The My Nexus 4 Just Got Delivered Thread!!

smileman

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So how do you like your N4? Most won't get it till Monday or so.

i wanted to spend a little time with it today before rushing off some first impressions, so here are some thoughts:

-coming from an SGS2 the screen is so much better both in terms of the amount of screen real estate and particularly how easy it is to read text. gmail looks extremely crisp, as does reader. i do a lot of reading on my smartphone so this is for me probably the most obvious first major plus of the N4. games also look spectacular but i don't do much gaming. Google Now looks really sharp and i like the London image up top. anyone know how many custom city images have been made for Google Now?

-the overall size/weight just really isn't that much different than an SGS2, which is nice. it feels the same in the pocket, albeit a little bit more slippery in my addidas running pant pocket (more on this below)

-the phone feels significantly faster than an SGS2. no studder, lags, crashes, etc.

-network speeds feel better, and reception is better in my house. not sure if this is related or not but Spotify seems to be working better. less buggy, less buffering, and i haven't heard that awful screech noise that sometimes happens when i use the radio feature. music sounds great on this device and can't wait for the launch of Google Music's scan and match cloud service.

-the glass makes me nervous but i'm also always a little bit nervous when i get a brand new device. i'm much happier having a solid feeling, closed device like the N4 vs. the plastic cracking and creaking of the SGS2/Samsung smartphones in general.

-i really like a lot of the little the choices Google made. for example, good call on not including ear buds. people are pretty particular about their ear buds (in ear, non in-ear, etc.) so leave them out to bring down the price and let people make their own choice. also good call on making the USB charging cable detachable (which was not the case with the SGS2).

-voice recognition is awesome. doing math (eg, square roots), search, etc. works flawlessly. take that, Siri!

-like the reviews said, i barely notice the disco sparkly matrix back bit. it's nice, easier to see it outdoors.

-i like the N4's haptic feedback for some reason better than the SGS2. a little more subdued, less in my face maybe?

-there are some things i miss about Touch Whiz. touching the screen and being able to add shortcuts, folders and widgets. i miss the slightly larger circular pattern security dots for unlocking the screen. i miss be able to scroll left from the home screen and having both the left and right home screens within one flick of the finger. i miss being able to put all my apps in List View. and is GPS completely automated? there isn't a shortcut for turning it on or off and the flashing GPS signal in the notifications bar seems to only appear when i open an app like Maps or Strava which uses it.

-having said all that about Touch Wiz stuff i miss, i'm very happy to be done with Samsung. I had the Nexus S and then when it was stolen from me well before I was looking to upgrade I went for the SGS2 and i have missed not having immediate access to Android OS updates ever since. my SGS2 also just never seemed to work quite as smoothly or be as stable as the Nexus S and i always wondered whether this was a problem with how TouchWiz was interfacing with ICS?

-also happy to be done with MHL-HDMI. i could never really get this to work very well through my receiver due to what seemed like a poor hardware connection design. i'd have to position the cable and phone just so to get it to work. further, my SGS2 would run out of juice even though it was charging because the screen had to be kept on to play music. epic fail. i have an older LG TV - any suggestions on SlimPort/MiraCast adapters?

-once it comes out i'm looking forward to going completely wireless with the Nexus charging orb. would also be great if there were more ways to use NFC (err ahemm..that means you London Tube/Oyster card folks)

-will be nice to get to the bottom of this very subtle rattle that i and it sounds like at least one other person are aware of? i can't hear it when it's in my pocket, just when i ratttle it near my face. it's not a big issue or annoyance, but i'd like to know what it is and all other things being equal i don't like rattles.

-overall, i couldn't be more satisfied with the N4. the key to my being so happy is not only is the N4 a great flagship device, but it is being offered at an absolutely killer price. i'm going to be able to basically cover the cost of the N4 by selling my used SGS2 and its accessories. how unbelievable is that? and the N4 makes particular sense here in the UK where LTE won't be available for quite some time (but HSPA+ is).
 
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ijip

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Great review! I cant wait to get mine. Please update us with your battery life.

Also as far as slimport, that is basically mhl 2.0 It looks the same even. but i guess it is more secure for the content. Miracast is still very new tech and there is only one adapter from netgear that is supposed to have it. Phil is waiting for an update to review it further as it currently does not work. Also most new LG tv's have it.

Bottom line, wait till after CES to make a decision or get a new LG tv -=X
 

mzanette

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To anyone who has already received their device, did anybody get it before Google sent out a shipping notification email? i.e. the phone just showed up unannounced?
 

smileman

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Great review! I cant wait to get mine. Please update us with your battery life.

Thanks. I'll post battery life after I use it on a full charge tomorrow. I received and installed the final consumer version of 4.2 this morning as well so we'll see if that helps the battery results.

Also as far as slimport, that is basically mhl 2.0 It looks the same even. but i guess it is more secure for the content.

What do you mean by content being more secure?

There is Slimport adapter on Amazon that I think I will go ahead and order:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Slimport-HD...ag=hawk-future-21&ascsubtag=UUacUvbUpU2331786

It's about the same price as MHL. My understanding is that Slimport offers the option to charge while it's streaming content via HDMI but, unlike MHL, doesn't require that a charger be plugged in to function. Is that correct? I'm hoping I can turn off my screen as well as that would do wonders for battery life.

Miracast is still very new tech and there is only one adapter from netgear that is supposed to have it. Phil is waiting for an update to review it further as it currently does not work. Also most new LG tv's have it. Bottom line, wait till after CES to make a decision or get a new LG tv -=X

Are Miracast and Slimport potentially redudant? In other words, could I use Miracast to stream audio to my receiver, or to my TV and then from my TV to my receiver?

I primarily used MHL for streaming Spotify through my receiver, so I would probably do the same with the N4 and Slimport. For video I would just use a thunder bolt to HDMI connector for a MacBook Air as the video on the SGS2 wasn't quite as good as what the Air could deliver.
 

Jnorton2724

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When the delivery guy or girl finally comes with my Nexus 4 I'm going to give them a big bear hug :) No shipping email and no back order email so I don't know whats going on.
 

HAAS599

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I think the answer could be yes, and that Miracast, assuming it works, would be the better (albeit $30 more expensive) solution because its wireless:

Netgear Push2TV PTV3000 slims Miracast and WiDi for your pocket - SlashGear

Depends on what your doing IMO.

I think if you are gaming or maybe even watching an HD movie then a Slimport would be better. Will probably have less lag and will charge your device so you not running on E when your done playing. Anything that is battery intensive or if you will be mirroring for a long amount of time would be better for Slimport.
 

smileman

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Depends on what your doing IMO.

I think if you are gaming or maybe even watching an HD movie then a Slimport would be better. Will probably have less lag and will charge your device so you not running on E when your done playing. Anything that is battery intensive or if you will be mirroring for a long amount of time would be better for Slimport.

good points.

do you know whether with slimport if you can turn the screen off while you're streaming content? MHL-HDMI doesn't work with the screen off and this is what led to my SGS2 running out of juice even with the screen dimmed, airplane mode, etc. every power saving strategy was in place.

UPDATE: i just emailed Analogix to find out the answer to the screen question, but i have a bad feeling the screen is going to need to remain on.
 
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X0LARIUM

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i wanted to spend a little time with it today before rushing off some first impressions, so here are some thoughts:

-coming from an SGS2 the screen is so much better both in terms of the amount of screen real estate and particularly how easy it is to read text. gmail looks extremely crisp, as does reader. i do a lot of reading on my smartphone so this is for me probably the most obvious first major plus of the N4. games also look spectacular but i don't do much gaming. Google Now looks really sharp and i like the London image up top. anyone know how many custom city images have been made for Google Now?

-the overall size/weight just really isn't that much different than an SGS2, which is nice. it feels the same in the pocket, albeit a little bit more slippery in my addidas running pant pocket (more on this below)

-the phone feels significantly faster than an SGS2. no studder, lags, crashes, etc.

-network speeds feel better, and reception is better in my house. not sure if this is related or not but Spotify seems to be working better. less buggy, less buffering, and i haven't heard that awful screech noise that sometimes happens when i use the radio feature. music sounds great on this device and can't wait for the launch of Google Music's scan and match cloud service.

-the glass makes me nervous but i'm also always a little bit nervous when i get a brand new device. i'm much happier having a solid feeling, closed device like the N4 vs. the plastic cracking and creaking of the SGS2/Samsung smartphones in general.

-i really like a lot of the little the choices Google made. for example, good call on not including ear buds. people are pretty particular about their ear buds (in ear, non in-ear, etc.) so leave them out to bring down the price and let people make their own choice. also good call on making the USB charging cable detachable (which was not the case with the SGS2).

-voice recognition is awesome. doing math (eg, square roots), search, etc. works flawlessly. take that, Siri!

-like the reviews said, i barely notice the disco sparkly matrix back bit. it's nice, easier to see it outdoors.

-i like the N4's haptic feedback for some reason better than the SGS2. a little more subdued, less in my face maybe?

-there are some things i miss about Touch Whiz. touching the screen and being able to add shortcuts, folders and widgets. i miss the slightly larger circular pattern security dots for unlocking the screen. i miss be able to scroll left from the home screen and having both the left and right home screens within one flick of the finger. i miss being able to put all my apps in List View. and is GPS completely automated? there isn't a shortcut for turning it on or off and the flashing GPS signal in the notifications bar seems to only appear when i open an app like Maps or Strava which uses it.

-having said all that about Touch Wiz stuff i miss, i'm very happy to be done with Samsung. I had the Nexus S and then when it was stolen from me well before I was looking to upgrade I went for the SGS2 and i have missed not having immediate access to Android OS updates ever since. my SGS2 also just never seemed to work quite as smoothly or be as stable as the Nexus S and i always wondered whether this was a problem with how TouchWiz was interfacing with ICS?

-also happy to be done with MHL-HDMI. i could never really get this to work very well through my receiver due to what seemed like a poor hardware connection design. i'd have to position the cable and phone just so to get it to work. further, my SGS2 would run out of juice even though it was charging because the screen had to be kept on to play music. epic fail. i have an older LG TV - any suggestions on SlimPort/MiraCast adapters?

-once it comes out i'm looking forward to going completely wireless with the Nexus charging orb. would also be great if there were more ways to use NFC (err ahemm..that means you London Tube/Oyster card folks)

-will be nice to get to the bottom of this very subtle rattle that i and it sounds like at least one other person are aware of? i can't hear it when it's in my pocket, just when i ratttle it near my face. it's not a big issue or annoyance, but i'd like to know what it is and all other things being equal i don't like rattles.

-overall, i couldn't be more satisfied with the N4. the key to my being so happy is not only is the N4 a great flagship device, but it is being offered at an absolutely killer price. i'm going to be able to basically cover the cost of the N4 by selling my used SGS2 and its accessories. how unbelievable is that? and the N4 makes particular sense here in the UK where LTE won't be available for quite some time (but HSPA+ is).

Superb first, hands on impressions my friend.
I just have a couple of questions. Firstly, how are ALL the apps looking on it. Like you said "I read a lot" so do I. In fact, I have given up on buying paperbacks as I read on the phone. But noe even the 4.3" feels small.
Thus, I wanted to know about the apps like iReader, Nook and Kindle. How do they look? Do they take up the whole screen or some space is left out on any sides? Any pixelation of any kind? Flipboard? Pulse? Etc...

I will come to gaming later. But for me, this is my primary purpose, reading. Also, hoe do websites look? Big, clear text or small, tiny words?

Thanx a ton!

Sent from my RaZr HD.
 

jimmiekain

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Anybody else find it strange that there are no speed test videos on youtube of the nexus 4? I mean i cant find one single video.

Has anyone found any? I'm gonna have to leave sprint so I was somewhat curious to see a few speed test videos preferably with an AT&T sim.

If anyone in here does one, let me know... I will make sure you get about 100 hits LOL
 

smileman

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Superb first, hands on impressions my friend.
I just have a couple of questions. Firstly, how are ALL the apps looking on it. Like you said "I read a lot" so do I. In fact, I have given up on buying paperbacks as I read on the phone. But noe even the 4.3" feels small.
Thus, I wanted to know about the apps like iReader, Nook and Kindle. How do they look? Do they take up the whole screen or some space is left out on any sides? Any pixelation of any kind? Flipboard? Pulse? Etc...

Also, hoe do websites look? Big, clear text or small, tiny words?

i just tried Alice in Wonderland in the Play Books app and it looks really quite amazing. Fills the whole screen. Very, very crisp text. the screen is also very bright. white backgrounds contrast really, really with the text.

the screen is such a huge difference from my SGS2, which really seemed to strain my late-30s year old eyes :'(. i still prefer reading a printed book or e-ink to backlit.

web pages also look really good. i use the NY Times app typically but the full version of the NY Times web page is again very crisp, very easy to read.

the screen is definitely a masssive upgrade for me, and i imagine also over the Galaxy Nexus as it's supposed to be on par with the iPhone's retina screen. both are made by LG and the N4 has 320 pixels-per-inch (ppi) compared to the iPhone 5's 326 ppi.
 

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