[Technology]New mobile from the Galaxy Nexus Google is very impressive

GOOGLE doesn't need to make its own phones. Its software already dominates the smartphone market.

But the internet giant's home-brand handsets let Android fans see Google innovations in their purest form, untouched by carriers and manufacturers.

In the Galaxy Nexus, Google shows off its first software to rule both phones and tablets: Ice Cream Sandwich. This tasty software ditches physical buttons, offers new customisations, removes complexity and delivers wacky and useful features.

It's also the reason Samsung fought hard to deliver it before Christmas and why carriers launched a bidding war upon its arrival.

The Galaxy Nexus is instantly recognisable as a Google-made phone, thanks to a curved form similar to the last Samsung-made Nexus. Despite a 4.65-inch screen, this phone is not oversized, helped by a slim screen border, slender 8.94mm girth and a weight of just 135g. This, and a thatched plastic back, make it exceedingly easy to hold.

Turn it on and the Galaxy Nexus difference is clear. Each of its five screens feature a transparent Google search bar and five fixed app shortcuts. The phone's navigation buttons are also delivered on the screen in virtual form and they have changed.

Back and Home options remain but the Settings shortcut has been swapped with a Multi-tasking option that shows open apps in miniature.

Users can select one with a touch, or swipe it to one side to close it - a vital, time-saving improvement.

New widgets in this phone can be resized to your liking, with a pinch, and the lock-screen has a notable new addition: Face Unlock.

Rather than securing your smartphone with a pattern or pin, Face Unlock uses your features. You'll need to stare at the camera each time you unlock the phone, but it can be 'hacked' with a photo.

Google has also added Near Field Communication (NFC) - a technology commonly associated with wireless credit card transactions. In this case, it is used for Android Beam that lets two Galaxy Nexus phones share an app, a website, video or contact details when they touch.

Ice Cream Sandwich even changes the way this phone's camera operates, introducing Panorama and Zero Lag.

Panorama mode does a great job of stitching sequential photos together, warning you when you're panning too quick, but Zero Lag is the stand-out. It snaps pics as you touch the shutter button, even if autofocus isn't ready.

It could be the difference between capturing and missing a photo.

This phone's hardware is also equipped to impress. Its dual-core 1.2GHz chip makes apps sing, its camera offers sharp focus and its high-definition Super AMOLED screen passes close inspection.

What it does lack is space for a memory card, limiting users to 16 or 32GB storage.

Samsung Galaxy Nexus - $799

Source

Share