Phil's thoughts on the LG Nexus leaks ...

[Phil Nickinson]

Well now. Looks like this thing's pretty solid, eh?

Since I've actually spent a few days with the LG Optimus G, I'm going to jot down a few notes on what think here, strictly based on what I can see in those pictures. (Update: Never mind. Gonna throw some other stuff in here, too.)

• The back of the phone probably is the most striking feature. And it's pretty familiar, if you've seen an Optimus G. LG's using what it calls a "crystal reflection process." The back of the phone almost assuredly is flat glass (though it wouldn't surprise me if nobody actually uses the world "glass"). But the crystal reflection process makes it look like there's texture on top of the glass -- much in the same way that the plastic battery cover on the Galaxy Nexus is textured. It's pretty cool, actually.
• LG's hardware build on the Optimus G seemed really tight. I used it for the better part of three days, and I had nary a creak. That's not a lot of time, mind you, but I had no initial concerns. I'd probably expect the same from this Nexus, though obviously things can happen. Also, I wonder what a wider body means in terms of strength. That'd leave more room for flexing, right?
• Same Linux kernel as that other leak.
• Don't worry about radio freqs just yet. Google's not going to leave anybody out, I'd imagine.
• Don't question Paul O'Brien.
• Assuming hardware is on par with the new stuff today, it'll be the software that has me interested. That was the case with the Galaxy Nexus and ICS, too, of course. Nexus is all about the software. Not the hardware. Though Google's done a really good job, imho, of keeping the hardware pretty interesting, too.

I have a good feeling folks are going to be pretty surprised with what they get.

 

[paulobrien]

Thanks Phil!

Although Google will probably try not leave anyone out, they do have a history of making kinda stupid calls on the Nexus line in one way or another. There's really no excuse for a device not being pentaband nowadays though I think... especially one that's being targetted as carrier independent.

P

 

[billchen0014]

I want something as striking or revolutionary to the android world like the official introduction (support) for 720p displays for phones. that is really cool for google to do. also, i am surprised that google still haven't integrated toggles in the notification drawer, maybe they are just finalising the styling and the right version number to release it (4.2). one more thing: I HATE THE YOUTUBE APP! It takes soooooooooooo long for it to open now, even on the nexus 7, click....... wait..... almost......nearly......close now....... and bam! the old video you watched a long time ago. sigh, google, i think the youtube app on ios might be better than the android version. fix it! i wrote this entire post waiting for the facebook app to load. yeah, its s...l...o...w...

 

[imneveral0ne]

If it has the same specs as the Optimus G, I'm sold!

Sent from my SCH-I535 using Android Central Forums

 

[SparklingCyanide]

Thanks for the thoughts Phil, its very interesting and can't wait to see the rest of the hardware/software - D

 

[Stang68]

I really am holding out hope for a great camera and fantastic battery life...essentially the two things missing from my Galaxy Nexus.

 

[pepperonijack]

One thing that bothers me with the rumored specs is the ridiculously low amount of storage. I hope that it will be explained by a very attractive price (something like $350 / $400 for 8GB / 16 GB).

 

[dwd3885]

i'm gonna need AT&T LTE on this thing in order to buy it. What's the point of buying a non-4G phone now? iPhone is LTE, Nexus NEEDS to be as well.

 

[pokingmon]

Phil, how would you compare the build quality of current LG phones to that of Samsung's best? Screens? Cameras?

I'm concerned about LG being the new Nexus manufacturer mainly because I wasn't too thrilled with HTC's build quality (preordered the G1 even!) and since the Samsung Vibrant I haven't looked back at other phone makers. I always hear great things about Samsung's build quality and their screens being among the best, but never anything particularly shining about LG phones. What kind of screens do they typically use? Do they produce quality cameras or at least use cameras from competent companies in that field?

I was REALLY hoping for either another Samsung Nexus or an Asus. I'm done with dealing with carrier-specific phone iterations, and I'm ready to go pure-Android with a Nexus device, but Google jumping around from company to company makes me a little nervous about it. Can't I just have a souped up Galaxy Nexus 2?

 

[Kevin OQuinn]

i'm gonna need AT&T LTE on this thing in order to buy it. What's the point of buying a non-4G phone now? iPhone is LTE, Nexus NEEDS to be as well.

It isn't open, so I'm not sure this will happen.

Phil, how would you compare the build quality of current LG phones to that of Samsung's best? Screens? Cameras?

I'm concerned about LG being the new Nexus manufacturer mainly because I wasn't too thrilled with HTC's build quality (preordered the G1 even!) and since the Samsung Vibrant I haven't looked back at other phone makers. I always hear great things about Samsung's build quality and their screens being among the best, but never anything particularly shining about LG phones. What kind of screens do they typically use? Do they produce quality cameras or at least use cameras from competent companies in that field?

I was REALLY hoping for either another Samsung Nexus or an Asus. I'm done with dealing with carrier-specific phone iterations, and I'm ready to go pure-Android with a Nexus device, but Google jumping around from company to company makes me a little nervous about it. Can't I just have a souped up Galaxy Nexus 2?

The physical build quality I really good. LG's problem has always been software, which obviously won't be an issue here.

LG uses IPS LCD displays, and the newest ones have in cell touch technology, which should out them at least on par with the One X (better than Samsung AMOLED). The camera module will probably a modern sensor, but i'm reluctant to say for sure since they didn't opt for high-end in the Galaxy Nexus.

 

[cole2kb]

Someone said in the comments of the article that it might not be a Nexus device because it says "with Google" on the back as opposed to just "Google." I've never owned a Nexus, so I'm not sure if that's something to consider here.

 

[Tkbredx]

Thanks. I have the galaxy s3. Wondering if this will be better. I dont really think it will coming from LG but hey that's just a little pre device bias

 

[pokingmon]

Interesting. Thanks for the reply.

@cole2kb: Do you think that might be indicative of Google going with multiple device makers for the next Nexus launch? Perhaps they will have the "with Google" label on the back of each to move away from declaring them the official/sole Google devices. Just speculating here.

It still begs the questions as to why we haven't seen any leaks or heard any rumors about other device makers though. There have been a few things here and there regarding Samsung, but if I'm not mistaken those were debunked as normal device refreshes, yes?

EDIT: This is all based on the hypothetical scenario where Google actually DOES go with the multiple manufacturer plan. I'm not saying they will or won't, just trying to assume here to see if it makes sense with what we are being leaked.

 

[cole2kb]

@pokingmon: Yes. That was the first thing I landed on. Multiple Nexus devices. I hope so.

 

[Phil Nickinson]

Phil, how would you compare the build quality of current LG phones to that of Samsung's best? Screens? Cameras?

I though the build quality of the Optimus G was pretty good. Mind you, that was with three days' use, so longer term issues (chrome rubbing off, etc) wouldn't have been apparent anyway. But the phone definitely was solid. No flex. No creaking.

The screen was pretty good. IPS will do that for ya. Jury's out on the cameras.

 

[pokingmon]

Good to know. I was less than impressed with my girlfriend's launch Droid RAZR considering Motorola had a prestigious brand image in my mind. And by that I mean it felt flimsy, a little weak and flexy, and a very "cheap" kind of plastic feeling. It's still a great phone, but I loved having my Galaxy S2 back in my hands. Maybe I will stroll down to the TMobile store just to fiddle around with what they have, or BestBuy, etc.

ALSO: YIKES at those photo samples. Terrible graininess and compression. REALLY hope it's the software and not the sensor itself. Either that or a different sensor is used in the Nexus. I'm not totally surprised by this though, as it seems each time a phone maker jumps up to a ridiculously high megapixel count in their camera it's almost always terrible quality despite technically achieving the advertised resolution.

 

[Last Ride]

It still begs the questions as to why we haven't seen any leaks or heard any rumors about other device makers though. There have been a few things here and there regarding Samsung, but if I'm not mistaken those were debunked as normal device refreshes, yes?

Have you seen the reports out there of the Motorola Occam or the Motorola Manta running Android 4.2? It seems there are other devices out there running unreleased versions of Android. Whether or not they are more than just development phones remains to be seen.

 

[Phil Nickinson]

Have you seen the reports out there of the Motorola Occam or the Motorola Manta running Android 4.2? It seems there are other devices out there running unleased versions of Android. Whether or not they are more than just development phones remains to be seen.

I'd be surprised (and worried) if there weren't. Folks make a big deal out of new version numbers popping up. But the fact is work is always going on. 4.2 ain't nothing but a number to me at this point.

 

[Woosh]

i'm gonna need AT&T LTE on this thing in order to buy it. What's the point of buying a non-4G phone now? iPhone is LTE, Nexus NEEDS to be as well.

If I had to guess, I would think this will be the unlocked version that they will sell on the Play Store and each carrier will bring out their own with the correct technology needed to run properly on their network.

Me personally, I don't care about LTE. My T-Mo speeds are fast enough for me. I just hope this is an unlocked pentaband phone at a good price.(Like the current Galaxy Nexus)

 

[Ry]

If I had to guess, I would think this will be the unlocked version that they will sell on the Play Store and each carrier will bring out their own with the correct technology needed to run properly on their network.

Me personally, I don't care about LTE. My T-Mo speeds are fast enough for me. I just hope this is an unlocked pentaband phone at a good price.(Like the current Galaxy Nexus)

My guess is that the Play Store version will be HSPA+.

If Google is serious about turning Nexus into a consumer brand rather than a tool for application developers, an AT&T LTE compatible one will also be available (likely through AT&T retail channels) and a Verizon and Sprint CDMA/LTE compatible one will also be available (Verizon, Sprint retail channels).