You may know that the Samsung Galaxy Nexus 4G Android smartphone was the first US handset upon which Android’s version 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich (ICS) operating system appeared. That handset was exclusive to the Verizon Wireless 4G LTE system until recently, when Sprint also released the Galaxy Nexus 4G for their wireless system. Competition is always good for the consumer, and because the much-anticipated and best-selling Galaxy Nexus was now available on a competitor’s network, Verizon dropped the retail price of their Galaxy Nexus handset to $0.01 with a standard new two-year activation and data plan at select retailers.
The Verizon Galaxy Nexus delivers ICS version 4.0.4 of the Android OS and provides Near Field Communications (NFC) support pre-installed in the Galaxy Nexus to offer wireless retail payment processing at NFC supporting retail outlets. ICS 4.0.4 also delivers wireless data transfer options via NFC between the Verizon Galaxy Nexus and other NFC capable devices.
Physically, the Verizon Samsung Galaxy Nexus 4G is slim, at 0.37 inches (9.47 mm). The handset is designed like most smartphones, in a rectangular, candy bar form factor. The display is one of the largest found on any smartphone, at 4.65 inches, officially qualifying it for the relatively new “phablet” definition. A phablet smartphone has a high resolution display between 4.6 and 5.5 inches, while also providing smartphone functionality. Research and analysis firm ABI Research has stated that larger screen smartphone devices like the Galaxy Nexus will lead phablet sales to as many as 208 million units by as early as the year 2015.
The Galaxy Nexus display offers a pixel density of 316 pixels per inch for an overall screen resolution of 720 x 1,280 pixels, both of those numbers lying at the high end of the 4G smartphone market. The Super AMOLED capacitive, multitouch screen displays visuals in more than 16 million separate colors, and standard light and proximity sensors are built in.
Single charge battery talk time runs approximately 50% better than the 4G average at 12.00 hours, and a dual core 1.2 GHz central processor joins a graphics dedicated chip in the Texas Instruments OMAP 4460 microchip package on board the handset. The Verizon Galaxy Nexus delivers the most built-in storage out-of-the-box at 32 GB, and 1.0 GB of RAM memory is present as well. The rear facing 5.0 megapixel camcorder provides video capture at 1,080P HD, and a front facing 1.3 megapixel chat cam also offers video call support. You can buy the Samsung Galaxy Nexus starting at just one penny!
