Official ICS & Galaxy Nexus Launch Thread

[zinfamous]

How long does it take to send a text? Email, I understand because it's a bit slower. Some emails take 20 - 30 seconds to transfer up and back down.

take the map, for example. copy url, open messaging, paste url, send text?

why not just touch phones and make a "digital xerox" on their phone?

 

[YoungGun21]

I thought the design looked great.

 

[ImDonly1]

Looks good but a little disappointed by the hardware, mainly the GPU. Will wait for benchmarks and reviews though. Want to see how smooth it will actually be and battery life.

Otherwise, I will get a used iPhone 4 or wait for next Android/WP7 phone.

 

[Anubis]

I thought the design looked great.

as do i but everyone is different, seeing it in person may change peoples opinions

it looks a hell of a lot better then motos new phone they announced this morning

 

[makken]

So I'm interested to see if or how android beam is going to address the "carrying over of state" issue mentioned by anand on the asus slider review
(see: http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=Aa3FxNO9tb0#!)

 

[amdhunter]

Looks good but a little disappointed by the hardware, mainly the GPU. Will wait for benchmarks and reviews though. Want to see how smooth it will actually be and battery life.

Otherwise, I will get a used iPhone 4 or wait for next Android/WP7 phone.

I'd love to see WP7 on this hardware. I wish I ran Microsoft's phone division.

 

[SViper]

Holy cow! I don't think I've been this excited about a phone since I got the OG Droid. Definitely time to retire it for this phone.

 

[endlessmike133]

I'd love to see WP7 on this hardware. I wish I ran Microsoft's phone division.

Why? Windows Phone 7 runs better than this does on worse hardware.

What would be the point?

I guess 720p WP7 would be amazing but MS isn't gonna up the resolution on Windows Phone until Windows Phone 8 comes out...they want to keep things simple for app developers.

 

[Dominato3r]

It's probably gonna be like the Nexus S, pictures and video dont do justice. The phone will look better in person.

 

[1h4x4s3x]

I think he's saying that it looks like any other high-end phone which it does. We've been wowed already by this phone design and while I'm sure it looks great, it's nothing different. The real star of the show is ICS.

Pretty much that, yes.
I wish they would have been more innovative design-wise, though, it's what's inside that counts, right

 

[ChronoReverse]

Pretty much that, yes.
I wish they would have been more innovative design-wise, though, it's what's inside that counts, right

We're pretty much at the point where there's not that much more you can do in terms of looks.

I like the ergonomic curve though.

 

[s44]

Duarte interview (pre-taped, so to speak) on the philosophy of ICS

 

[trmiv]

iPhone 4S showing up Thursday. Return it for this? Decisions, decisions. Damn I got me some first world problems. #whitewhine

 

[bucwylde23]

Not sure if it's been posted but here's a summary of the highlights.

http://developer.android.com/sdk/android-4.0-highlights.html

So glad it will have hardware acceleration, hopefully everything will be smooth now.

 

[Zivic]

iPhone 4S showing up Thursday. Return it for this? Decisions, decisions. Damn I got me some first world problems. #whitewhine

without a doubt. the 4s is a joke. it's the same phone that's been out for over a year now. big, clunky, heavy with tiny screen.

the GN looks phenominal and ICS looks better than I expected. finally a phone worth getting

 

[1h4x4s3x]

We're pretty much at the point where there's not that much more you can do in terms of looks.

vs

http://androidcommunity.com/google-...s-amazing-and-accurate-20110930/#entrycontent

It's only a concept design but I'm sure something like that is doable. Then again, some people would probably still prefer the current design.

 

[Anubis]

those really dont look that different to me other then the GN having a curved screen

 

[Bryf50]

The new AOSP apps look soooo much slicker then their 2.x counterparts. This was one of my biggest gripes with android. The stock apps like the dialer, messenger, calender, etc. looked very amateurish and generally lacked functionality compared to third part replacements. GJ google.

 

[zerocool84]

Remember the Droid RAZR? That's so yesterday. Or, earlier today. Whatever. The point is, Samsung's just busted out the planet's first Ice Cream Sandwich-based smartphone here in Hong Kong, a few days late but hardly worse for the wear. The Galaxy Nexus (formerly referred to as the Nexus Prime) carriers on the Nexus torch in spectacular fashion, and we've just spent a few quality moments with one here at the launch event. Design-wise, it's clear that the Nexus S DNA is here, though the rear reminds us most of the Galaxy S II. Those who abhor physical buttons will also be delighted, and while we'd gotten used to the whole Power + Home for a screenshot on the GSII, Power + Volume Down works just fine on this fellow.

The 1.2GHz dual-core processor was startlingly fast. It actually felt a wee bit quicker than our Galaxy S II, and given that Ice Cream Sandwich and the Galaxy Nexus were apparently built for one another, we're assuming there's some deeply ingrained optimizations to thank. Swiping from pane to pane was faster than its ever been on Android, and the new Roboto font actually is super eye-pleasing. The touch response of the capacitive buttons -- much like those on the original Nexus One -- take a bit of getting used to, and we had to mash 'em just a touch harder than we anticipated to elicit a response. Not necessarily a bad thing, just a thing worth noting. We'll be building out our impressions and adding video in a few -- for now, have a gander at the gallery below!

The overall phone feels adequately thin, and while the 4.65-inch display sounds gargantuan, the handset itself doesn't feel so massive to hold. Until, of course, you grab the comparatively minuscule Nexus One. Still, we've been clamoring for a 1,280 x 720 display on a smartphone for what feels like forever, and now that it's here on the Galaxy Nexus, we aren't about the kvetch. Indeed, the panel looks downright gorgeous, with unbeatable viewing angles, remarkably crisp text and graphics and a beautiful feel as one swipes across it. The fingerprint magnet that is a glossy overcoat is still here, but it's the only feel niggle we've found on the screen as a whole.

Having the 3.5mm headphone jack on the rear seems like a necessary design choice given the tapering at the top, and unlike that other phone, there's no mute switch here -- you'll just have to hold the Volume Down button for a few seconds. The rear cover pops off in similar fashion to the Galaxy S II, but the ridged plastic cover has a far softer touch than the aforesaid contemporary. The camera is also situated right in the center, with branding kept to a minimum.

The lack of a physical Home button may be disorienting for Galaxy S II loyalists, but the Galaxy Nexus is truly the first smartphone that expresses Google's desire to make "one Android for all" -- a mantra we heard about at Google I/O, but haven't seen birthed into anything until today. We'll be diving into the particulars of Ice Cream Sandwich in a separate post -- it's a big enough overhaul to demand its own screen space -- but suffice it to say, we're thrilled with how the first ICS handset has turned out. It's understated, sleek, beautiful and packs a display that's destined to drop jaws. Now, if only we knew how much, and what carriers...

http://www.engadget.com/2011/10/18/samsung-galaxy-nexus-hands-on/

Gallery: http://www.engadget.com/photos/samsung-galaxy-nexus-hands-on/

 

[Phokus]

Is this new phone only available on verizon?

 

[Dominato3r]

Is this new phone only available on verizon?

Nobody knows

 

[Anubis]

Is this new phone only available on verizon?

its the $64,000 question

 

[Demo24]

Duarte interview (pre-taped, so to speak) on the philosophy of ICS

That was a good read, thanks! Also this bit is rather important and should please a number of people here, and elsewhere:

But there are deeper changes. Matias tells me that starting with Android 4.0, users can uninstall any application they like, such as the native browser or email client — and that seems to go for carrier software as well

 

[zerocool84]

Those three pins for a dock later on maybe?

 

[abaez]

It's a global GSM phone, so it should have ATT's bands at least. Off contract price of course.