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Samsung Galaxy Nexus (GSM)

8.6 Verge Score 8.9 User Score Write Review
Compare It Galaxy-nexus-1319031817-37

Verge Review

To say I've been eagerly awaiting a chance to review the Galaxy Nexus would be an understatement. As I mentioned last week, I've been thinking pretty seriously that this device would be the next phone I lay out cold cash for. And really, is that so crazy? The Galaxy Nexus is a beast of a device. The phone — which was built by Samsung in conjunction with Google — is the same thickness as the iPhone 4S, but sports a massive, 4.65-inch, 720p display, and a speedy dual-core CPU. In the US,...

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Basic Specs

Thickness 0.35 inches
Weight 0.3 pounds
Form factor Slab
Screen size (diagonal) 4.65 inches
Operating system Android
Launch OS version 4.0.1

Related Media

Android Beam hands-on
Video
Galaxy Nexus preview
Video
Galaxy Nexus Face Unlock
Video
Galaxy Nexus first hands-on
Video
Galaxy Nexus caught on video
Video
001-beamlead1_medium
Gallery

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Tech Specs

Also Known As...

Codename Nexus Prime

Hardware

Height 5.33 inches
Width 2.67 inches
Thickness 0.35 inches
Weight 0.3 pounds
Form factor Slab
Primary orientation Portrait
Color Black
Loudspeaker Yes
Noise cancellation Hardware (multi-mic)

Display

Screen size (diagonal) 4.65 inches
Technology HD Super AMOLED
Pixel arrangement PenTile
Resolution (Y) 1280 px
Resolution (X) 720 px
PPI 316
Touchscreen type Capacitive
Multitouch Yes

Connectivity

3G Connectivity Yes
GSM Yes
GSM frequencies supported 1900, 1800, 900, 850
UMTS / HSPA Yes
UMTS frequencies supported 900, 2100, 1700, 1900, 850
WWAN data standards supported EDGE, HSPA+, HSUPA, GPRS
Wi-Fi Yes
Wi-Fi support 802.11n, 802.11g, 802.11b
802.11n frequencies 5GHz, 2.4GHz
GPS Yes
Bluetooth Yes
Bluetooth version Bluetooth 3.0
NFC support Yes
Tethering / mobile hotspot Yes

Processor

Manufacturer TI
Brand / family OMAP 4
Model OMAP4460
Clock speed 1.2 GHz
Number of cores 2

GPU

Manufacturer Imagination Technologies
Model PowerVR SGX540

Memory

RAM size 1 GB

Storage

Internal size 16 GB, 32 GB
External No

Front Camera

Resolution 1.3 megapixels

Rear Camera

Resolution 5 megapixels
Flash LED
Focus type Autofocus
Video resolution 1080p
Video framerate 30

Software

Operating system Android
Launch OS version 4.0.1

Ports

Headphone jack 3.5mm
Other ports Micro USB

Sensors

Sensors Compass (Magnetometer), Proximity, Ambient light, Gyroscope, Accelerometer, Barometer

Battery

Capacity 1750 mAh
Removable Yes

Benchmarks

Quadrant 2002
Vellamo 1065
GLBenchmark 720p 28 FPS
GLBenchmark 1080p 14 FPS
AnTuTu 6079
8.9

Average User Review

of 41 total reviews
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  • 10
  • Design 8
  • Display 9
  • Camera(s) 7
  • Reception / call quality 9
  • Performance 9
  • Software 10
  • Battery life 8
  • Ecosystem 9

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  • 7.0
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    Reviewed by soldierblue348 (Previously owned)

    May 18, 2012 09:13 am

    It's a phone I really wanted to like, and to be frank, this device isn't about the hardware. The software is the primary focus here, and it's great. The unfortunate side of that is that ICS fails to outweigh the issues I took with the hardware.

    The industrial design is competent, but certainly not great, the battery door is somewhat creaky at times though it does feel relatively solid. The display is the first point where I take serious issue with. PenTile isn't a huge concern here, the real issue is display quality. Over three units I experienced severe uniformity issues, with one unit exhibiting banding issues and all three exhibiting varying degrees of image retention. It might be 720p and it might look nice at first glance but if you have any sort of discerning eye, it's nowhere near good enough.

    If you can look past the seemingly common display issues, it might work for you. Performance is snappy, battery life is par for the course and the selection of holo-themed apps is getting better by the day. However, if you want top flight hardware to go a long with the stock ICS experience, look elsewhere,. custom ROMs might be your friend.

    The Breakdown

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    • Design 7
    • Display 6
    • Camera(s) 6
    • Reception / call quality 8
    • Performance 8
    • Software 9
    • Battery life 6
    • Ecosystem 8
    Show the rest of this review and the breakdown
  • 8.0
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    Reviewed by brian515 (Currently owns)

    May 1, 2012 07:02 pm

    The front of the Nexus looks beautiful, but the back looks like any other Samsung phone - in other words, nothing special, and kind of ugly.

    The display is really hit or miss. While AMOLED does have really nice blacks, it still doesn't perform as well in sunlight as an LCD. Also, the Pentile is still visible even at this high of a resolution, and that is annoying and you can't really unsee the graininess of text and straight lines once you've spotted it. A nice IPS LCD would have really have made this phone a whole lot better.

    ICS is a whole lot better than Android has ever been, but the Android lag still surfaces every now and again. ICS is also really, really beautiful, and if I were Matias Duarte, I would be crying in my office because ICS is fantastic looking, but all other phones are going to have some ugly skin on them.

    Battery life is nothing special. It makes it through the day, but it's not nearly as good as the iPhone 4S which I could use for 2 days of moderate use without charging.

    The Breakdown

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    • Camera(s) 7
    • Reception / call quality 8
    • Performance 8
    • Software 9
    • Battery life 7
    • Ecosystem 9
    Show the rest of this review and the breakdown
  • 9.0
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    Reviewed by bilalakhtar (Currently owns)

    April 18, 2012 10:31 pm

    Pros:
    1) ICS is an AMAZING OS. Design + Function = Pure Awesomeness. Oh, and guaranteed updates too!
    2) The display is very good, best pentile screen ever.
    3) Very speedy and snappy, no hiccups even though the GPU is around 2 years old.
    4) I can easily get 2 days of battery life, under moderate to heavy usage.
    5) One of the very few phones to have an NFC chip,

    Cons:
    1) Camera, camera, camera... oh, camera!
    2) Battery life COULD be better, but I myself don't have any major issues..
    3) Speaker could be louder, right now it's somewhat silent.

    The Breakdown

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    • Display 9
    • Camera(s) 7
    • Reception / call quality 8
    • Performance 10
    • Software 10
    • Battery life 8
    • Ecosystem 9
    Show the rest of this review and the breakdown
  • 8.0
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    Reviewed by jaywontdart (Currently owns)

    April 12, 2012 06:57 am

    Pentile screen issues are easy to spot, and the screen likes to keep itself dim as possible.

    Front of the phone is fairly beautiful (although front facing camera sticks out obscenely, looking KIRFy, where as the iPhone 4, 4S front camera looks classy), the rear design is....holy hell, its just plain TERRIBLE! The camera is gross, I hate the battery cover, you wrench it off like pulling bark off a tree, absolutely disgusting.

    Performance seems near perfect.

    Cameras suck in terms of quality, dark, blurry, grainy.

    Great software, terrible design, terrible camera quality, revolutionary 720 screen which is let down by its pentile nature.

    The Breakdown

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    • Camera(s) 5
    • Reception / call quality 8
    • Performance 9
    • Software 9
    • Battery life 8
    • Ecosystem 8
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  • 9.0
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    Reviewed by ACBD (Currently owns)

    April 5, 2012 06:49 am

    Design: The device looks really beautiful. The curved contour display is uncluttered, with no buttons at all. The notification LED suits it perfectly.

    Display: Fantastic. Although it's PenTile, I could barely notice it. The only problem with is is when the brightness is set to around <65%, and artifacts could be seen especially on a white background. Other than that, it is amazing.

    Camera: Lackluster. 5MP is unacceptable when so many other phones are at 8MP. Quality is average. Luckily, the software and zero shutter lag compensates it for its flaws.

    Reception/Call Quality: I live on a small island, Singapore, and thankfully we have good coverage everywhere. Call quality is good and consistent, and I can get HSPA+ in most areas.

    Performance: Speedy. Everything is quick to load and haven't had any problems with the device unable to handle a certain load on the CPU.

    Software: Ice Cream Sandwich is absolutely amazing. A huge improvement over Gingerbread, and I can safely say that the UI is easy to use, and still retains its functionality. Better than iOS.

    Battery Life: Average. Manageable with controlled usage (non-continous, at most 30min at a time). Extended battery is available, and easily replaceable.

    Ecosystem: Google Play has a pretty robust ecosystem, with Books, Movies, Music and Apps. Not as robust as Apple's selection, but still quite fantastic.

    The Breakdown

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    • Camera(s) 7
    • Reception / call quality 10
    • Performance 10
    • Software 10
    • Battery life 8
    • Ecosystem 9
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  • 9.0
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    Reviewed by daominhhai129 (Currently owns)

    April 4, 2012 08:06 am

    Pros:
    - HD screen
    - The design is absolutely the selling point. The design from my perspective is the best in the market now, even better than the iPhone 4s, and the htc one x.
    - The performance lives up to expectation
    - The ICS 4.0.2 just make the UI smoothier than ever.
    - The camera is a good feature also, 0 shuttle lag means very much to me, eventhough it's 5 megapixel but I think it's just enough for us to take HD picture.
    Cons:
    - Battery life is not poor but if you know how to moderate the usage, getting thorough a day is not a problem.
    - THE PHONE IS SO GORGEOUS that you have to be more careful when use it, please don't drop the phone..hahaha

    The Breakdown

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    • Camera(s) 8
    • Reception / call quality 8
    • Performance 8
    • Software 10
    • Battery life 7
    • Ecosystem 10
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  • 9.0
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    Reviewed by RockandRola (Currently owns)

    January 27, 2012 01:59 pm

    Bought this phone about two weeks, replaced a iPhone 4
    How id i find out about this not in my usual method research and more research, My friend bought this and I made the mistake to put this in my hand - that was it feel in love with the display and the feel of the phone, did i say Display>? This is one of the fastest phones I have ever had and had them all 4 blackberry phones, two apple phones, etc. By far not was the biggest android fan even sold my tablet....but then Nexus came to town with Ice Cream and that's all she wrote.
    I have had this now for about two weeks, downloaded about 12 applications in all, called received calls, sms, voicemail. The only thing that was missing is the led light to let you know what's going on but being an apple user that didn't have it as well, then luckily read a post somewhere and someone found a LED app. (ZEDGE) NICE WORK BOYS.
    Probably one of the best bundled apps (Wallpaper, Ringtones, Notifications) this had em all now i can see if it's a message or a call or a sms i missed. SAMSUNG, please add a LED notification light on next release. Also bought the new OTTER BOX CASE lightweight version very nice fit.
    SAMSUNG you rock@ best phone in the marketplace a real APPLE IPHONE KILLER. Wyatt Earp gun speed, best looks and feel also just purchased the expansion panel and battery, need more batt life with a display like that ----ROCKANDROLA.

    The Breakdown

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    • Camera(s) 8
    • Reception / call quality 9
    • Performance 10
    • Software 10
    • Battery life 9
    • Ecosystem 9
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  • 9.0
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    Reviewed by Brrrr (Currently owns)

    January 23, 2012 04:30 pm

    Best android phone by far. Still ICS could be a little bit laggier than iOS, but huge improvement from gingerbread. But the overall experience is the best among smartphones.. Highly recommend this phone if you have a normal hand size :P Forget about all the discussion about penile, the display is just mind blowing.

    The Breakdown

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    • Camera(s) 8
    • Reception / call quality 10
    • Performance 9
    • Software 9
    • Battery life 8
    • Ecosystem 10
    Show the rest of this review and the breakdown
  • 9.0
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    Reviewed by pespence (Currently owns)

    January 11, 2012 04:58 pm

    Best phone I have used since my Nexus One. This device makes Android pure sexy. The oil resistant screen is one of my favorite parts because my phone constant looks clean and eye catching. Software-wise, this is a huge step from stock gingerbread. ICS brings the whole Android ecosystem to a new level. I'm really interested to try it on a tablet.

    The Breakdown

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    • Display 8
    • Camera(s) 8
    • Reception / call quality 9
    • Performance 10
    • Software 10
    • Battery life 9
    • Ecosystem 10
    Show the rest of this review and the breakdown
  • 9.0
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    Reviewed by NothingUnknown (Currently owns)

    January 6, 2012 08:25 pm

    This is the Galaxy Nexus so there isn't much to say that has not been said. But instead of providing obvious rehashes of countless reviews provided all over the web, here are some specific pluses and minuses:

    The display, while 720p, is rather "dirty" looking under low brightness and with certain colors at medium or lower brightness. Its kind of disappointing but its something I have gotten used to. Even though its pentile, the sharpness is exceptional. This is easily tested by zooming out in Google Books or any web page and being able to read text basically at nearly any zoom level.

    The camera is passable at best. Low light performance is disappointing but bright shots are good.

    Sound quality with good headphones is kind of disappointing. While there is very little noise, highs roll off. Its not even close to the audio quality of the Galaxy S. As well, the speaker is very poorly positioned and very easy to completely mute with your hand.

    Performance is untouchable. Especially when running a custom rom which makes things even faster along with a good Kernel like Francos kernel.

    Size can be a bit of an issue for those with average hands though I have gotten used to it. Its really surprising how small I now find phones with even 4" screens. Something like an iPhone now is completely unusable to me.

    The Breakdown

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    • Display 7
    • Camera(s) 7
    • Reception / call quality 9
    • Performance 10
    • Software 10
    • Battery life 9
    • Ecosystem 9
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