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Dave.UK

macrumors 65816
Sep 24, 2012
1,290
482
Kent, UK
How easy is it to change the colors for different alerts?

Very easy! A lot of apps ask you what colour you want the notification to be. For the ones that dont, you can easily download a notification light app to sort that out!
 

hyteckit

Guest
Jul 29, 2007
889
1
I am confused about the battery life portion of the review. The total time says the phone has been off the charger for 12ish hours and the reviewer says that the screen on time was 2 hours and 40 minutes. Am I misunderstanding or is he saying th battery was almost dead at under 3 hours of use? That seems REALLY low to me so maybe I'm misunderstanding?

No, you are not misunderstanding.

The Nexus 4 has been running on battery for 12ish hours.
He is getting 2 hours and 40 minutes of screen use on his Nexus 4 during that period.
During that 12ish hours period, screen is sucking 60% of the battery while it's only on for 2 hours and 40 minutes.

The battery life aligns with anandtech test where the Nexus 4 was only getting 4.18 hrs on web browsing test.

Yes, it does seem bad.
 

THE JUICEMAN

macrumors 68020
Oct 3, 2007
2,371
1,122
Image

Wow, it looks a lot wider than the GN. Don't know if it's the angle or not, but that worries me some.

EDIT: Well, it's easier to grip due to the rubber framework sides, though. That's thankful.

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"I suspect the lackluster benchmark scores are because nothing is capable of tapping into all the power the quad core processor is putting out. It sometimes scores evenly with dual core Snapdragons, which suggests the benchmarks aren't using cores 3 and 4. It could also be the beta version of Android 4.2 that I'm running, so I'll double check the benchmarks once the retail OTA hits. Hopefully whatever software is broken will catch up to this sometime soon."

-Android Police

This is really a superb review. It covers everything that I am wondering about the device. Everything.

The width definitely makes a difference. I used the Optimus G and I was surprised. I am still hopeful because google has made the Nexus a lot less square than the G.
 

onthecouchagain

macrumors 604
Original poster
Mar 29, 2011
7,382
2
How easy is it to change the colors for different alerts?

Lightflow :)
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.rageconsulting.android.lightflow&hl=en

There are probably other apps too. Customization is a beautiful thing.

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The width definitely makes a difference. I used the Optimus G and I was surprised. I am still hopeful because google has made the Nexus a lot less square than the G.

But it's also thicker than the Optimus G, which worries me. Part of the reason why the S3 and it's screen felt easily reached and usable was because of its thin profile (it's actually a very comfortable phone to hold).

All the reviews have pointed to how ergonomic and comfortable the Nexus 4 is, with its rubber frame, so I'm not too worried, but I do wish the device was thinner. I wonder why it's so much thicker than the Optimus G. Anyone know?

I really love the edges of the front panel, though, how they sort of slide off to the sides. According to Google, that's to help with swiping (like in Chrome between tabs).

----------

Regarding the Android Police review, Ron Amadeo wrote:

Ok, so, here's the deal: Everything in this review (lock screen widgets, battery life, benchmarks, complaints, etc) is subject to change pending the OTA that's due out on the 11th. I'll update the whole thing then, and copy everything new into a separate "Review addendum" article for people that have already read this version of the review. So look for that.

I had heard rumblings that Google was updating the software November 11th too over at the XDA forums, but wasn't sure if that was just some date a member made up. It does look like Google is aware of these "issues." A visit to Matias' Google+ profile will show people are letting them know about it, indeed.

Android Police is the only site, so far, that I know will include an addendum. While I think the damage (ie. the confusion) is already done to a lot of more casual consumers researching the Nexus 4, it would be big deal if Google can fix these problems before they actually reach consumers' hands. It would still be better scenario than what Apple's done in the past; release final software/hardware, then address the problems post-release.

The question is, can Google address the heat issue, which seems to be the main culprit?
 

onthecouchagain

macrumors 604
Original poster
Mar 29, 2011
7,382
2
TechRadar regarding battery: http://www.techradar.com/reviews/phones/mobile-phones/google-nexus-4-1108999/review/9#articleContent


This is where we'd normally moan about the fact that the power pack is sealed into the unit. It's becoming more and more popular for handset manufacturers to do this.

Normally, we're told it is to keep the size down and the aesthetics to a high standard. But the result is always the same: looks nice, but battery is rubbish. Gladly, we can say that's not the case with the Nexus 4. Of course, individual usage will vary wildly, but we found it to put in a competent enough performance. We took our review unit off charge at 7am. We did the obligatory check of emails, tweets, facebook messages and SMS. Over the course of the day, we made just under half an hour's worth of calls, browsed the web for about 40 mins between 3G and Wi-Fi, checked Twitter and Facebook half a dozen times each, took 10 photos and three videos and listened to music for about half an hour.

By the time we got home at 5pm, the Nexus 4 had told us the charge was hitting 15% but then we managed to keep it going with minimal use until we went to bed at 9pm.

We must also point out that much of the day was spent in a basement office with poor signal, so the Nexus 4 was constantly searching. We'd call that a good result and with frugal use, you'll squeeze at least another few hours out of this.

For a modern handset, it's impressive and we are really pleased. It's most definitely an improvement on the HTC One X and even trumps the Samsung Galaxy S3 which is, itself, no slouch in that department. The thing is that it is so dependent on what Android apps you have installed and what they're doing in the background.

It's even more of a bonus because despite Jelly Bean having brought performance enhancements, one thing that has degraded is battery life. We've heard nothing but complaints from people who've upgraded from Ice Cream Sandwich that ICS was better. Turning off Google Now appears to make a difference, but only a minor one.


Score of device overall: 4.5 / 5 stars
 

RetepNamenots

macrumors 6502
May 30, 2009
257
4
All the reviews have pointed to how ergonomic and comfortable the Nexus 4 is, with its rubber frame, so I'm not too worried, but I do wish the device was thinner. I wonder why it's so much thicker than the Optimus G. Anyone know?

I think it's because of the inductive charging.
 

THE JUICEMAN

macrumors 68020
Oct 3, 2007
2,371
1,122
But it's also thicker than the Optimus G, which worries me. Part of the reason why the S3 and it's screen felt easily reached and usable was because of its thin profile (it's actually a very comfortable phone to hold).

All the reviews have pointed to how ergonomic and comfortable the Nexus 4 is, with its rubber frame, so I'm not too worried, but I do wish the device was thinner. I wonder why it's so much thicker than the Optimus G. Anyone know?


Could be the wireless charging coil. I know Nokia said that is what caused some of the thickness on the 920.
 

onthecouchagain

macrumors 604
Original poster
Mar 29, 2011
7,382
2
For those wondering about the white version, someone claiming to be a worker at Carphone Warehouse over at Android Central forums says it's an exclusive version to Carphone.

Who knows.
 

ChazUK

macrumors 603
Feb 3, 2008
5,393
25
Essex (UK)
I still have my preorder from CPW (alledgedly due the 13th) but where are the effing Google Play preorders?

5 days till launch and we still can't buy from Google? Chaz is worried.
 

dvrmstrng

macrumors 6502
Mar 2, 2006
250
0
I still have my preorder from CPW (alledgedly due the 13th) but where are the effing Google Play preorders?

5 days till launch and we still can't buy from Google? Chaz is worried.

Same here. I am getting a Note II tomorrow at AT&T launch date and was hoping to have the N4 in hand during the 14 days return window. How fast does google usually ship the phones?
 

onthecouchagain

macrumors 604
Original poster
Mar 29, 2011
7,382
2
google-nexus-4-31.jpg


Nexus line is growing up.

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Really awesome set of reviews. Sounds like it's shaping up to be a win for Google. If they can get the few pre-release bugs out of the way before it hits people's hands (supposedly fix is coming November 11), then this is going to do well.
 

Frankied22

macrumors 68000
Nov 24, 2010
1,789
594
How long do you think it will take to ship if you order it day one from the Google Play store?
 

0057252

Cancelled
Oct 22, 2012
92
245
How long do you think it will take to ship if you order it day one from the Google Play store?

When I ordered the Galaxy Nexus from the play store the day it was available, it took 4 days to get to my house. I hope it's about the same time frame for the Nexus 4. Obviously it could be much different for you.
 

Marco123

macrumors 6502a
Jun 14, 2012
693
190
This will be my first android phone but considering I could get a galaxyS3 for the same money second-hand, can anyone tell me why I should.
Apologies but I doubt understand all the hype of this phone.
 

strausd

macrumors 68030
Jul 11, 2008
2,998
1
Texas
This will be my first android phone but considering I could get a galaxyS3 for the same money second-hand, can anyone tell me why I should.
Apologies but I doubt understand all the hype of this phone.

Some GPU benchmarks have shown the N4 at nearly double the performance of the S3. Also, with it being a Nexus you get updates as they come out, not 8 months later. In addition, the US S3 has a dual core CPU and 2GB RAM, this has quad core CPU and same RAM. Don't have to deal with touch wiz either.
 

blackhand1001

macrumors 68030
Jan 6, 2009
2,600
37
Some GPU benchmarks have shown the N4 at nearly double the performance of the S3. Also, with it being a Nexus you get updates as they come out, not 8 months later. In addition, the US S3 has a dual core CPU and 2GB RAM, this has quad core CPU and same RAM. Don't have to deal with touch wiz either.

The adreno 320 is faster than the a6s GPU as well.
 

DeathChill

macrumors 68000
Jul 15, 2005
1,663
90
The adreno 320 is faster than the a6s GPU as well.

Just curious, but what are you basing this off of? I only saw one benchmark where the Adreno 320 pulled ahead, which was Egypt HD where the Optimus gets 2 FPS more. The offscreen of the Egypt Classic has the A6 ahead of the Adreno 320 by 13 FPS!

EDIT:

I'll make a handy chart for you where the Adreno 320 is beaten by the A6. I am using the numbers obtained by putting the phone in the freezer for the Nexus 4, so they may not be real world.

NEXUS 4 IPHONE 5 IPAD 4

Fragment Lit
46 80.4 87

Fragment Lit(1080p offscreen)
40.2 74.8 115.9

Vertex Lit(1080p offscreen)
40.4 74.8 118.1

Egypt HD
39.6 39 41.9

Egypt HD(1080p offscreen)
30.5 27 51.8

Egypt Classic
59.5 60 59.1

Egypt Classic(1080p offscreen)
77.3 91 132.6

I have no idea why you continue to say the Adreno is better than the A6 GPU. The A6 GPU destroyed the Adreno 320 in all but two tests. The gap is HUGE in every test in favour of the A6.

EDIT x2: I had it all formatted nicely and the post screws it up. :(

EDIT x3: For fun, I added the iPad 4.
 
Last edited:

blackhand1001

macrumors 68030
Jan 6, 2009
2,600
37
Just curious, but what are you basing this off of? I only saw one benchmark where the Adreno 320 pulled ahead, which was Egypt HD where the Optimus gets 2 FPS more. The offscreen of the Egypt Classic has the A6 ahead of the Adreno 320 by 13 FPS!

EDIT:

I'll make a handy chart for you where the Adreno 320 is beaten by the A6. I am using the numbers obtained by putting the phone in the freezer for the Nexus 4, so they may not be real world.



I have no idea why you continue to say the Adreno is better than the A6 GPU. The A6 GPU destroyed the Adreno 320 in all but two tests. The gap is HUGE in every test in favour of the A6.

EDIT x2: I had it all formatted nicely and the post screws it up. :(

EDIT x3: For fun, I added the iPad 4.

The benchmarks for the nexus 4 by anandtech were wrong. The software Had major kernel issues with the thermal throttling going off at way too low of a temperature. It also had various other kernel related issues that were seperate from the thermal throttling. These issues affected the nexus 10 as well.
 
Last edited:

DeathChill

macrumors 68000
Jul 15, 2005
1,663
90
The benchmarks for the nexus 4 by anandtech were wrong. E software Had major kernel issues with the thermal throttling going off at way too low of a temperature. It also had various other kernel related issues that were seperate from the thermal throttling. These issues affected the nexus 10 as well.

Did you not just read what I wrote? I used the IMPROVED numbers obtained by putting the phone in the freezer. The A6 still destroyed it. I cannot imagine that its numbers are going to magically double. What "issues" are you talking about?

Regardless, how can you say the Adreno 320 performs better than the A6 with absolutely no benchmarks to back it up?
 

blackhand1001

macrumors 68030
Jan 6, 2009
2,600
37
Did you not just read what I wrote? I used the IMPROVED numbers obtained by putting the phone in the freezer. The A6 still destroyed it. I cannot imagine that its numbers are going to magically double. What "issues" are you talking about?

Regardless, how can you say the Adreno 320 performs better than the A6 with absolutely no benchmarks to back it up?

It has kernel issues as well that are unrelated to the thermal throttling. The nexus 10 is also affected by this.
 
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