Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

Wintrmte

macrumors regular
Aug 21, 2006
126
39
Idaho
Thought I would add my personal experience to this thread..

I came from the Galaxy Nexus and the HTC Rezound, back to the iPhone 4S. I had originally owned the iPhone 4, but when LTE came available I jumped around to the various LTE enabled phones.

My experience with the SGN in the month I owned it was OK at best. The screen was the biggest selling point of the device, with it's amazing AMOLED display and crispness. Unfortunately, that's where the buck stopped for me.

The camera on the SGN left a lot to be desired.. Granted, I don't use my cell phone to take wedding photos, but if I saw something that was funny or interesting, I'd snap a picture. The quality often resulted in a somewhat distorted/color washed out image, just not something that was sharp and crisp like the other phones (including the iPhone 4S) that I had owned.

Ice Cream Sandwich is a big step for the Android OS but it still feels like you have to have somewhat of a technical background to truly utilize all of its features. For example, if you want to edit a contact's details you have to know to press the three dots in the upper right hand corner of the contact display. Not a big issue, but it did take a few minutes to figure it out.

Another thing that really drove me nuts was the color scheme in ICS. The black with dark blue just isn't my thing, maybe I am the minority but if you want to truly captivate someone with the wow that is nice, the current color scheme isn't going to do it.

The ability to download music (or lack thereof) onto the SGN from my Mac Mini really, really disappointed me. In order to get music on the SGN I had to download separate applications, each of which cost me money. This is partly because the SGN doesn't have storage that shows up as USB Mass storage (unlike the HTC Rezound). So, you had to get creative if you wanted to synchronize your iTunes music/playlists to the SGN.

Lastly, there is the battery. This isn't just a SGN issue, it's all current LTE phones that have horrid battery life. Even with the extended battery for the SGN, I was lucky to make it through 18 hours with moderate use without the thing going dead. I hope that as the LTE technology improves, so will the battery life -- otherwise the iPhone 5 will suffer the same problem. :(

Overall, I'm happy to be back on the iPhone 4S, if for only one reason is that I can comfortably sync my media without any hassle and know that if I forget to plug my phone in to charge, I will at least wake up to a functioning phone in the morning.
 

iphone12345

macrumors newbie
May 3, 2012
3
0
I ended up taking the plunge. $399 for a contract free top of the line phone is just too good of a deal to pass up when most are $600+ nowadays.

Only thing the Nexus lacks compared to the iPhone is battery life but I bought a spare off of Amazon for $8 to keep in my wallet so my battery life will be even more than the iPhone.

In the past I tried out the Galaxy S II before and while I loved the size the bad pixilation of the screen was unbearable compared to the iPhone. The Galaxy Nexus has an 4.6' HD 720p screen so that problem is solved.

Ice cream sandwich is delicious. No lag at all and very intuitive.

I don't use many apps anyways but specific ones I do (Google Voice, Gmail, Gmaps Navigation) work much better on the Nexus.

A nice thing about Android? You don't have to wait for a 5.1 jailbreak to use gaming emulators! Nesoid, Snesoid, N64oid, the works! Just hook up a bluetooth controller and an HDMI adapter to your big screen and your phone becomes a full console :D

Camera isn't as good as the iPhone but I'm not a photographer and even if I was I'd use a dslr instead.

I like how Android browser has auto text reflow where if you zoom in on an article and then double tap the screen it reformats the new size to fit completely vertical so you don't have to scroll side to side to read.

I also like how the Nexus has an LED indication light!

One of the main arguments against Android is fragmentation but with the Nexus you don't have to worry as you are always first in line for updates since you get the pure Android experience.

Just a few thoughts.
 

Tarzanman

macrumors 65816
Jul 16, 2010
1,304
15
I ended up taking the plunge. $399 for a contract free top of the line phone is just too good of a deal to pass up when most are $600+ nowadays.

I also just got a $399 ($434 after shipping + tax) HSPA Galaxy Nexus from Google.

Why? My Vibrant phone died. Sorta. There seems to be a corroded or loose contact under the speaker/ringer (that is what I get for jogging with it in my pocket!) which makes the phone shut itself off if it gets moved too much.

I have had the Galaxy Nexus for about a week. Wow. No buttons on the face + a notification LED are two features that have really grown on me.

The 720p screen is awesome (and isn't grainy like some of the Verizon LTE ones I have seen)

I am pretty happy with ICS. The new design constraints make it look, feel, and function like a truly mature system.

Apple had better come out swinging with the iPhone 5 and iOS 6. I don't think that a 4" display will be enough to prevent migration away from iOS with options like the Galaxy Nexus around.
 

Lindenhurst

macrumors 6502a
Aug 24, 2011
612
0
I also just got a $399 ($434 after shipping + tax) HSPA Galaxy Nexus from Google.

Why? My Vibrant phone died. Sorta. There seems to be a corroded or loose contact under the speaker/ringer (that is what I get for jogging with it in my pocket!) which makes the phone shut itself off if it gets moved too much.

I have had the Galaxy Nexus for about a week. Wow. No buttons on the face + a notification LED are two features that have really grown on me.

The 720p screen is awesome (and isn't grainy like some of the Verizon LTE ones I have seen)

I am pretty happy with ICS. The new design constraints make it look, feel, and function like a truly mature system.

Apple had better come out swinging with the iPhone 5 and iOS 6. I don't think that a 4" display will be enough to prevent migration away from iOS with options like the Galaxy Nexus around.


Too many on this forum are blinded by he Apple light and wouldn't leave under any circumstances. Strange but true. The power of marketing and the need to feel like one of the herd I guess.
 

Tarzanman

macrumors 65816
Jul 16, 2010
1,304
15
Too many on this forum are blinded by he Apple light and wouldn't leave under any circumstances. Strange but true. The power of marketing and the need to feel like one of the herd I guess.

I would have said that before, but I am personally running into more and more people who don't know much about smartphones and have gone the Android route.

Part of it is pricing (cheap iPhones are not yet available on Sprint or Verizon), and part of it is "This phone looked cooler/was bigger".

Maybe 1/3 of the people I know with smartphones have iphones. One has a windows phone, maybe 4 have blackberries (distributed by work). The rest have Androids.

Seriously, I think that android will have more than 50% share the next time that the numbers come in.
 

UCLAKoolman

macrumors 6502a
Jun 21, 2010
791
1
One of the main arguments against Android is fragmentation but with the Nexus you don't have to worry as you are always first in line for updates since you get the pure Android experience.

Just a few thoughts.

If you're on Verizon you still have to worry about updates...

They've yet to push out 4.0.4 to their Nexus line
 

MatthewStorm

macrumors 6502a
Oct 19, 2003
923
513
Chapel Hill
If you're on Verizon you still have to worry about updates...

They've yet to push out 4.0.4 to their Nexus line

That's why I finally rooted. OMG! It's like a completely new phone. That's one of the things I love about Android: WE can improve it. And ROM and Kernel developers prove that everyday.

In the iOS community if you do something to improve the functionality of the system or help facilitate Jailbreak you are vilified and considered an Apple hating digital terrorist. In the Android community...people send you money and say thank you.

It's amazing how different the mindset is.
 

UCLAKoolman

macrumors 6502a
Jun 21, 2010
791
1
But rooting your Nexus to update it sounds very backwards, as it defeats what was supposed to be the advantage of owning a "Nexus" device, no?
 

batting1000

macrumors 604
Sep 4, 2011
7,464
1,874
Florida
That's why I finally rooted. OMG! It's like a completely new phone. That's one of the things I love about Android: WE can improve it. And ROM and Kernel developers prove that everyday.

In the iOS community if you do something to improve the functionality of the system or help facilitate Jailbreak you are vilified and considered an Apple hating digital terrorist. In the Android community...people send you money and say thank you.

It's amazing how different the mindset is.

Never have I seen someone "vilified and considered an Apple hating digital terrorist".

----------

But rooting your Nexus to update it sounds very backwards, as it defeats what was supposed to be the advantage of owning a "Nexus" device, no?

Lmao. Very good point. Very contradicting indeed.
 

onthecouchagain

macrumors 604
Mar 29, 2011
7,382
2
Apple had better come out swinging with the iPhone 5 and iOS 6. I don't think that a 4" display will be enough to prevent migration away from iOS with options like the Galaxy Nexus around.


I always said having a larger screen, while will be glorious, won't be enough to win me back over to the iPhone. iOS itself needs some major improvements in the keyboard, Safari, Mail, Map/Navigation departments, and elsewhere too with more minor things (most of these areas, ICS dominates).

I fear since this year will likely be a refreshed iPhone (meaning hardware upgrade), that iOS (the software side) will be a relatively minor upgrade, with the main thing being Apple's own voice navigation system. A larger screen and some additional features may be incentive enough for many to be won over, but as it's already been mentioned, with what ICS has accomplished, it won't win all.

----------

If you're on Verizon you still have to worry about updates...

They've yet to push out 4.0.4 to their Nexus line

There's no debate here. Google, Samsung, and Verizon all share blame in the failure that is the Verizon Galaxy Nexus.
 

Sylon

macrumors 68020
Feb 26, 2012
2,032
80
Michigan/Ohio, USA
I do find it odd that there seems to always be an advertisement for the Galaxy Nexus whenever I'm on this forum at work. I dont have the luxury of Adblocker here. Before they were ads for iPhone/iPad accessories, but now its always the damn Nexus.
 

briantaylor619

macrumors member
May 15, 2012
90
0
I do find it odd that there seems to always be an advertisement for the Galaxy Nexus whenever I'm on this forum at work. I dont have the luxury of Adblocker here. Before they were ads for iPhone/iPad accessories, but now its always the damn Nexus.

Whatever pays the bills right? ;)
 
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.