Hasta La Gadget!

Guess who posed for a family gathering here in Hong Kong? From left to right, we’ve got the Galaxy Nexus, Galaxy S II, Nexus One and Nexus S. The panels on all of these guys are stunning, but we’re finding it mighty difficult to choose a favorite between the Galaxy Nexus and the GSII. Have a look at some close-ups in the gallery below, and a typical home video just after the break.

Continue reading Samsung Galaxy Nexus vs. Galaxy S II, Nexus One and Nexus S (macro hands-on)

Samsung Galaxy Nexus vs. Galaxy S II, Nexus One and Nexus S (macro hands-on) originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 19 Oct 2011 00:16:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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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) carries 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. [Update: turns out our demo phone was a bit of an early build; we touched another model later in the day, and our response gripes were gone. Perfectly responsive. Hopefully that’s the one that’ll ship out.] Not necessarily a bad thing, just a thing worth noting. We’ve built our impressions after the break, replete with a video. Enjoy!

Continue reading Samsung Galaxy Nexus with Ice Cream Sandwich hands-on (video)

Samsung Galaxy Nexus with Ice Cream Sandwich hands-on (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 18 Oct 2011 23:41:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Ice Cream Sandwich revamps Android camera and gallery features originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 18 Oct 2011 22:59:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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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, 1080p 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. Pics and a link to register for more info await you below, and PR per usual is after the break.

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

Samsung’s Galaxy Nexus gets official: Android 4.0, 4.65-inch HD Super AMOLED display (video) 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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