- Google and Samsung announced the Galaxy Nexus smartphone, which will be the first device running the new Android 4.0 "Ice Cream Sandwich" OS.
- No pricing or carriers were announced, but LTE and HSPA+ versions were confirmed and it is widely accepted that at least Verizon will carry the device in the US, with global launch coming in November.
- Hardware highlights include a curved 4.7 inch 1280x720 Super AMOLED screen and NFC.
- New software features include facial-recognition device unlocking, improved notifications, improved camera app, better speech-to-text, and Android Beam sharing.
Initial Reaction:
Hardware wise, the specs are not surprising given the current crop of high-end Android phones and the iPhone 4S. This is not some revolutionary quad-core monster; rather, it seems a small but noticeable step up from devices like the Bionic, Galaxy S 2, and Sensation. As such, the main selling point for this phone will be Android 4.0.
Ice Cream Sandwich (ICS) has been presented as the update to reunite the current phone (Gingerbread) and tablet (Honeycomb) "forks" in the Android OS. As if that wasn't enough, ICS needed to bring enough new features to the table to combat Apple's Siri-laced iOS 5. Time will tell if all devices can play nice under the ICS tent from here on out, but I am not sure Google added any single feature that has the "wow" factor Siri seems to have.
Still, Android took a significant step towards usability and unified vision today, but the iPhone remains the current master in those categories. ICS is by far the largest feature update to Android in a long time, perhaps ever, and that is a good thing. However, Google still needs to step up their game and offer a unified, easy-to-use music purchasing service in the Android Market alongside apps, books, and movies.
In the end, Android remains the best fit for my needs and wants in a smartphone OS. Google has shown a willingness to drastically change how their software works (remember the navigation ball on the Nexus 1?) by making significant updates to the UI and even going so far as to removed the need for any physical buttons other than power and volume from phones. They have shown willingness to throw out the old and start fresh if they had a better idea, and I approve of and support that position.
Apple, meanwhile, apparently remains convinced that the "icons-on-a-screen" UI they came up with four-and-a-half years ago is the best UI for mobile devices. They have had to figure out ways to put new features in without changing the core UI, which hasn't always yielded the best results. For a huge number of people, Apple's approach works just fine, but I am not one of them. If anything, ICS and iOS 5 show that there is still a great future ahead for phone software as hardware seems to be slowly diminishing in importance.
Questions moving forward:
- Will the GN be available on more carriers than just Verizon in the USA?
- Which current Android phones/tablets will get updated, and when?
- How will manufactures adapt their skins to the new UI, especially HTC and Sense?
- What ever happened to Google's 18-month update plan? We haven't heard anything about it since I/O.
- Will ICS actually help end "fragmentation" moving forward?
- When will we start seeing new devices launching with ICS out of the door?
- Most importantly: was this enough for Molly Wood?!?
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