Google aims Nexus S smartphone at US, UK It's official: the next Nexus smartphone will be out on 20 December. As expected, Samsung is the manufacturer, branding the Googlephone as the Nexus S. The handset will run Gingerbread - Android 2.3. Samsung Nexus S It'll sport a 4in, 480 x 800 display; a 5Mp camera; tri-band HSDPA 3G connectivity; 16GB of Flash storage; …
The contract on my HTC Hero runs out in a few weeks, so this arrives with perfect timing. A new version of Android... new gadgetty features I'll probably never use, a more responsive CPU
But why oh why did Google choose to let Samsung build their new phone? Samsung's build quality is AWFUL. The Galaxy is made of the cheapest plastics known to man, and any Samsung electrical device I've owned in the last 10 years has barely outlasted its 12 month warranty.
I think I'll need to see how it performs in a few "drop tests" in Carphone Warehouse before shelling out my pennies.
....but the updates to all handsets are now so granular there is really no need to rush to upgrade.
Yes there are still the hardcore who seem to be rabidly argiung their platform is best but it doesn't bother or anyone I know in the slightest. We have iPhones, Blackberries and Androids of different vintages and have all decided there is little difference.
Apart from BES, which is still the best way of providing business use email on a phone.
What about the rest of the world? I'm still annoyed I had to pay over the odds to get my Nexus One imported. I know Google is an American company but I thought they were staffed with the smart kind of Americans that actually know there is a world outside the US rather than just "Here be dragons."
And Samsung certainly know this.
"the Nexus S "supports HD-like multimedia content". So almost HD, but not quite, then."
A 480x800 display can't pull 1080p, sorry. Perhaps "HD-like" means supports clear images at 480x800@29.95fps, which would make the aspect ratio 15:9, rather than the "HD" 16:9. That's "-like" enough for me, except I'd have just injected a bit of black space above and below the vid to get a real 16:9 ratio...
Also a shame the camera takes a step backwards from the 8MP on the likes of HTC's phones to a mid-range 5MP "good enough for the iPhone" camera.
It may not be a step backwards as resolution is a poor measure of quality. The lens of the camera, especially in such a thin body, makes much more difference.
As most people hold their phone cameras at arms length when taking a shot no amount of extra MP will get it sharper. Photographic techniques of holding the camera STEADY whilst taking a photo haven't changed from the last 150+ years.
The name is a clue.
Supposidly it come unlocked which is nice, and with Carphone Whorehouse doing the phone free on £35 on any provider seems a damn nice bundle...no idea if true but according to the BBC site it is. Thats a pretty nice deal.
Hardware wise considering Nexus' are ment to be there as technological demonstrators to push Android forward, sadly not much pushing forward here really. The speech recongition control is really something I don't fancy. Wittering at the phone I want to add a contact or an appointment I'm not sure on at all. Everything else just seems a bit run of the mill sadly though. Nice phone, nothing really driving forward like the Nexus One did though...shame.
I love the Nexus one its a great phone however im now looking at whats next, and aparently its a phone with the same speed cpu, same ram, same res screen (though slightly bigger display), same quality camera, same wifi speed (wireless n on the nexus one and desires been available for ages).
All in all apart from the only advantages of the upgrade would be having slightly more internal storage (not a problem because I use a large SD card anyways), slightly larger screen which is a nice addition, and the updated OS that will be available on my phone anyway.
Thanks but no thanks I will keep what I have and wait for something worth getting, maybe the rumored Galaxy 2.
or is there a hidden optical trackpad thingy? I know its touch screen but for scrolling through text one letter at a time say to correct spelling the trackpad/mouse is invaluable.
I was tempted but it just seems to be a nexus one that someone sat on. I wonder how revolutionary the curved screen actually is. especially how strong it is!
mind you, I have to give it a thumbs up for NOT HAVING OPERATOR SHITE all over it.
I mean, really? Samsung seems to try to be just more expensive than Apple, or what? The iPhone 4 is £500 and that thing is £549? What for?
The Samsung Galaxy S is certainly a nice phone, although not four times as nice as the Orange San Francisco for £99 and that Nexus S can't be five times as nice. It's just an Android Smartphone, Google or not. I might buy it for £200 or maybe £300... but £549? Madness!
The Register 
Biting the hand that feeds IT
Copyright. All rights reserved © 1998–2025
