Should I get a Nexus 4?

[Prash7]

Hey guys!

I've been looking at the N4, and it looks awesome. Currently, I'm rocking the BB Curve 9360 and have been for a year. It's great, freezes up at times but I LOVE having all my email all the time and the physical keyboard.

Few questions:

1) Not used to touch screen keyboards. I'm no noob to Android, though. How's the N4 to type on, stock keyboard or a downloaded one?

2) Battery life. This is HUGE for me. I need something that will last me a whole work day. I mean, I use my phone a lot, but nothing super heavy. I'd call myself a heavy user, but not over the top. Will the N4 last?

3) Is it slow? I mean, is it capable of running fine, no random freezing up or framerate lag? I've been looking into the BBZ10 (only because I wanted to stick to the BB family!) and that looks great, just pricier than the N4.

4) I send a lot of short texts/email; how is the phone to use with one hand? Just picking up for 5 seconds, reading and then reply.

5) I kind of want a new phone soon-ish, but should I wait? SGS4 comes out in a few months, but I'm not sure whether it's worth the wait, especially considering prices. Are there any OTHER Android phones I should consider that are out now/coming soon?

6) Anything else I should know? I mean, will this phone last, and I won't be finding myself having to upgrade in another year's time?

Thanks!

 

[April920]

I don't have the N4 but I do have a s3. There are many different options u could do to conserve battery life, like turn off sync and check for emails manually. I do not use the stock keyboard. I use SwiftKey which is much better then stock. No its not slow. You can check out videos on YouTube on the N4. I say try it, I'm sure your cell company give u 14 days if u don't like it. Take it back.

Sent from my SPH-L710 using Tapatalk 2

 

[Chex313]

From a Curve to an N4. Thats such a leap that if your not committed your going to be let down.

Its so different. I would not want to paint a rose colored picture, just because I love the Nexus. You definitely need to do a hands on for at least an hour to be sure it fits in your hand. I mean for me I wish it was bigger. For someone used to the Curve...Well its enormous compared to the Curve. Not going to be as easy one handed. Its very fast and there are 10's of thousands more Apps to choose from. Battery life is what it is. Your powering a 4.7" screen. If you can't make it through the day and can't plug it in. Get a small external power pack. We have one for emergencies like filming for hours. We rarely use it,but it fits all phones. so who ever needs it takes it with them.

 

[big_time2]

1. You'll get used to the keyboard. I also use a BlackBerry (9930) for work and I like both keyboards equally. Though touchscreen keyboard is much faster after you get used to it.

2. If you use your phone a lot, battery will not last you all day. I send/receive about 10 emails, about 50ish text messages, minor web browsing/app using (probably less than an hour) and about an hour of Pandora/Spotify and I use about 70%-80% in a day (8a-11p)

3. No lag whatsoever. You know how you occasionally have to pull the battery on your Curve? Well, you will never have to restart this phone compared to the Curve. I pull the battery out of my Bold probably 3-4 times a week, yet, the last time I restarted Nexus 4 was when we got the latest update (over a week ago?)

4. If you get SwiftKey keyboard, one hand typing will be easy, especially after a few days.

5. The phone is a few months old, but you will get updates for probably another year or so, if not longer, so It can last you probably two years if you plan on keeping it your whole contract.

6. The price alone is worth it.

 

[Brackstone]

It's really a very different experience. I use a BB for work and I must say I love the N4.

The problem is (as others have said) it's a COMPLETELY different experience. I believe Android is far superior to Black Berry and for me personally I would never own a BB as long as I could have an android. But it's really a matter of preference.

 

[Prash7]

Thanks for the posts guys, I really appreciate them. I honestly don't mind the different experiences from the too. If anything, that's a plus. Getting out of the monotony of the old phone's uncustomisable OS (compared to Android, of course). A huge thing for me is customisability and just being able to open the phone and go. I'm ALWAYS sending short texts, or using the phone in long bursts if I'm on the train/bus or whatever.

 

[ultravisitor]

6) Anything else I should know? I mean, will this phone last, and I won't be finding myself having to upgrade in another year's time?

You don't HAVE to upgrade so long as the phone actually works. Whether or not you do depends on your own level of self control.

 

[adam514]

Thanks for the posts guys, I really appreciate them. I honestly don't mind the different experiences from the too. If anything, that's a plus. Getting out of the monotony of the old phone's uncustomisable OS (compared to Android, of course). A huge thing for me is customisability and just being able to open the phone and go. I'm ALWAYS sending short texts, or using the phone in long bursts if I'm on the train/bus or whatever.

Basically as it's been said it is a really great phone, very fast smooth and the battery really isn't that bad if you're not sitting watching videos all day of course. I use my phone for work purposes, mostly emailing/texting, it's my primary phone to call my customers with and I do some light browsing. It pretty much gets me through the day till 10-11 at night (un-plugged at 7-730 am) with about 20-30% left so I charge it overnight. One thing that hasn't been mentioned that you brought up, I personally have a little bit of a hard time sending those quick one hand text/email messages considering the size. I know the BB is considerably smaller so I would really try the phone out if this is of big importance. I'm not a big guy so it requires a little bit of balancing the phone on my fingers to stretch my thumb..really doesn't bother me too much though. I say get it you'll love it.

 

[Prash7]

I forgot something. I usually send those quickie messages when I'm at home, but I can just get an app to send me texts to my laptop and reply from there! Forgot I could do that with Android; can't with my BB

 

[adam514]

I forgot something. I usually send those quickie messages when I'm at home, but I can just get an app to send me texts to my laptop and reply from there! Forgot I could do that with Android; can't with my BB

Air droid!

 

[Prash7]

it, ordered one.

 

[return_0]

1. I personally like the stock keyboard. Some people prefer downloaded ones, especially SwiftKey and Swype, so you might want to check those out. That's the beauty of Android.
2. I'll tell you this: Battery life is not the N4's strongest point; however, I find the battery life fine for me. It's definitely improved in the 4.2.2 update. I usually find myself with 50% battery after a day of medium use so you should be fine by the end of the day.
3. No way at all is it slow. The N4 is blazing fast and smooth, and is probably the fastest phone today. Faster than the i5, the S3, etc.
4. It's a little large for one-handed typing, but acceptable.
5. If I were you, I would buy the N4. Newer phones like the One and probably the S4 have better processors and screens and such, but the N4 still will have the software advantage. See my next answer.
6. The N4 will probably last you much longer than all other phones because of its software. It will have the latest version of Android for a long time, so it's far more future-proof than other Android phones.

Hope this helps!