Sunday, October 28, 2012

With the Android event canceled for now, let's see what we know so far

Sadly, Google has canceled the October 29th event due to Hurricane Sandy hitting New York in a few hours. Regardless, the rumor mills have gone into overdrive in the past 2 weeks. We've seen leaks left and right which leaves us wondering what is there left for Google to show. For those of you who haven't kept track of all the leaks here's a rundown of what we know so far.

There's going to be a new Nexus Phone (duh!)

Dubbed the "Nexus 4" and based off the freshly outed Optimus G, this phone will be Google's flagship phone for the next year. Specs include a Quad Core Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 Pro processor, 4.7 inch 1280x768 HD True IPS display, NFC, 8MP HD Camera and Android 4.2 Jelly Bean (more on that later).

Other notable features include wireless charging and 8/16GB configurations. To many including myself, the storage configurations seem extremely disappointing, BUT the possible silver lining could be in the price point. The 8GB Nexus 7 was priced extremely aggressively at $199, we hope this translates to the Nexus 4 with a possible price point of $300. One can only hope.

Lastly, some more Canadian specific rumors about the Nexus 4. Some of you might have noticed that the Galaxy Nexus was available to Canadians but only through carriers. This wasn't the best option for enthusiasts as these carrier version weren't updated straight from Google and were a hassle to get off contract. Now, it looks like Canadians will be able to purchase an unlocked Nexus 4 direct from Google just like our friends in the US as the full web based Google Play Store "Device" icon now shows a phone next to the usual tablet. At a possible $300-$400 price point, color us excited.


There will be a 10-inch Nexus 10 tablet

Out of the wood works last week was news of a Nexus 10 tablet by Samsung. First there were leaks of manuals, photos taken by Vic Gundotra and finally pictures of the tablet itself. According to the massive leaks sent to BriefMobile the Samsung made Nexus 10 will sport:
  • A world first 1.7 GHz Cortex A-15 Samsung Exynos 5250
  • Mali-T604 GPU
  • 2GB of RAM
  • 16GB of internal storage
  • 10.1 inch Retina busting 2560x1600 resolution (298.9 DPI pixel density) 
  • 5MP camera
  • NFC 
  • Bluetooth 4.0
  • Dual front facing speakers
  • Android 4.2 like the Nexus 4

Refreshed Nexus 7

Retailers have already started clearing out stock of the 8GB Nexus 7 and look like they will try to combat the Kindle Fire HD and iPad mini by slashing the price of the 16GB Nexus 7 to the $199 price point. Word is that a 3G capable version will also be announced.

Android 4.2 Jelly Bean

While details have been a bit more sparse about Android 4.2, we have tidbits of information, like multiuser support, second notification pane, security improvements, etc.

Overall we are sad to see the Monday event cancelled, but it only means the anticipation will continue to build up.

No comments:

Post a Comment