Google Nexus 10 2 release date may still happen before the year ends, as the price of the Nexus 7 2 takes a plunge before Christmas.

Office Depot offers the lowest price markdown on the ASUS-made Google Nexus 7. Consumers can get the 16 GB variant of the Nexus 7 2 for only $180. Buyers will also get $20 gift card when they purchase the device. The 32 GB variant of Nexus 7 2 also receives a discount of up to $40. Offic Depot's early Christmas promo will run until Dec 21.

In eBay, the 16 GB variant of the 2013 Nexus 7 costs around $210. In Amazon, The said tablet is sold for as low as $200+.

The Nexus 7 2 was originally priced $229 for the 16 GB model and boasts a 7-inch screen display with 1,200 x 1,920 pixel resolution as well as Qualcomm Snapdragon S4Pro processor paired with 2 GB RAM. Users can take photos with 5-MP rear shooter and 1.2-MP front-facing camera. Google's tablet is also equipped with NFC, Bluetooth 4.0 and wireless charging.

Decrease in price of devices is not unusual during the holiday season, as it is a way for companies and manufacturers to maximise profits before announcing another device. In the case of Google, speculations say that the Nexus 10 2 will be made by ASUS, just like its predecessor, the Google Nexus 10.

Rumours are also saying that the Nexus 10 2 will most likely make an appearance at next year's Mobile World Congress. If these speculations are true, then the schedule is favourable for the company to have enough time to prepare as the event will take place in February in Barcelona, Spain.

The rumour mill has it that the Google Nexus 10 2 may sport the usual 10-inch screen display but with 2,560 x 1,600 pixel resolution. It may also pack either Tegra 4 CPU or a Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 processor and Adreno 330 GPU. At the back, the device will pack an 8 MP camera. Of course, the tablet will run with Android 4.4 Kitkat OS. The Nexus 10 2 will most likely be available in two variants - 16 and 32 GB.