Hasta La Gadget!

On stage at Samsung and Google’s joint event they’ve finally confirmed launch (November) and one carrier (NTT Docomo) for the Galaxy Nexus superphone with Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich. The leaks let us know it’s coming to Verizon as well, and its pentaband with AWS and HSPA+ means it will play nicely with AT&T and T-Mobile once its released as well. We’ll let you know if any other names get dropped before its over, but you can follow along on our liveblog here.

…developing

Samsung’s Galaxy Nexus launches in November worldwide on NTT Docomo, Verizon, and? originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 18 Oct 2011 22:22:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Wait no more. Google and Samsung have just made the long-awaited Galaxy Nexus (not longer the Nexus Prime, as we’d once heard) official here in Hong Kong, and the specifications are downright drool-worthy. Those with bantam hands need not apply, as this 4.65-inch behemoth is bound to bring back talk of Sidetalkin‘. Naturally, Ice Cream Sandwich is onboard, with Google finally revealing the version number as 4.0. Other specs include an HD Super AMOLED display (1,280 x 720), a 1.2GHz dual-core processor, 5 megapixel rear camera (with LED flash), a 1.3 megapixel front-facing cam, 1080p30 video recording and playback, a newfangled panorama mode, a 3.5mm headphone jack and Bluetooth 3.0. You’ll also find USB 2.0, 802.11a/b/g/n WiFi, an embedded NFC module, accelerometer, compass, gyro, proximity sensor and even a barometer — yeah, a barometer. Finishing things out, there’s 1GB of RAM, 16 or 32GB of internal storage space and a 1,750mAh battery. As for radios? There’s an HSPA+ model on tap, while an LTE version will “be available depending on region.” There’s nary a mention of carrier in the press release we’re holding, but based on earlier leaks, a 4G build for Verizon Wireless seems a lock.

Focusing on Ice Cream Sandwich for a tick, Android 4.0 will bring “an entirely new look and feel to Android,” boasting a redesigned user interface, bolstered multitasking / notifications, full-on NFC support and a new People app, which enables users to browse friends, family and coworkers’ photos whilst peeking their status updates from Google+. ICS also introduces Face Unlock, which taps into facial recognition protocols in order to unlock your handset. And then there’s Android Beam, an NFC-based technology that allows you to “quickly share webpages, apps and YouTube videos by simply tapping two phones together.” According to Goog, the “lock screen, home screen, phone app and everything in between has been rethought and redesigned,” and this is quite the beastly phone to launch with. We’re still awaiting word as to when ICS will be rolled out to other handsets (and which ones will support it), so keep it locked here for more as the liveblog unfolds — check below for more pics and after the break for a press release.

Continue reading Samsung’s Galaxy Nexus gets official: Android 4.0, 4.65-inch HD Super AMOLED display

Samsung’s Galaxy Nexus gets official: Android 4.0, 4.65-inch HD Super AMOLED display originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 18 Oct 2011 21:34:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Guess what just showed up in searches on Samsung.com? That’s right, the Galaxy Nexus. The official product page isn’t live so there’s not much to see beyond front, back, and side shots of the device. Wondering what happened to that Nexus Prime branding? Several readers have let us know searching for that also pulls up the same result on Samsung’s suddenly leaky homepage. We’ve gotten familiar with the soft keys and rainbow background after many leaks, so check your local Verizon coverage map and come back here ’round 10PM ET for a big bite of Google’s Ice Cream Sandwich.

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]

Samsung Galaxy Nexus leaks on official site, flashes Verizon affiliation originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 18 Oct 2011 18:47:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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This week’s CTIA festivities aren’t the same since Samsung and Google decided to postpone their new product announcement that was originally scheduled for today, but now we’re hearing the Ice Cream Sandwich / Nexus party has already been rescheduled. An inside source tells us the two have moved their plans for the Unpacked event to October 19th in Hong Kong (interested US residents should clear out the evening of Tuesday the 18th, time zones), timed to coincide with the AsiaD: All Things Digital event there next week. Naturally, we’ll be in the house, but with not long to go before the potential date, we’d expect to hear something concrete soon.

[Thanks, anonymous]

Samsung and Google’s Ice Cream Sandwich / Nexus Prime event back on for the 19th? originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 11 Oct 2011 23:14:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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A baby book for our cosmos? That’d be a happy by-product of the massive insight star-gazing scientists are set to glean from Alma — the telescope responsible for ushering in a “new golden age of astronomy.” The Atacama large millimeter/submillimeter array (as it’s known in long form), located 3,000 meters above sea level on a Chilean plateau, goes beyond the voyeuristic powers of current optical telescopes, delivering detailed imagery of the dense gas clouds that birth baby stars. Why is this significant? Well, using the complex 20-antenna strong array (a total of 66 are planned), astronomers from North America, Europe and Japan will get a first-hand glimpse of the gaseous mix that was our universe a few hundred million years post-Big Bang. Consider the research a time-traveling peek back into the formative years of existence. Heady stuff, yes, but the array won’t have its multiple, celestial-focused eyes trained solely on star nurseries; scientists from around the globe already plan on getting an up close look at the Sagittarius A black hole. When these “Pyramids of the 21st Century” finish construction in 2013, we’ll be just one step closer to viewing the limits of our cosmic fishbowl.

Alma observatory captures stars being born, reports back on universe’s awkward teenage years originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 03 Oct 2011 19:09:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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