Google wants you to put everything in the cloud, so it's not that surprising. 16GB is enough for what I do, but I can definitely see use cases where that would be limiting.
I don't think Google wants to replace the high end. They are taking a page from Apple's book and offering more expensive versions with larger capacity. The profound difference is that Google is letting its partners cover that part of the market while they supply the cheaper lower capacity devices.
Google deals with the razor thin margins while the HTCs of the world get chubby Apple-esque margins. Everyone wins.
I think the common stereotype is that Asian-centric smartphones are typically tougher than the stuff we get. And since LG has a decent presence in Asian markets (and basically no market share in the west), we might expect their stuff to be at least as sturdy as the competition if not a little tougher. And if Google vouches for it, I wouldn't worry.
"Is the build quality of LG as good as ASUS? Not that LG will do the actual fabrication."
It is manufactured by LG and it's partners. Their quality seems good, however their software support is terrible. Since Google taking care of the software support side of things, this is a decent phone if you're fine with no LTE.
That being said, I wouldn't buy any other LG Android phone... far too risky. The LG Spectrum got ICS a week or so ago... and it launched AFTER ICS.
The sizes are fine. If you want a smartphone for daily use and usual stuff, you'll buy the 8GB version. It's enough for apps, documents, pictures and normal sized music collection. For more music most people use a streaming client. For more data most people use GDrive, Dropbox, etc. For movies you use streaming. If you have a large offline music collection and want to watch some movies on the go, then you can buy the 16GB version.
I have an Android Smartphone with 16GB and it's plenty for music, apps, pictures, backup. 8GB is a bit harsh, but most people won't even use 8GB.
32GB on a smartphone would be cool, but right now and especially with great cloud solutions not really a necessity.
And btw.: If you don't like what Google gives you, you're free to buy the 'original' LG version with LTE and SD-Card, but well, you won't get it for $350, but the iPhone 5 you bought was also twice as expensive as the Nexus 4, so your complaining is BS.
agreed. one of the reasons i stick with samsung phones. a fair few of the others aren't giving you the option of more storage.
the cloud isn't an option - i mean who the hell wants to watch a streaming movie via 3/4G and use up their monthly allowance of data in one go? let alone losing connection through a tunnel or something.
to me the cloud is somewhere to backup photos/videos you've taken with your phone - TB backups too. it is not a streaming service replacement for a 64GB mSD card in your phone
I agree, sort of, although I would have liked to see it launch with 16GB as the low-end option rather than 8GB - 8GB seems a little small if you want any kind of media on your phone in addition to apps and data. I suppose the $350 pricing for 16GB is the same as the Galaxy Nexus though so it's kind of a wash, except flash has certainly gotten cheaper over the last year. 16/32GB as options would have been much nicer, and if there was a 64GB it would have been my next phone without question.
As it is, just have to use USB OTG as a kludge for media storage.
Google play stores your Music and Video in the cloud. It is always accessible! If you could store your 100 gig multimedia collection on your cell phone would you really want to? With Google and others including Apple, if you have Internet access you have access to your contacts, music, and video. The difference being, Apple has a annual fee for ITunes Match!
'Always accessible'? Cool, I didn't know cellular radio technology had been perfected and that coverage was literally omnipresent. I also didn't know that wireless providers had lifted data caps. Thanks!
I was going to say, those HD-mkvs of television series run at around 1-2GB each - getting those delivered via the air-interface sounds liek a recipe for disaster - and a monthly cap blown in 60 minutes.
What do you put on your phone that requires more than 16gb of storage? I'm assuming you're talking about a lot of audio and video.
Some people don't have that many songs, or would prefer to stream off the internet anyway. So 16gb is easily viable for some. I haven't come close to using up all of my media storage capacity on any phone or tablet that I've owned.
1. No 4G LTE. 2. HSPA+ is still available. 3. No contract. You have to buy the phone unlocked through t-mobile. This is a step taken by Google to promote super fast updates.
All Nexus devices - Nexus 4, 7 and 10 are amazing value at $299, $199 and $399, respectively. As Jason writes, and especially for Nexus 4 and 10 in their respective categories, we now have top of the line hardware at bargain price points. Nothing short of amazing I would say.
At these price points it is also ridiculous to complain about limited storage. If you are not prepared to do some regular house cleaning, then consider waiting for an expandable, non-Nexus variant branded by the manufacturer instead (and pay hundreds of dollar more). I would say it is a great strategy by Google to offer this level of hardware at these prices, yet limit them enough (no storage expansion most notably) to not kill the high end market for their partners.
If Nexus 4 and 10 were currently available in my country (Sweden), I'd place the order right away, despite already having both a smartphone and a table with recent hardware.
No one would argue about storage if there was an SD slot. I know Google is against SD slot for both technical and business reasons and that's why they had LG take it out of this version of the phone, it's just not the most user-friendly way to go. I can understand why LTE is out due to cost, but SD slots can't be THAT much.
LTE is not out because of cost, it is out because of control. Google wants to control the software and release cycle and offers the phone as unlocked and free of contract. There is no such thing as an unlocked LTE phone and no US carrier is interested in relaxing their control on the phones getting on their LTE network.
So, until you can use an unlocked phone on LTE, there will be no Nexus with LTE as it conflicts with the stated goal of the nexus: google control of software releases.
That being said, HSPA+ is already quite fast and ATT already re-branded it as 4G on the iPhone4S for example. The nexus 4 will support that.
The Verizon Galaxy Nexus was initially delayed for MONTHS because Verizon wanted to launch a Droid phone. Then Verizon wouldn't allow Google Wallet on the device. Then Verizon loaded some of their crapware on the device. Then Verizon took months and months to push updates to the device.
The Verizon phone was never a Nexus phone. It might have had the name Nexus, but it flew in the face of everything the Nexus stands for.
Any word on which frequencies it supports? Being that its going to t-mobile I'm assuming it has the AWS band. I'm hoping that its pentaband and will work on AT&T as well.
Does anyone else think that the "Nexus 4" name is horrific in light of the Nexus 7 and Nexus 10?
I understand that Google was in a pickle that they probably wanted to call it the Nexus 5, but then that would get heat from chronologists. They can't win.
Tech companies just seem to suck at naming their devices. We have Apple naming their 6th iPhone the iPhone 5. Both nVidia and AMD use the 2nd digit to compare performance, so we have very intuitive logic like 6450 < 5870. Let's not even get started on renaming (there's 4 versions of the GT 640?!). There's also the mystery of why Intel calls Ivy Bridge "3rd generation" for consumers, and "v2" for servers...
Those are some sweet devices at great prices. I'll try and hold off on buying anything for as long as possible, still satisfied with my tablet and GN. :D
Also, for people defending the lack of storage because of the low price...give me a break. How much would it cost to add an SD slot? Very little. The lack of storage is a deliberate means of control (forces you to use Google cloud services), not cost savings.
You could always, you know, buy a third party Android phone.
Google isn't trying to force you to do anything. You can have a top-of-the-line Android phone with the specs you want from Samsung, HTC, LG, Motorola, Huawei, etc. It's not like 1 version of an Android phone is released each year and the end-user is stuck with whatever Google decides for that model. That's the way the "other" guy operates.
Unfortunately, this is an otherwise top-spec phone with an unlocked bootloader. I can't get that on Verizon. Google should play hardball with Verizon and offer an unlocked model with LTE/CDMA radios as well. I don't care if it costs $600-$650.
The lack of LTE is what really bothers me. It definitely seems like a much larger step backwards. New Nexus has slower wireless connectivity than old Nexus? It boggles the mind. I mean, what does an MDM9615 cost?
The lack of SD card doesn't bother me. I haven't once pulled the SD card from my phone in the 18 months I've had it. It did, however, have a 32 GB SD card. To that end, 16/32 seems like good capacity points, considering the difference in flash costs is something like $10. I see no reason to have a phone with no expandable storage and only 8 GB on-board.
Adding an SD card is always a little complicated, so I'm not surprised to see it missing. If you take a picture, where is it stored? How do you explain to the user that they've run out of space, but there is still free space?
They claim it's because they didn't want to deal with Verizon's BS again and AT&T's LTE doesn't cover enough people to be worth the difference in cost without financial help from AT&T.
Considering that the HSPA+ GNex was far more popular than the Sprint/Verizon versions, this isn't that surprising.
I'm guessing that if you want LTE, there will be plenty of XDA projects to port the Nexus ROMs to the Optimus G.
Carriers have an agenda, and for the last decade, all of the agency in the US. When Google announced that they would be selling the original Nexus through their own channel (unlocked and unfettered) it was a shot across the bow of the US carrier market. This is the next shot. If the Nexus 4 sells with the alacrity of the Nexus 7, then that will demonstrate to the carriers that buyers are interested in performance and software updates, and unwilling to put up with bloated, antiquated software just for the latest air interface.
By pricing these so cheaply, by dragging the unlocked price down as low as it'd go, they are applying pressures that could hopefully push the carriers to give Android the same regard as iOS devices.
No LTE: To keep costs low. Using LTE requires several patents, and thus increases the price. The APQ8064 also doesn't contain LTE, so additional chips are required. You can add this, but not for $300.
SD-card: It's a Nexus phone and Google doesn't add SD-Cards, it's their philosophy. Get it. Google wants you to use the cloud and offers you many options to do so, and if you can't live with this, don't think about buying a Nexus device.
I also don't see how 16GB is not enough. If 16GB isn't enough, how can 32GB or 64GB? If 16GB isn't enough, then you don't just store music or pictures on it, but movies. For HD movies, 32GB is ridicoulus with min. 4GB/Movie, just as 64GB.
not to mention there are emulators (playstation 1) requiring CD ISOs to play, and other space hungry software (GPS,...). I have a 16GB Nexus device, and it's always almost full up. 32GB is not so large for some users.
Cost is probably only a part of the answer. Individual components, radios inclusive, are relatively cheap. LTE involves something more than just cost, though. Unlike GSM/HSPA standards, and unlike the intentions of the bodies that govern radio interface standards, there's no way in the US to simply slip in an SD card and have an unlocked LTE device running. And what do the carriers want in exchange for their cooperation? A lot. They want to pick out the software package, they want to drape their logos all over the devices and they want to be the customers, not us. By deciding what our selection is they can exert greater control both in pricing and the character of the devices available.
Today's announcement is a statement to the carriers that we are the customers, and they are the providers.
It's hard to believe that Anandtech isn't biased towards Apple with statements like this:
"On the front of the device you find a 2560x1600 10" display, making it the highest resolution Android tablet to date."
Why say highest resolution Android tablet? This is highest resolution tablet, period, correct? If this was an Apple blurb, I'm sure comparisons would have been made to the "inferior" competition. Also, no comment on how this pricing blows the iPad out of the water?
This is the highest-end ARM tablet out. T604 might not beat whatever is in the A6X but two A15s beat whatever Apple's CPU architecture is on the A6. Meanwhile, the screen is second-to-none for tablets, or really for any system under $1000.
If there's one thing we try to do above any other, it's not saying anything that we haven't tested for ourselves. Are the A15's faster than Swift? Maybe, we'll find out soon enough. Is this the best 10" screen ever? Maybe, we'll find out. That's what we offer you all, and I hope you'll understand.
Anandtech, where are the articles regarding the Droid HD Razrs? The new Nexus 4? The new Nexus 7 and 10? Your site contains preview and rumor articles for Apple and even Microsoft all of the time, yet I don't recall seeing even a single article talking about these products.
I'm actually working on the RAZR reviews while we speak. As far as the rumors of the Nexus 4, etc, we report what we know and what isn't embargoed. Our articles ahead of the recent iPhone announcement were a bit of a departure for us. Generally, if we make conjectures about future products we do so within reviews or articles discussing current products. Further, unlike other sites, we don't make these conjectures to spread rumors, we do it to establish the context of a device. If a new devices is about to be superseded by another much more competitive product then it's worth discussing.
I've invited everyone to feel free to contact me directly about any of your concerns regarding bias in any of my posts, you can find me e-mail address on the byline. Cheers.
If I can defend myself, I couldn't recall what the resolution of the new iPad was while I was writing this post. And I didn't have time to look it up, as I was drawn to wrap up the piece before heading to the basement and fixing my sump pump so my house wouldn't flood. If you're concerned about my bias you're welcome to send me an e-mail on the matter whenever you detect it. I invite you to do so.
That's insane pricing - basically half the price of the competition's flagships, with the same powerful hardware (or more powerful, like compared to WP8 phones).
I have a request when - when you review the Nexus 10 and even the Nexus 4, please use whatever browser has the better Javascript performance, not just Chrome, so we can get a better sense of what the hardware can actually do, and not be hindered by the software.
For example, I've seen Exynos 5 Dual get 668 ms in Sunspider on the Chromebook, and "only" 1300 ms in a production unit of Nexus 10, and if that remains true in the final unit, then something is definitely wrong in the Chrome software. I think Chrome for Android is still a few versions behind the desktop Chrome, which means the V8 engine is, too. It also got twice the score for V8 and Octane compared to the Apple A6 chip in iPhone 5.
At least try to pinpoint why the same chip gets so much better scores in ChromeOS, but only mediocre ones in Chrome for Android (that is if it will still be case when you review it).
I feel on the contrary they should use whatever software comes pre-installed on the phone, since their aim is to present the picture of what customers are buying not how great it is once you've tinkered with it for hours to optimised the device.
I think its OK to test with the latest OS, as long as it's a standard update some computer illiterate grandma would be able to do, everything else is a wrong representation (unless you add to the cost the rates of the time spent optimising).
The benchmarking discrepancies are probably due to Apple and Google optimising their respective browser to the test sets.
I disagree; Android is optimized in the sense that it allows other rendering engines.
Some computer-illiterate grandma won't buy any of these without guidance; thirty seconds of guidance with the out-of-the-box configuration is reasonable in that scenario. If the purchaser is looking at benchmarks, they can download an app.
What "computer-illiterate grandma" is going to reading Anandtech? What "computer-illiterate grandma" is buying a phone based on its javascript performance, Lol? Bench the phone it right out of the box, apples to apples.
This is a great comment, and those that follow are similarly great.
There's a few things that we try to take into consideration when we look at benchmarks. Consistency is paramount. If we can't repeat the test and get the same (roughly) results then there's no point using it. There's also the matter of equity, if today a tablet was released that ran Honeycomb 3.0, we might not bother reviewing it, and if we did we'd smother the review with coaching statements like "we could easily expect better performance with updated software."
Today, there's Chrome and Browser. One has received it's end-of-life status. The other is the future and will be the only browser available on Android devices in the future. Are their cases where the original Android browser is the better performer? Maybe. Surely. But what would the point be of testing hardware with Browser when Chrome is the future.
This is something to look further into, though. Perhaps we'll consider a feature on the two.
It probably isn't quad-core in the A6X since the A5X was already quad-core. It's probably hexa-core, or could possibly be a really clocked-up quad-core.
And it should be fine, as it has to be an upgrade from the GSIII GPU which edged out the SGX 543MP2 in the A5 (ignoring the gaping failure in GL ES Benchmark 2.5).
Should be 72 Gflops for Mali T604 to 64 Glops for A6X GPU. But we'll see the GLbenchmarks soon enough.
Mali T604 will also support OpenGL ES 3.0 standard (compared to the 4 year old OpenGL ES 2.0 that A6X still supports). Not sure why it doesn't support it right out of the gate though, but it should with a driver update. Or maybe ARM just couldn't get the Khronos certification in time for launch and they can't officially say they support all the features yet.
When the 8GB storage rumors became obvious, my reaction was "the only way that would really make sense is if they were going for a low price - maybe $300". And looks like I was right. It's still too low for me to personally consider it, but for people like my parents, the 8GB model would be a great choice. The 16GB model though will be one that I consider against the iPhone 5, One X+, and Lumia 920 once the Nokia is available. I'd prefer a 32GB model (for $399?), but oh well.
Oh, and a minor bit of editing nitpick: "peaks our interest" is wrong - the proper word is "piques". :-)
The prices are just insane. As soon as the Nexus 4 goes on sale it will just kill sales for all other high-end Android Smartphones (and probably others too) which cost almost twice as much. There's no way others can meet this while still making profits. The market is dead, Google killed it.
As a strategy this is interesting, but Google right now is going around and nuking the competition (and even its partners) left and right. It's almost like some business partners having a meeting and one pulling out a gun and just killing everyone else to make a point. Violence certainly works, but has a habit to disrupt things in a big way.
I doubt it will kill the competition. Us nerds will buy it but the masses will still go to Walmart, Target, Best Buy or their carriers store (where this phone will not be on display) and buy whatever's the hot phone of the moment. Unless Google does a major ad campaign for this phone Samsung, HTC and LG have nothing to fear from Nexus 4.
It won't be a smash hit in the US, but I think the rest of the world will go nuts for it. The rest of the world for the most part doesn't have LTE and is used to buying unsubsidized phones.
Exactly. People are used to paying an arm and a leg for a decent smartphone and then pay just a handful of bucks for services every month. Cutting the upfront price in half leaves all other phones out in the cold. $560 for a SGS3 or $299 for a Nexus 4 won't leave many sales for Samsung, believe me.
For Google, Nexus is a flagship brand that represents the best of Android, with Google leading by example to show other hardware manufacturers what Android can be. And though partners build the hardware, Google wants direct control of the software on Nexus devices with no carrier intervention. That alone means Google can't sell an LTE device, as there's simply no access to LTE networks without working with carriers in one way or another: Verizon and Sprint's LTE networks still require compatibility with their 3G CDMA systems, and there's essentially no such thing as an unlocked CDMA device. AT&T's fledgling LTE network runs on different frequencies than other LTE networks around the world, so Google would have to build a custom phone for just 77 markets in the US. Doing that without AT&T's financial assistance makes little sense.
Is there any downside to getting nexus4/10 from US/UK and using as it is in India. I mean, will there be any network compatibility issues or product warranty/support problem?
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Omid.M - Monday, October 29, 2012 - link
What's wrong with Google? How is this phone of any use at 16 GB?Should've launched in two sizes: 32 & 64 or just 32
And I heard from someone that VZW will never get another Nexus phone. What a shame; Verizon is run by a bunch of greedy people.
If this came out before iPhone 5, battery life was good and this was 32GB and on Verizon, it'd make me reconsider the iPhone 5.
@moids
A5 - Monday, October 29, 2012 - link
Google wants you to put everything in the cloud, so it's not that surprising. 16GB is enough for what I do, but I can definitely see use cases where that would be limiting.ImSpartacus - Monday, October 29, 2012 - link
I don't think Google wants to replace the high end. They are taking a page from Apple's book and offering more expensive versions with larger capacity. The profound difference is that Google is letting its partners cover that part of the market while they supply the cheaper lower capacity devices.Google deals with the razor thin margins while the HTCs of the world get chubby Apple-esque margins. Everyone wins.
bplewis24 - Monday, October 29, 2012 - link
Well said.Heisenburger - Monday, October 29, 2012 - link
Should've launched in two sizes: 32 & 64 or just 32I suppose that's why the title of the article states:
"Starts at $299"
Is the build quality of LG as good as ASUS? Not that LG will do the actual fabrication.
ImSpartacus - Monday, October 29, 2012 - link
I think the common stereotype is that Asian-centric smartphones are typically tougher than the stuff we get. And since LG has a decent presence in Asian markets (and basically no market share in the west), we might expect their stuff to be at least as sturdy as the competition if not a little tougher. And if Google vouches for it, I wouldn't worry.c4v3man - Monday, October 29, 2012 - link
"Is the build quality of LG as good as ASUS? Not that LG will do the actual fabrication."It is manufactured by LG and it's partners. Their quality seems good, however their software support is terrible. Since Google taking care of the software support side of things, this is a decent phone if you're fine with no LTE.
That being said, I wouldn't buy any other LG Android phone... far too risky. The LG Spectrum got ICS a week or so ago... and it launched AFTER ICS.
ZeDestructor - Monday, October 29, 2012 - link
Its a Nexus. Google takes care of ALL FW updates, so that is not an issue at all.I'm thinking of selling my One X and getting a Nexus 4...
UpSpin - Monday, October 29, 2012 - link
The sizes are fine. If you want a smartphone for daily use and usual stuff, you'll buy the 8GB version. It's enough for apps, documents, pictures and normal sized music collection.For more music most people use a streaming client. For more data most people use GDrive, Dropbox, etc. For movies you use streaming.
If you have a large offline music collection and want to watch some movies on the go, then you can buy the 16GB version.
I have an Android Smartphone with 16GB and it's plenty for music, apps, pictures, backup. 8GB is a bit harsh, but most people won't even use 8GB.
32GB on a smartphone would be cool, but right now and especially with great cloud solutions not really a necessity.
And btw.: If you don't like what Google gives you, you're free to buy the 'original' LG version with LTE and SD-Card, but well, you won't get it for $350, but the iPhone 5 you bought was also twice as expensive as the Nexus 4, so your complaining is BS.
Mumrik - Monday, October 29, 2012 - link
It's plenty for any person in the world who doesn't insist on having a large portion of their music/media library on the phone."How is this phone of any use at 16 GB?"
It's of great use as a (smart) phone.
tommo123 - Monday, October 29, 2012 - link
agreed. one of the reasons i stick with samsung phones. a fair few of the others aren't giving you the option of more storage.the cloud isn't an option - i mean who the hell wants to watch a streaming movie via 3/4G and use up their monthly allowance of data in one go? let alone losing connection through a tunnel or something.
to me the cloud is somewhere to backup photos/videos you've taken with your phone - TB backups too. it is not a streaming service replacement for a 64GB mSD card in your phone
MadMan007 - Monday, October 29, 2012 - link
I agree, sort of, although I would have liked to see it launch with 16GB as the low-end option rather than 8GB - 8GB seems a little small if you want any kind of media on your phone in addition to apps and data. I suppose the $350 pricing for 16GB is the same as the Galaxy Nexus though so it's kind of a wash, except flash has certainly gotten cheaper over the last year. 16/32GB as options would have been much nicer, and if there was a 64GB it would have been my next phone without question.As it is, just have to use USB OTG as a kludge for media storage.
worldbfree4me - Monday, October 29, 2012 - link
Google play stores your Music and Video in the cloud. It is always accessible! If you could store your 100 gig multimedia collection on your cell phone would you really want to? With Google and others including Apple, if you have Internet access you have access to your contacts, music, and video. The difference being, Apple has a annual fee for ITunes Match!MadMan007 - Tuesday, October 30, 2012 - link
'Always accessible'? Cool, I didn't know cellular radio technology had been perfected and that coverage was literally omnipresent. I also didn't know that wireless providers had lifted data caps. Thanks!Rick83 - Tuesday, October 30, 2012 - link
I was going to say, those HD-mkvs of television series run at around 1-2GB each - getting those delivered via the air-interface sounds liek a recipe for disaster - and a monthly cap blown in 60 minutes.pmartin - Monday, October 29, 2012 - link
Why didn't you get a S3? It has all the features missing from the Nexus 4 and it was out before the iphone 5.twtech - Tuesday, October 30, 2012 - link
What do you put on your phone that requires more than 16gb of storage? I'm assuming you're talking about a lot of audio and video.Some people don't have that many songs, or would prefer to stream off the internet anyway. So 16gb is easily viable for some. I haven't come close to using up all of my media storage capacity on any phone or tablet that I've owned.
twotwotwo - Monday, October 29, 2012 - link
http://googleblog.blogspot.com/2012/10/nexus-best-...- A $300 version of the N7 has HSPA+ as well as 32GB.
- Nexus 10 starts at $400.
Already rumored, now confirmed: wireless charging, multi-user support and Swype-style keyboard.
blanarahul - Monday, October 29, 2012 - link
I have got "good news" for everyone.Nexus 4 "doesn't have" 4G LTE!!!!
blanarahul - Monday, October 29, 2012 - link
According to: http://www.theverge.com/2012/10/29/3569688/why-nex...1. No 4G LTE.
2. HSPA+ is still available.
3. No contract. You have to buy the phone unlocked through t-mobile. This is a step taken by Google to promote super fast updates.
fr33h33l - Monday, October 29, 2012 - link
All Nexus devices - Nexus 4, 7 and 10 are amazing value at $299, $199 and $399, respectively. As Jason writes, and especially for Nexus 4 and 10 in their respective categories, we now have top of the line hardware at bargain price points. Nothing short of amazing I would say.At these price points it is also ridiculous to complain about limited storage. If you are not prepared to do some regular house cleaning, then consider waiting for an expandable, non-Nexus variant branded by the manufacturer instead (and pay hundreds of dollar more). I would say it is a great strategy by Google to offer this level of hardware at these prices, yet limit them enough (no storage expansion most notably) to not kill the high end market for their partners.
If Nexus 4 and 10 were currently available in my country (Sweden), I'd place the order right away, despite already having both a smartphone and a table with recent hardware.
ImSpartacus - Monday, October 29, 2012 - link
Yes, I find it difficult that anyone can argue with the storage situation when we're talking about prices like these.Like you said, Google managed to preserve the high end by allowing its partners to overprice the 64GB and eventual 128GB devices.
MadMan007 - Monday, October 29, 2012 - link
No one would argue about storage if there was an SD slot. I know Google is against SD slot for both technical and business reasons and that's why they had LG take it out of this version of the phone, it's just not the most user-friendly way to go. I can understand why LTE is out due to cost, but SD slots can't be THAT much.frenchy_2001 - Monday, October 29, 2012 - link
LTE is not out because of cost, it is out because of control.Google wants to control the software and release cycle and offers the phone as unlocked and free of contract. There is no such thing as an unlocked LTE phone and no US carrier is interested in relaxing their control on the phones getting on their LTE network.
So, until you can use an unlocked phone on LTE, there will be no Nexus with LTE as it conflicts with the stated goal of the nexus: google control of software releases.
That being said, HSPA+ is already quite fast and ATT already re-branded it as 4G on the iPhone4S for example. The nexus 4 will support that.
MadMan007 - Tuesday, October 30, 2012 - link
The Verizon CDMA Galaxy Nexus had LTE. Was it not unlocked?Muyoso - Tuesday, October 30, 2012 - link
The Verizon Galaxy Nexus was initially delayed for MONTHS because Verizon wanted to launch a Droid phone. Then Verizon wouldn't allow Google Wallet on the device. Then Verizon loaded some of their crapware on the device. Then Verizon took months and months to push updates to the device.The Verizon phone was never a Nexus phone. It might have had the name Nexus, but it flew in the face of everything the Nexus stands for.
makken - Monday, October 29, 2012 - link
Any word on which frequencies it supports? Being that its going to t-mobile I'm assuming it has the AWS band. I'm hoping that its pentaband and will work on AT&T as well.A5 - Monday, October 29, 2012 - link
The store page says this:NETWORK
GSM/EDGE/GPRS (850, 900, 1800, 1900 MHz)
3G (850, 900, 1700, 1900, 2100 MHz)
HSPA+ 21
So it should work on AT&T.
EnzoFX - Monday, October 29, 2012 - link
Great. Great news for TMobile users on value plans!pmartin - Monday, October 29, 2012 - link
It's pentaband just like the Galaxy NexusImSpartacus - Monday, October 29, 2012 - link
Does anyone else think that the "Nexus 4" name is horrific in light of the Nexus 7 and Nexus 10?I understand that Google was in a pickle that they probably wanted to call it the Nexus 5, but then that would get heat from chronologists. They can't win.
What is the right name? Optimus Nexus?
lmcd - Monday, October 29, 2012 - link
Yeah, I was wondering about that too. Calling it the Nexus 4.7 would work best, I think.Krysto - Monday, October 29, 2012 - link
Disagree. Nexus 4.7 is a worse name.phoenix_rizzen - Monday, October 29, 2012 - link
They're all named after the digit in front of the decimal in the screen size.Nexus 4 has a 4.whatever screen.
Nexus 7 has a 7.whatever screen.
Nexus 10 has a 10.whatever screen.
Naming makes perfectly logical sense to me.
mgl888 - Monday, October 29, 2012 - link
It's also the 4th "Nexus" device!Visual - Tuesday, October 30, 2012 - link
well, phone, not devicemadmilk - Monday, October 29, 2012 - link
Tech companies just seem to suck at naming their devices. We have Apple naming their 6th iPhone the iPhone 5. Both nVidia and AMD use the 2nd digit to compare performance, so we have very intuitive logic like 6450 < 5870. Let's not even get started on renaming (there's 4 versions of the GT 640?!). There's also the mystery of why Intel calls Ivy Bridge "3rd generation" for consumers, and "v2" for servers...pmartin - Monday, October 29, 2012 - link
What does the name have to do with anything?ciaphuas - Monday, October 29, 2012 - link
$299 unlocked for a top of the line smartphone! Nice Job Google!Death666Angel - Monday, October 29, 2012 - link
Those are some sweet devices at great prices. I'll try and hold off on buying anything for as long as possible, still satisfied with my tablet and GN. :Dtrynberg - Monday, October 29, 2012 - link
No LTE != top of the lineAlso, for people defending the lack of storage because of the low price...give me a break. How much would it cost to add an SD slot? Very little. The lack of storage is a deliberate means of control (forces you to use Google cloud services), not cost savings.
bplewis24 - Monday, October 29, 2012 - link
You could always, you know, buy a third party Android phone.Google isn't trying to force you to do anything. You can have a top-of-the-line Android phone with the specs you want from Samsung, HTC, LG, Motorola, Huawei, etc. It's not like 1 version of an Android phone is released each year and the end-user is stuck with whatever Google decides for that model. That's the way the "other" guy operates.
trynberg - Monday, October 29, 2012 - link
Unfortunately, this is an otherwise top-spec phone with an unlocked bootloader. I can't get that on Verizon. Google should play hardball with Verizon and offer an unlocked model with LTE/CDMA radios as well. I don't care if it costs $600-$650.pmartin - Monday, October 29, 2012 - link
Or they can make a phone that works anywhere in the world for $300noblemo - Tuesday, October 30, 2012 - link
Unlocked Developer Editions of the Verizon Droid RAZR M and RAZR HD are available for $550 and $600, respectively.http://www.motorola.com/us/consumers/Developer-Edi...
icrf - Monday, October 29, 2012 - link
The lack of LTE is what really bothers me. It definitely seems like a much larger step backwards. New Nexus has slower wireless connectivity than old Nexus? It boggles the mind. I mean, what does an MDM9615 cost?The lack of SD card doesn't bother me. I haven't once pulled the SD card from my phone in the 18 months I've had it. It did, however, have a 32 GB SD card. To that end, 16/32 seems like good capacity points, considering the difference in flash costs is something like $10. I see no reason to have a phone with no expandable storage and only 8 GB on-board.
Adding an SD card is always a little complicated, so I'm not surprised to see it missing. If you take a picture, where is it stored? How do you explain to the user that they've run out of space, but there is still free space?
A5 - Monday, October 29, 2012 - link
They claim it's because they didn't want to deal with Verizon's BS again and AT&T's LTE doesn't cover enough people to be worth the difference in cost without financial help from AT&T.Considering that the HSPA+ GNex was far more popular than the Sprint/Verizon versions, this isn't that surprising.
I'm guessing that if you want LTE, there will be plenty of XDA projects to port the Nexus ROMs to the Optimus G.
lmcd - Monday, October 29, 2012 - link
Did the Google Play-shipped version have LTE?No.
trynberg - Monday, October 29, 2012 - link
This is 2012, not 2011.JasonInofuentes - Monday, October 29, 2012 - link
Carriers have an agenda, and for the last decade, all of the agency in the US. When Google announced that they would be selling the original Nexus through their own channel (unlocked and unfettered) it was a shot across the bow of the US carrier market. This is the next shot. If the Nexus 4 sells with the alacrity of the Nexus 7, then that will demonstrate to the carriers that buyers are interested in performance and software updates, and unwilling to put up with bloated, antiquated software just for the latest air interface.By pricing these so cheaply, by dragging the unlocked price down as low as it'd go, they are applying pressures that could hopefully push the carriers to give Android the same regard as iOS devices.
UpSpin - Monday, October 29, 2012 - link
No LTE: To keep costs low. Using LTE requires several patents, and thus increases the price. The APQ8064 also doesn't contain LTE, so additional chips are required. You can add this, but not for $300.SD-card: It's a Nexus phone and Google doesn't add SD-Cards, it's their philosophy. Get it. Google wants you to use the cloud and offers you many options to do so, and if you can't live with this, don't think about buying a Nexus device.
I also don't see how 16GB is not enough. If 16GB isn't enough, how can 32GB or 64GB?
If 16GB isn't enough, then you don't just store music or pictures on it, but movies. For HD movies, 32GB is ridicoulus with min. 4GB/Movie, just as 64GB.
MadMan007 - Monday, October 29, 2012 - link
"If 16GB isn't enough, then you don't just store music or pictures on it, but movies"Just because you have a small music collection doesn't mean everyone else does.
oliwek - Tuesday, October 30, 2012 - link
not to mention there are emulators (playstation 1) requiring CD ISOs to play, and other space hungry software (GPS,...). I have a 16GB Nexus device, and it's always almost full up. 32GB is not so large for some users.JasonInofuentes - Monday, October 29, 2012 - link
Cost is probably only a part of the answer. Individual components, radios inclusive, are relatively cheap. LTE involves something more than just cost, though. Unlike GSM/HSPA standards, and unlike the intentions of the bodies that govern radio interface standards, there's no way in the US to simply slip in an SD card and have an unlocked LTE device running. And what do the carriers want in exchange for their cooperation? A lot. They want to pick out the software package, they want to drape their logos all over the devices and they want to be the customers, not us. By deciding what our selection is they can exert greater control both in pricing and the character of the devices available.Today's announcement is a statement to the carriers that we are the customers, and they are the providers.
ciaphuas - Monday, October 29, 2012 - link
The great thing about Android is different phones for different needs. It's not like Google is forcing you to buy only one type of phone.probedb - Monday, October 29, 2012 - link
For the price, do I care? Not one jot. My S2 has HSPA+ which is plenty fast enough for me.Just because you don't like it doesn't make it rubbish.
Where are all these other devices for the same price with the same spec list with the things you're complaining that this is missing?
trynberg - Monday, October 29, 2012 - link
It's hard to believe that Anandtech isn't biased towards Apple with statements like this:"On the front of the device you find a 2560x1600 10" display, making it the highest resolution Android tablet to date."
Why say highest resolution Android tablet? This is highest resolution tablet, period, correct? If this was an Apple blurb, I'm sure comparisons would have been made to the "inferior" competition. Also, no comment on how this pricing blows the iPad out of the water?
EnzoFX - Monday, October 29, 2012 - link
Stop measuring everything by Apple standards =P.lmcd - Monday, October 29, 2012 - link
Exactly.This is the highest-end ARM tablet out. T604 might not beat whatever is in the A6X but two A15s beat whatever Apple's CPU architecture is on the A6. Meanwhile, the screen is second-to-none for tablets, or really for any system under $1000.
JasonInofuentes - Monday, October 29, 2012 - link
If there's one thing we try to do above any other, it's not saying anything that we haven't tested for ourselves. Are the A15's faster than Swift? Maybe, we'll find out soon enough. Is this the best 10" screen ever? Maybe, we'll find out. That's what we offer you all, and I hope you'll understand.trynberg - Monday, October 29, 2012 - link
Further to my original comment:Anandtech, where are the articles regarding the Droid HD Razrs? The new Nexus 4? The new Nexus 7 and 10? Your site contains preview and rumor articles for Apple and even Microsoft all of the time, yet I don't recall seeing even a single article talking about these products.
JasonInofuentes - Monday, October 29, 2012 - link
I'm actually working on the RAZR reviews while we speak. As far as the rumors of the Nexus 4, etc, we report what we know and what isn't embargoed. Our articles ahead of the recent iPhone announcement were a bit of a departure for us. Generally, if we make conjectures about future products we do so within reviews or articles discussing current products. Further, unlike other sites, we don't make these conjectures to spread rumors, we do it to establish the context of a device. If a new devices is about to be superseded by another much more competitive product then it's worth discussing.I've invited everyone to feel free to contact me directly about any of your concerns regarding bias in any of my posts, you can find me e-mail address on the byline. Cheers.
Jason
pmartin - Monday, October 29, 2012 - link
So vote with your clicks and stop reading Anandtech. I'm sure there are tons of unbiased site you can readJasonInofuentes - Monday, October 29, 2012 - link
While we appreciate the comments, there's never any need to tell readers to go elsewhere! :)Cheers
Jason
JasonInofuentes - Monday, October 29, 2012 - link
If I can defend myself, I couldn't recall what the resolution of the new iPad was while I was writing this post. And I didn't have time to look it up, as I was drawn to wrap up the piece before heading to the basement and fixing my sump pump so my house wouldn't flood. If you're concerned about my bias you're welcome to send me an e-mail on the matter whenever you detect it. I invite you to do so.Krysto - Monday, October 29, 2012 - link
That's insane pricing - basically half the price of the competition's flagships, with the same powerful hardware (or more powerful, like compared to WP8 phones).I have a request when - when you review the Nexus 10 and even the Nexus 4, please use whatever browser has the better Javascript performance, not just Chrome, so we can get a better sense of what the hardware can actually do, and not be hindered by the software.
For example, I've seen Exynos 5 Dual get 668 ms in Sunspider on the Chromebook, and "only" 1300 ms in a production unit of Nexus 10, and if that remains true in the final unit, then something is definitely wrong in the Chrome software. I think Chrome for Android is still a few versions behind the desktop Chrome, which means the V8 engine is, too. It also got twice the score for V8 and Octane compared to the Apple A6 chip in iPhone 5.
At least try to pinpoint why the same chip gets so much better scores in ChromeOS, but only mediocre ones in Chrome for Android (that is if it will still be case when you review it).
Torrijos - Monday, October 29, 2012 - link
I feel on the contrary they should use whatever software comes pre-installed on the phone, since their aim is to present the picture of what customers are buying not how great it is once you've tinkered with it for hours to optimised the device.I think its OK to test with the latest OS, as long as it's a standard update some computer illiterate grandma would be able to do, everything else is a wrong representation (unless you add to the cost the rates of the time spent optimising).
The benchmarking discrepancies are probably due to Apple and Google optimising their respective browser to the test sets.
lmcd - Monday, October 29, 2012 - link
I disagree; Android is optimized in the sense that it allows other rendering engines.Some computer-illiterate grandma won't buy any of these without guidance; thirty seconds of guidance with the out-of-the-box configuration is reasonable in that scenario. If the purchaser is looking at benchmarks, they can download an app.
pmartin - Monday, October 29, 2012 - link
What "computer-illiterate grandma" is going to reading Anandtech? What "computer-illiterate grandma" is buying a phone based on its javascript performance, Lol? Bench the phone it right out of the box, apples to apples.dishayu - Tuesday, October 30, 2012 - link
Or the best option, have both... The best browser and the stock browser. The readers can decide which one is more relevant to them.lmcd - Monday, October 29, 2012 - link
It's currently three versions behind. Ideally mobile Firefox or Opera gets used (as far as I know the fastest on Android).JasonInofuentes - Monday, October 29, 2012 - link
This is a great comment, and those that follow are similarly great.There's a few things that we try to take into consideration when we look at benchmarks. Consistency is paramount. If we can't repeat the test and get the same (roughly) results then there's no point using it. There's also the matter of equity, if today a tablet was released that ran Honeycomb 3.0, we might not bother reviewing it, and if we did we'd smother the review with coaching statements like "we could easily expect better performance with updated software."
Today, there's Chrome and Browser. One has received it's end-of-life status. The other is the future and will be the only browser available on Android devices in the future. Are their cases where the original Android browser is the better performer? Maybe. Surely. But what would the point be of testing hardware with Browser when Chrome is the future.
This is something to look further into, though. Perhaps we'll consider a feature on the two.
glynor - Monday, October 29, 2012 - link
Does anyone know how that GPU compares to the (assumed) quad-version of the A6 in the A6X?Based on the typically underpowered GPUs in previous Android devices, I'm wondering how well that is going to be able to power that high-res display.
lmcd - Monday, October 29, 2012 - link
It probably isn't quad-core in the A6X since the A5X was already quad-core. It's probably hexa-core, or could possibly be a really clocked-up quad-core.And it should be fine, as it has to be an upgrade from the GSIII GPU which edged out the SGX 543MP2 in the A5 (ignoring the gaping failure in GL ES Benchmark 2.5).
ssiu - Monday, October 29, 2012 - link
"Dual-core A6X with quad-core graphics", http://www.apple.com/ca/ipad/specs/so A6X GPU is either running at twice the Mhz of A5X, or different/improved GPU design (less likely)
A5X GPU is ~twice the performance of A5 GPU, and A6X is about twice of A5X. The Nexus 10 GPU is likely a bit faster than A5X, but slower than A6X.
Krysto - Monday, October 29, 2012 - link
Should be 72 Gflops for Mali T604 to 64 Glops for A6X GPU. But we'll see the GLbenchmarks soon enough.Mali T604 will also support OpenGL ES 3.0 standard (compared to the 4 year old OpenGL ES 2.0 that A6X still supports). Not sure why it doesn't support it right out of the gate though, but it should with a driver update. Or maybe ARM just couldn't get the Khronos certification in time for launch and they can't officially say they support all the features yet.
ahar - Monday, October 29, 2012 - link
...piques your interest in a big way.GokieKS - Monday, October 29, 2012 - link
When the 8GB storage rumors became obvious, my reaction was "the only way that would really make sense is if they were going for a low price - maybe $300". And looks like I was right. It's still too low for me to personally consider it, but for people like my parents, the 8GB model would be a great choice. The 16GB model though will be one that I consider against the iPhone 5, One X+, and Lumia 920 once the Nokia is available. I'd prefer a 32GB model (for $399?), but oh well.Oh, and a minor bit of editing nitpick: "peaks our interest" is wrong - the proper word is "piques". :-)
ssiu - Monday, October 29, 2012 - link
I wonder if Google increase the storage ~3 months later ($299 for 16GB, $349 for 32GB) like it did with Nexus 7?RollingCamel - Monday, October 29, 2012 - link
Any word about the Nexus 4 bootloader? the Optimus G was locked.Krysto - Monday, October 29, 2012 - link
Should be as easy to unlock as any other Nexus device, with one command:fastboot oem unlock
RollingCamel - Monday, October 29, 2012 - link
Hope so...Randomblame - Monday, October 29, 2012 - link
want the new sdk api level so I can play with 4.2 :Puhuznaa - Monday, October 29, 2012 - link
The prices are just insane. As soon as the Nexus 4 goes on sale it will just kill sales for all other high-end Android Smartphones (and probably others too) which cost almost twice as much. There's no way others can meet this while still making profits. The market is dead, Google killed it.As a strategy this is interesting, but Google right now is going around and nuking the competition (and even its partners) left and right. It's almost like some business partners having a meeting and one pulling out a gun and just killing everyone else to make a point. Violence certainly works, but has a habit to disrupt things in a big way.
pmartin - Monday, October 29, 2012 - link
I doubt it will kill the competition. Us nerds will buy it but the masses will still go to Walmart, Target, Best Buy or their carriers store (where this phone will not be on display) and buy whatever's the hot phone of the moment. Unless Google does a major ad campaign for this phone Samsung, HTC and LG have nothing to fear from Nexus 4.Muyoso - Tuesday, October 30, 2012 - link
It won't be a smash hit in the US, but I think the rest of the world will go nuts for it. The rest of the world for the most part doesn't have LTE and is used to buying unsubsidized phones.uhuznaa - Tuesday, October 30, 2012 - link
Exactly. People are used to paying an arm and a leg for a decent smartphone and then pay just a handful of bucks for services every month. Cutting the upfront price in half leaves all other phones out in the cold. $560 for a SGS3 or $299 for a Nexus 4 won't leave many sales for Samsung, believe me.worldbfree4me - Monday, October 29, 2012 - link
For Google, Nexus is a flagship brand that represents the best of Android, with Google leading by example to show other hardware manufacturers what Android can be. And though partners build the hardware, Google wants direct control of the software on Nexus devices with no carrier intervention. That alone means Google can't sell an LTE device, as there's simply no access to LTE networks without working with carriers in one way or another: Verizon and Sprint's LTE networks still require compatibility with their 3G CDMA systems, and there's essentially no such thing as an unlocked CDMA device. AT&T's fledgling LTE network runs on different frequencies than other LTE networks around the world, so Google would have to build a custom phone for just 77 markets in the US. Doing that without AT&T's financial assistance makes little sense.http://www.theverge.com/2012/10/29/3569688/why-nex...
NeonFlak - Tuesday, October 30, 2012 - link
Ahh, WTF?Naruto_Luffy - Tuesday, October 30, 2012 - link
Is there any downside to getting nexus4/10 from US/UK and using as it is in India. I mean, will there be any network compatibility issues or product warranty/support problem?