as a stand for the tablet, providing a great video viewing experience with an app like Netflix or content available on the Google Play Store.

Nexus 7 Setup

When you turn on your Nexus 7 for the first time, the device will take you to a Welcome screen where you will want to change it to your preferred language. This is an option you can change later, but if you’re not versed in several languages, you’ll want to choose a default language right away.

The device will then prompt you for Google account information. If you already have a Gmail account, simply enter your information. If you don’t have an account, now is a great time to create one.

Nexus 7 will ask if you want to back up your device to Google servers. We highly recommend this as it will make it easier to restore app data, bookmarks, WiFi passwords and other settings to the Nexus 7 if you reset the Nexus 7 or switch to a new device in the future.

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Next, it will ask if you want to enable Location Services. When turned on, it enables Google Location Services and Standalone GPS Services to provide location-based results for the Nexus 7’s Google Assistant and Google searches.

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Finally, you will want to connect to a Wi-Fi network. Connect to a WiFi network when prompted and the device will scan for your home network. At this point, simply enter your password, if any; The device will be Wi-Fi enabled.

Nexus 7 Security

Now is the time to take some steps to protect your Nexus 7 tablet. In this way, others cannot use your personal information or the applications and content you have downloaded to your tablet device.

With Android, Google offers several options that will allow you to protect your Nexus 7 and your data from harm. To change the security settings, you’ll want to go to the Nexus 7’s Settings, scroll down and tap Security under the Personal section. Here you will be presented with five possible security options to protect your device from others.

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Setting up a PIN or password for your Nexus 7 is a smart idea.

The slide provides no security and allows users to simply swipe to unlock. The second is Face Unlock, which allows you to unlock the phone with your face. It’s not a perfect system though, so we don’t recommend it. The other three options are the recommended ones.

The first pattern allows you to set a scroll pattern to protect your device. You will need to connect at least four dots and when that is done you will repeat the pattern and the device will be locked and can only be unlocked using that pattern.

Second, the PIN allows you to create a long and secure password to keep your Nexus 7 safe.

Finally, the password allows you to create a password of your own choice, which in our opinion makes it the most secure of the five available. The password allows you to create a long and strong password to keep out unwanted users.

Contact information

Another thing we recommend is to put your contact information on the lock screen. That way, if you lose your tablet and someone finds it, they can easily contact you to return it. If you don’t have the information there, it will be much more difficult to get it back, considering the device will most likely be locked with a passcode.

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To set contact information on the lock screen, go to Settings, tap Security, then go to Owner Information. Here you will want to enter your name, email address and a phone number where the person who found the missing Nexus 7 can reach you.

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Multiple User Accounts

A nifty feature found on the Nexus 7 is the ability to set up multiple user accounts. This is perfect for those who plan to share the tablet with a significant other as it will allow you, the administrator of the account, to create a separate account for each person in the family and easily monitor their usage.

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See our guide to Using Multiple User Accounts to set it up.

Using the Nexus 7

Visit Google Play Store to install apps on Nexus 7. The Google Play Store icon is a white bag and is located in the lower right corner of the Nexus 7’s first home screen by default. The Nexus 7 lets you swipe through your content, whether it’s apps, widgets or anything else, on a variety of home screens, all customizable to your liking.

Once you find an app in the Google Play Store, an icon will appear on your home screen. To access the app, simply tap it. If you want to delete the app from the home screen, press and hold the app and drag it to the top of the screen where it says Uninstall. This will get rid of it.

How to Set Up Email

If you haven’t already, you will now want to sync your email account with the Nexus 7.

First, you’ll want to go to the Gmail app. It can be found in the lower left corner of the app drawer by default. Tap the Gmail app. Next, tap the three dots in the top right corner, go to Settings and there’s an Add Account option in the top right corner.

Here you can add an existing or new Gmail account that will allow you to check and use email on your Nexus 7.

How to Set Up Google Now?

Google Assistant is a powerful forecasting tool that will do anything from showing traffic on a route before you leave or tracking a package for you. It all depends on how you use your tablet, so it’s wise to set it up from the beginning.

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To do this, simply hold down the home button in the bottom middle of the navigation bar and swipe up. Once there, tap the Google logo and you’re on your way to using one of the most powerful features on Android.

Screenshot_2012-12-23-21-22-395 Nexus 7 Apps to Install First

After making all these settings, now is the time to explore the Google Play Store and download some apps for your Nexus 7. Getting your Nexus 7 varies from user to user. Still, we want to help you get started, and here are some of our best apps that you can install as soon as you install the Nexus 7.

For Nexus 7 owners who need a little more, be sure to check out our Best Nexus 7 Apps and Widgets.