A new Nexus tablet built by HTC has been pictured for the first time ahead of its official unveiling. Codenamed “Volantis,” the 8.9-inch device is expected to be one of the first with NVIDIA’s new 64-bit Tegra K1 processor. It also sports a gorgeous “aluminum zero-gap construction.”

Mentions of a new Nexus tablet with a 64-bit processor have been appearing in Android source code for some time, but this image, published by Android Police, supposedly give us an early glimpse at the exciting new device.

It’s unclear at this point whether Volantis will replace the Nexus 7 or the Nexus 10 — or both —  but according to the anonymous source that provided this image, it’s going to be the best Nexus device to date. If the information is accurate, it won’t just have cutting-edge specifications, but also a premium form factor.

In addition to its 8.9-inch display with a 2048×1440 resolution, and the Tegra K1 processor, the Volantis is expected to come with 2GB of RAM, and 8-megapixel rear-facing camera with optical image stabilization, a 3-megapixel front-facing camera, and up to 32GB of internal storage.

Like other HTC devices, it will also offer front-facing stereo speakers.

Volantis “definitely” isn’t expected to make its debut at Google I/O next month, but instead during the fourth quarter of this year. Google plans to price it at $399 for 16GB of storage, the source claims, while the 32GB version will cost $499. If you want LTE connectivity as well, the device could enter the $600+ price range.

Volantis certainly won’t be as cheap as existing Nexus slates, then, but it will be far more impressive. However, I wouldn’t get your hopes up until it’s official confirmed.

• SourceAndroid Police