Hands-on with the Galaxy Siblings - Samsung Galaxy Note and Galaxy Nexus
Samsung Galaxy Nexus - Pure Google Experience
The First Android 4.0 Phone
Announced a few weeks ago, the Samsung Galaxy Nexus is the first smartphone to run on the latest Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich (ICS). As the third generation of Google phone, it has to set the benchmarks for future Android phones and hold the fort against its rival, the Apple iPhone 4S. Does it live up to our expectations? Let's find out:-
Key highlights of the Samsung Galaxy Nexus
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Google and Samsung appeared to have gotten everything right this time with the Galaxy Nexus from the hardware and software aspects. In terms of handling, the device felt really good in the hands with its rounded edges and light form factor of 135g. The slight hump towards the bottom of the phone also contributed to having a better grip of the phone. Despite increasing the screen size from 4.0-inch (Google Nexus S) to 4.65-inch on the Samsung Galaxy Nexus, the device still maintains a rather slim profile of 8.94mm, making it one of the thinnest smartphones around.
The main highlight of the Galaxy Nexus is its HD Super AMOLED display that has a resolution of 1280 x 720 pixels. The display exhibited lively colors and crisp text, thus making it perfect for multimedia viewing on-the-go. The Galaxy Nexus retains the same Contour Display of the Nexus S, which will provide a better fit to your face during phone conversations.
Within a short span of three years, Google has made vast improvements to the user interface of the Android platform. The latest Android 4.0 ICS is testament to Google's continuous efforts to refine the user interface to make it more polished. During our hands-on with the Galaxy Nexus, we were surprised at its speed of operation. The user interface was very smooth and snappy although we did encountered some lags and freezes. We were told later that the Galaxy Nexus unit was a prototype. Nevertheless, we have high hopes for the final retail version. As we had covered the main features of Android 4.0 a few weeks ago, you can find out more about its full set of new offerings here.
The Samsung Galaxy Nexus will be available at S$948 (inclusive of GST) without line contract by January 2012. When asked on a more specific time frame, Samsung Singapore commented that they do not have information at the moment. We certainly hope Samsung can push forward the launch of the Galaxy Nexus in Singapore so as to leverage on the year-end festive season and give the hot favorite Apple iPhone 4S a run for its money.
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