Official Avail. Nov 13th - Android 4.2 - LG Nexus 4 - Asus Nexus 7 - Samsung Nexus 10

[ponyo]

I've used Google hangout and it worked pretty well, tango also worked pretty well for me.

Google Hangout is only available to Google+ members, correct? I know third-party apps work well. Skype worked fine and I heard good things about Tango. I just want first party system app that works well. And I don't want to have to use Google+.

 

[ponyo]

wow, never had that experience. google talk video works great, even to my sister all the way in india.

hmm. I will try again and report back. The couple of times I tried with my brother-in-law, it was awful experience with blocky jerky video. I used my Galaxy Nexus and he used his SGS3 on home WiFi.

 

[VashHT]

Yeah I think hangouts is google+ only on mobile devices, but it's not like you have to sign up for it, if you have a google account you're already in. I never use google+ but I've used it for hangouts, I basically just signed into to google+ and never set up anything for it.

 

[Puddle Jumper]

Google Talk video has been great for me as well, I know several people who use it to connect with people in Europe and even then the quality is great.

 

[Crow550]

Yeah I think hangouts is google+ only on mobile devices, but it's not like you have to sign up for it, if you have a google account you're already in. I never use google+ but I've used it for hangouts, I basically just signed into to google+ and never set up anything for it.

Yup on the desktop you can invite non-G+ members by E-mail and even phone contacts. It's pretty cool. Hopefully they add it in the mobile version soon....

 

[magomago]

Just want to requote this; on their webpage its still HSPA+ 21, not 42. I can't imagine how a correction hasn't been made at this point.

I'm assuming that Tmo direct gets HSPA+ 42 as part of the package. If its true, its not a bad compromise from google's standpoint; Tmobile gets slightly faster hardware, but they still get complete SW control. i just hope 21 vs 42 isn't radically different as I'm definitely getting it from the google play store

Now its fixed

HSPA+ 42 goodness baby yeahh!

 

[Skurge]

You can't compare the features on a N$300 phone to the features on a $600-700 phone. that is why nobody cares. All of the features and specs this phone does have N$300 is a steal. People bash the iphone 4s for not having LTE cause you either got it on contract or it cost some absurd price. For half the price you are getting the most powerful android phone out there with stock google.

I wouldn't expect a $300 phone to have everything. If it doesn't so what? It's $300! I would expect the most expensive phone phone to have LTE. SGS3, HTC One X, iPhone 5 and they do and they are double the price.

If Apple want to charge $700 dollers for an iphone it damn well better have LTE and if it doesn't I will bash them for it. I don't remember you parading the iphone's lack of simultaneous voice and LTE. Which is why the battery life is as good as it is.

LTE would have the raised the cost for Americans that wont be able to use it and it would have raised the cost for the rest of the world where 95% of people don't have access to it. What is the point of that? They charge $50 for an extra 8GB of NAND, if Amazon charges an extra $200 for LTE, you sure as hell can believe Google will, (or LG will) and at that price what do you have?

LG Optimus G that is a Nexus 4 with LTE and costs twice as much.

Now lets look at these "International" LTE phones.

HTC One X+ only supports 2100/1700, that's the US, Canada, Puerto Rico, Japan and South Korea

iPhone 5 - http://www.apple.com/iphone/LTE/

The Lumia 920 would be the only phone that truly is International, I don't know what draw backs that comes with if any. Admittedly I don't know much about how LTE really works so feel free to correct me, but this what I've dug up in my short time looking around.

Back to price, the HTC ONE X+ is 470GBP in the UK, no pricing in the states. the cheapest iPhone 5 I could find was $900. The Lumia 920 is $600/500GBP
$349 for an unlocked Nexus 4 16GB without LTE or $900+ for an unlocked iphone 5 16GB with LTE (It isn't Pentaband so you could say that is a missing feature)

So keep bashing the Nexus 4.

 

[Ryan]

I would gladly pay 50 extra dollars for the phone just to get LTE coverage. I'm sure that Google could work in an LTE chip for that price.....

 

[Eug]

Hmm... I'm disappointed it doesn't have LTE, but then again HSPA+ 42 should be significantly faster than the 3G I have on my iPhone 4. Can anyone tell me what speeds I should realistically expect to get out of this thing on Fido in Canada, in Toronto?

I am also disappointed the phone is so big.

Still, at CAD$359 for the 16 GB model, I'll have to consider it, at least if it supports tethering. I currently tether my Nexus 7 and MacBook Pro from my iPhone 4 on 3G.

BTW, I agree with some of the posters here. Some of the carriers aren't gonna like this phone so much. It's the first phone that hits mainstream pricing yet still is a near-flagship phone. I wasn't gonna pay full unlocked price for the iPhone 5, and I was loathe to have to break my current contract to sign up for another 3-year for one.

 

[sjwaste]

Why is it that I can get a 10" tablet that has 2500xWhatever resolution, but I can't get a 13-15" laptop with that same resolution for less than what the Macbook Retina costs? I like ultra-high res in my portable devices. Google can somehow sell me this kind of screen for $400? Someone put this into a laptop/ultrabook for me.

 

[zerocool84]

Why is it that I can get a 10" tablet that has 2500xWhatever resolution, but I can't get a 13-15" laptop with that same resolution for less than what the Macbook Retina costs? I like ultra-high res in my portable devices. Google can somehow sell me this kind of screen for $400? Someone put this into a laptop/ultrabook for me.

Because Google isn't trying to make money on the device. They're trying to get people in the ecosystem. People that make computers need to make money on them.

 

[Skurge]

What is MIMO Wifi? I see the Nexus 10 has it.

 

[lothar]

LOL okay. If it doesn't have LTE for Verizon or AT&T, I understand why. That's why I don't care about those, because by inclusion of LTE for any carrier on the US, that typically means they have to sell it with a carrier contract. I understand Google's unwillingness to do that. But international LTE? Can you please give me a reasonable explanation why that can't be done? I could make the argument that they should've just done 2G EDGE and not had 3G HSPA. If they're selling it as an international phone, then they can try to include international bands. For some reason to you that means 4G is undoable.

Added cost and likely delay. According to who? Was there an issue putting LTE on this phone? Once again, I cite the iPhone. Is there some reason Apple can pull it off but LG cannot? There are tons of other LTE phones out there. Honestly, why I'm annoyed is because the apologists are out in force.

If Apple released an 8GB/16GB iPhone 5 (no other models) for $299 and $349 with no LTE you would applaud the pricing but chastise Apple to no end for the lack of LTE and point to your Galaxy Nexus and talk about LTE. All the Android supporters on this board would also come out and slam Apple for not having a microSD slot yet offering little space.

How many carriers in Europe are currently running an LTE network?
In Asia...Maybe South Korea, Japan, and maybe Hong Kong?

The US by far has the most LTE subscribers than anywhere else in the world.

It is estimated that global LTE connections topped 27 million at the end of Q2, up from around 10 million at the end of 2011; US operators accounted for 47 percent of the total, followed by South Korea (27 percent) and Japan (13 percent).

So the fact of the matter is there's not much LTE out there outside of the US.

 

[Eug]

Why is it that I can get a 10" tablet that has 2500xWhatever resolution, but I can't get a 13-15" laptop with that same resolution for less than what the Macbook Retina costs? I like ultra-high res in my portable devices. Google can somehow sell me this kind of screen for $400? Someone put this into a laptop/ultrabook for me.

I think a large part of it has to do with the OS. 2560x1600 on a 13" laptop is not very user friendly with most current computer OSes, since they are not built to be resolution independent. Apple tried it, and failed, but came up with a good compromise by building its OS to function well with effectively pixel-doubled (quadrupled) text sizes.

Think of it this way: The 13" rMBP is running with text sizes comparable to the regular 1280x800 MBP. Text is a lot bigger on the MBP than it is on the 13" Air, which is one reason I never bought the Air.

 

[jpeyton]

What is MIMO Wifi? I see the Nexus 10 has it.

MIMO uses a pair of antennas instead of a single antenna to increase reception/performance.

 

[Ravynmagi]

Why is it that I can get a 10" tablet that has 2500xWhatever resolution, but I can't get a 13-15" laptop with that same resolution for less than what the Macbook Retina costs? I like ultra-high res in my portable devices. Google can somehow sell me this kind of screen for $400? Someone put this into a laptop/ultrabook for me.

I'd just kill for a 1366x768 IPS display in a laptop under $500. Sick of all these TN crap panels most laptops still use.

 

[Bateluer]

What is MIMO Wifi? I see the Nexus 10 has it.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MIMO

Two or more antenna to increase Tx/Rx.



Have to admit here, I'm not that crazy about the Nexus 4. More so for the storage options, or lack thereof, then the lack of LTE. A Nexus 4 will feel very old in a year with all the carries in the US sporting LTE networks. And it'll be full 30 minutes after I power it up the first time.

Pinning my hopes on the dev community to polish up the Razr HDs.

 

[BenSkywalker]

I keep hoping to see discussion on the Nexus 10 and all I see are pages and pages of useless LTE bickering.

Until we get info on how the SoC is going to stack up, it's really hard to gauge the 10. 25x16 is far removed from low res offerings like the iPad, and without serious SoC improvements it won't be a good product. That said, if the SoC is up to the task, then it may be an incredible device.

 

[jpeyton]

Until we get info on how the SoC is going to stack up, it's really hard to gauge the 10. 25x16 is far removed from low res offerings like the iPad, and without serious SoC improvements it won't be a good product. That said, if the SoC is up to the task, then it may be an incredible device.

The Nexus 10 SoC looks incredibly speedy: http://www.viddler.com/v/e53dfbe1?secret=61649288

 

[sciwizam]

I would gladly pay 50 extra dollars for the phone just to get LTE coverage. I'm sure that Google could work in an LTE chip for that price.....

The thing is there is no extra LTE chip. Nexus 4 has the Qualcomm MDM9615, same as every other LTE phone. It's not the cost, it's the politics of dealing with the carriers.

 

[SpacemanSpiffVT]

IMO I don't give a crap about LTE, for that price its a steal. I wish they would release a 32GB version though. I would be super super annoyed if they pulled a nexus 7 deal again, in fact, I may hold out until sometime early next year for reviews to come in and see about a 32GB nexus 4.

Now the Nexus 10, I am not sure what to do in that situation. I need to see it in person before I buy.

 

[vshah]

hmm. I will try again and report back. The couple of times I tried with my brother-in-law, it was awful experience with blocky jerky video. I used my Galaxy Nexus and he used his SGS3 on home WiFi.

i've noticed that if you have a crappy 1mbps upload on your isp (common with cable internet) then switching to a cell network can actually improve the quality of the video you're sending out.

 

[vshah]

IMO I don't give a crap about LTE, for that price its a steal. I wish they would release a 32GB version though. I would be super super annoyed if they pulled a nexus 7 deal again, in fact, I may hold out until sometime early next year for reviews to come in and see about a 32GB nexus 4.

Now the Nexus 10, I am not sure what to do in that situation. I need to see it in person before I buy.

if they release a 32 i'll just sell the 16 for a bit of a loss and buy the 32. the difference in cost will be what I paid to enjoy it for however long i owned it. it's a hobby after all :awe:

 

[dlock13]

if they release a 32 i'll just sell the 16 for a bit of a loss and buy the 32. the difference in cost will be what I paid to enjoy it for however long i owned it. it's a hobby after all :awe:

I want to do this so bad, but I can't justify getting off an unlimited LTE plan and going over to AT&T when I don't have to.

 

[Suspicious-Teach8788]

i've noticed that if you have a crappy 1mbps upload on your isp (common with cable internet) then switching to a cell network can actually improve the quality of the video you're sending out.

do you really need more than 1mbps to video call? I mean I used to webcam in college when we had 4mbps/256kbps Comcast. That was fine I recall.