Mobility Digest » Verizon

Mobility Digest Review: Google’s Galaxy Nexus by Samsung

Doug Smith — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 22:38:12 +0000

In January 2010, Google introduced the Nexus One, or what they would call the “Pure Android Experience”. The idea was to give Android owners a device that was 100% controlled by Google and as a result, would not have any bloat, or carrier modifications made to it. This “Pure Android Experience” would be Google’s Flagship device and always have available to it the most current version of the Google operating system at the time. No waiting for Carriers to approve the updates and push them out at their leisure, this device would have almost real time updating. To further appeal to developers, the Nexus One would come with an unlockable bootloader and encourage end user development. The Nexus One, manufactured by HTC, would be the first of these flagship devices.

Released with Android 2.1 Éclair, the Nexus One would receive version 2.2 Froyo and version 2.3 Gingerbread updates. The Nexus One would not receive the most current Android Operating System, Ice Cream Sandwich or version 4.0. Later that year in December 2010, Google would follow up the Nexus One with the Nexus S. The Nexus S would not be made by HTC as was the original Nexus One, but manufactured by Samsung and bare the very popular “S” branding that was also on the Samsung Flagship device called the Galaxy S. Several version of the Galaxy S would become available from multiple US Carriers, but the Google Nexus S would be released with then new operating system called Gingerbread version 2.3. Google would stay true to their word about updating these devices and exactly one year later, Google would update the Nexus S with ICS, Version 4.0.

Google would complete the Nexus Trilogy in November 2011 by once again tapping Samsung to create the third version of their flagship device that would would be again named after a current Samsung device, this time calling it the Galaxy Nexus. Released and ushering in the latest and greatest operating systems from Google called Ice Cream Sandwich, this version 4.0 plus some very high end specs would complete Google’s desire to create a true Flagship Device worthy of the Nexus name.

So now that I have brought everyone up to speed on the Google Nexus lineage of smartphone devices, there is only one thing left to do and this is bust out another Mobility Digest Review on Google’s Galaxy Nexus by Samsung!

The Unboxing

The packaging is plain white as you can see with nothing in print anywhere on it. The inner carton is all red and the device is the first thing you see after removing the top cover. Under the device tray is all the booklets, sync cable, ac adapter, and earbuds Verizon is including with the Nexus.

The Samsung Galaxy Nexus feels very solid. In fact, it is the best feeling Samsung device out right now. Even though the back panel is very flimsy, the rest of the device is very well made and solid. The bottom of the Galaxy Nexus has a centered micro USB port and the 3.5mm audio jack. Also located on the bottom is a small mic the is in between the audio jack and micro USB port.

On the right hand side of the GN at the top is the power button and towards the bottom is 3 prongs to be used with accessories like a docking station. The top of the GN has nothing on it and seems strange to be bare when most all other devices have something of worth up there. The left hand side of the GN is where you will find the volume rocker.

On the back side of Sammy’s Galaxy Nexus is the camera and LED Flash. At the bottom of the back side is your speaker.

The back cover as I mentioned above is very flimsy and removing it will make you want to cringe each time you do it. The tabs that hold down the back cover are incredibly small. Under the back cover is a 1850 mAh battery that should keep ICS chugging along.

The Galaxy Nexus measures out at 5.33” x 2.67” x .37” and weighs 5.1 oz. The contoured glass adds a little bit of girth to the bottom side of the Galaxy Nexus, but it feels good in your hand and solid the whole time.

The Hardware

The Galaxy Nexus is powered by a 4th generation Texas Instruments OMAP (Open Multimedia Application Platform) 4460 dual core 1.2 GHz processor. Now wait a minute here, why would Sammy not use their own Exynos processor? As I mentioned earlier, this is a pure Google Android experience and as such, Google’s development team controls every component that goes into this device. As it turns out, the developers at Google picked the OMAP 4460 because of it’s hardware accelerator called IVA 3. Because of the big and beautiful 4.65 HD screen that the Galaxy Nexus has, the OMAP was determined to have better encoding and decoding of HD video which was obviously very important to Google and to make the device perform at it ‘s best. With all that said, I found that most of the time the processor did a very good job and seemed to work well with ICS 4.0. But the kiss of death if you are a hardware manufacture is a boot screen animation that is vibrantly colorful as it is animated. On the very first boot animation the screen locked up several times and was buggy several times after that. I never understood the point of these wild boot screen animations but if you are going to use them, it is always best to make sure they flow smoothly every time. Over all, the 1.2GHz dual core processor was pretty good and definitely better than earlier versions of the Nexus. There are still some bugs and gremlins in the OS but the majority of the time this device was quick and responsive.

There is plenty of memory on the Galaxy Nexus with it’s 32 GB of on board storage. No microSD card slot on the Galaxy so 32gb is all you get. RAM on the Galaxy Nexus is 1gb. The battery is a 1850mAh which claims up to 12 hours normal usage and standby time up to 150 hours. I got a lot better battery life out of the Galaxy Nexus then I have with any Gingerbread device and in the week I used it I got between 8-10 hours of moderate usage. Power users will definitely need to make sure they have a plan b for power after 6-8 hours.

The screen on the Galaxy Nexus is pretty darn spiffy. Packing a 4.65 inch Super AMOLED 1280 x 720 HD screen in this device makes watching videos and movies through streaming source like Netflix, amazing. I normally watched Lord of the Rings on my test devices because of the scenery and richness of color, and I pretty much love watching the movie, but noticed that Netflix no longer has it! (Must be on Starz which they lost) Anyway, I found several other movies like Ironman that I watched and the as I said, it is a great experience! The last thing to mention about the screen is it’s very cool and unique contoured display. It’s definitely pretty cool and makes for a slightly curved feel to your face when on a phone call.

Even though NFC is the way of the future, should you find a place to use, you can rest assured that you are covered with your Galaxy Nexus which includes this radio in the device. Wifi and Bluetooth (3.0) both performed well and nothing out of the ordinary.

It is the speed of Verizon’s 4G LTE network that was the biggest surprise! I knew the capabilities of the 4G LTE service but since I live in a very rural area (it is actually closer to the middle of nowhere) I do not get any type of 4G service. Speeds on the Verizon network reached 25 mbps download and 13 mbps upload. It is amazing to see a smartphone stream that fast. The Galaxy Nexus on the Verizon 4G LTE service has some serious horsepower and the download speed is sick. Watching steaming services like Netflix and Pandora are amazing. Facebook, YouTube, and just plain surfing the net is an absolute joy! I have been critical of Verizon’s $100.00 premium that put on new 4G LTE devices which are $299.99 with two year purchase, but if you live in, or frequent a 4G LTE area I am would seriously consider the the extra money and almost justify it! I do think that Verizon will have only a short time left to enjoy the extra $100.00 premium for their 4G LTE devices because AT&T has started selling their 4G LTE devices and have maintained the $199.99 price point for them with of course the two year contract. To sum up the Galaxy Nexus running on the 4G LTE network is easy, it is simply blazing fast and where the 4G LTE markets are available.

Frequencies and Data Type: CDMA/PCS/1xEVDO Rev. A: 800/1900 MHz,LTE: 700 MHz
Data Speed: LTE, EVDO Rev. A

The Camera on the Galaxy Nexus has all new software, but for some reason they choose to go to the 5mp rear facing camera. It has w/AF and LED flash. Even though the Zoom on the Galaxy Nexus was pretty impressive in terms of actual closeness, the blurriness of the photo was pretty apparent and did not measure up against the likes of the iPhone 4S which is still in my opinion, the benchmark that everyone else is shooting for.

As I said, the camera’s software has been revamped and I think it is much cleaner user interface:

The 1.3 mp front facing camera does a good job when trying to conference and has the same specs as it’s arch rival from Motorola, the DROID RAZR with 720 HD front facing video. Video capture was really good with the Galaxy Nexus and it features 1080p HD video capture (rear camera) in the following formats H.263, H.264, MPEG4, VC–1. In Video capture, the Galaxy Nexus offers you some options to make taking videos fun. It has a wide array of “Live Affects” that can be accessed to distort the subject matter, say like your best friend and make their face twist at all kinds of hilarious angles. The Galaxy Nexus also has a single motion panoramic mode that when in use, allows you to swipe the bar at the bottom to capture the width of the picture desired.

The Software

Google wanted to continue to make the Galaxy Nexus a first and launched this device with Android Version 4.0, or as it is more commonly known as Ice Cream Sandwich. This was the long awaited follow up to Gingerbread version 2.3. You might have noticed that no where have we mentioned a version 3.0 huh? Well that is because Google launched Honeycomb, Android Version 3.0 for their tablets after Froyo did not pay off for them as they had hoped. Ice Cream Sandwich is clean, and from the get go, you notice that this operating system is much smoother over Gingerbread. The today screen is clean, and that is due to this device being a “Pure Android Experience” and not weighed down by Carrier Bloat as we like to call it. Verizon, even though I do like some of their software, has only two apps loaded on the Galaxy Nexus, “My Verizon Mobile” and “VZ Backup Assistant”.

At the top of the today screen is a small Google Search Box that we all have become accustomed too as well as a Voice Command icon in the right corner. Even though since the early days of Windows Mobile, anything animated on a smartphone is generally thought to consume power and be wasteful. Even still, Androids Live Wallpapers are cool and I quickly changed to the Nexus Wallpaper that is now famous. Across the bottom of the screen are 5 buttons that you will most commonly use. The Phone, Contacts, Apps, Messaging, and Browser. Below that is the back button, home, and recent apps buttons. I really liked the multitasking recent apps button, accidentally closing down an app can be reopened quickly.

The operating system is much smoother and there has been a lot of enhancements made by Google to what seems like every app. Even notifications have been revamped, separating it further from the version the iPhone adopted from Android.

Conclusion

The Google Galaxy Nexus by Samsung is worthy replacement for the Nexus S and illustrates what I feel is Google’s commitment to progressing their mobile platform. The operating system continues to get better and better as it seems Google is making better strides to optimize the OS to the ever changing hardware. I think in the very near future, specs will have to become a non selling point for Google and they concentrate more on the UX instead of always being the biggest and baddest spec’d out device on the market. Take for example Windows Phone, they can achieve a rich and very smooth UX with a lot less hardware. I think this needs to be Google’s main focus going forward and work hard to make sure their OS is optimized for the bajillions of Android Devices on the market. With all that said, Google has made a stellar device in the Galaxy Nexus and the new operating system, Ice Cream Sandwich, is a very positive step in the right direction for them. The Android base will love this device. Unlockable and full of third party development plus the first in line to receive any updates from Google. Hardware, the Galaxy Nexus will provide excellent power and performance. When compared to other device like the Motorola DROID RAZR, who will also receive the ICS update very soon, what sets the Galaxy Nexus apart is the amazing curved screen. Even though the RAZR has the qHD screen, the Galaxy Nexus is simply better. More vibrant, crisp, and a media view pleasure. The Galaxy Nexus by Samsung has done Google proud once again.

PROS

Excellent curved glass screen
Android 4.0, Ice Cream Sandwich
Fast, well spec’d out device.
Total integration into the Google ecosystem
Real time updates from Google, no carrier delays.

CONS

Back cover is as cheesy as any I have seen. Be careful removing and installing.
Camera could have been better, zoom blurriness was not good.
Still hard to shovel $300 bucks for a 2 year commitment phone.

Verizon’s 4G LTE Swamp Commercial Trendy but Dumb

Doug Smith — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 05:03:23 +0000

So if you happen to be at 30.000 LAT / –90.375 LONG and you are a major US Wireless Carrier what do you do? Easy, find yourself the first alligator you can find which won’t be too hard since you are in the middle of a Louisiana swamp and show off your 4G LTE service like Verizon did! Cashing in the very popular reality TV series Swamp people, Verizon sends out a pitiful Crocodile Dundee wannabe with the same style huge bowie knife he is carrying on his side and asks him to wrestle the alligator while bidding on a 1979 Dukes of Hazard lunch box. (I hope it at least has Daisy Duke on it).

Sporting a Motorola Droid RAZR which took me a few rewinds to finally confirm, but definitely the Kevlar back paneled, Gorilla Glass, and water-repellent nanocoating, Alligator Al here won’t have to worry about the splashes of water killing his device. It looks like the point of the commercial is to demonstrate how fast Verizon’s 4G LTE Network is while under tough situations performing crucial internet task like buying a Dukes of Hazard lunch box.

I hope Verizon does better the next go around because this commercial should have been left in the swamp.

Verizon 50% off Sale on Extended Batteries for 4G LTE Devices

Doug Smith — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 19:04:37 +0000

If you are having battery drainage issues with your 4G LTE smartphone from Verizon, then you might want to consider adding a backup battery to your carry around accessories to make sure you never go dead in the absence of a power source. And to help you out, Verizon is offering 50% off all replacement batteries on compatible 4G LTE devices like the Galaxy Nexus, DROID Bionic, etc. According to Droid Life, a Verizon Rep stated that all extended batteries for 4G LTE devices were 50% off. So head on over to Verizon and get yourself some more power to have handy in the event an outlet isn’t available.

Motorola to launch fewer phones in 2012

Doug Smith — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 18:41:30 +0000

It seems kind of funny that Motorola CEO Sanjay Jha has said that his company will release fewer phones in 2012 in spite of the fact they finished 2011 with multiple new devices in rapid succession. The DROID Bionic, which we reviewed and really liked, remained Moto’s flagship device for only s short time as the release of the very impressive DROID RAZR, just recently reviewed was released. Either device is sure bet on Verizon’s speedy 4G LTE network, but I would have to give the nod to the RAZR. It’s too hard to resist it’s KEVLAR and Gorilla Glass goodness.

But as CES, The Consumer Electronic Show continues to dish out new products to the masses, we recently learned that Motorola would release a RAZR MAXX to the lineup as well. Originally when we learned about the RAZR MAXX, we thought it would get the 1.5GHz dual core processor, larger screen, and almost certainly more power with a bigger battery. Well, we were only part right as the RAZR MAXX will only sport the larger battery. Is this an admission of how poor the battery life really is? The Smart Actions app seemed to be the best solution by Moto for this and not to release a new device with a bigger battery.

So has Motorola had an epiphany , and now knows that more may not necessarily be better, and to take a page from Microsoft’s playbook and realize that marketing is in fact necessary? According to Jha:

“A lot of products that are roughly the same doesn’t drive the market to a new place,”

Sanjay goes on to say that:

“I made this decision independent of what the others will do,” he said. “We’re doing what we think is the right thing.”

It looks like from his statements that the fewer ideas coming to market for Motorola will allow them to better market the products they have. Jha also said that that the Bionic was delayed and that was the reason it got released so close to the RAZR. Between the keyboard version DROID 4, the Bionic, and now the DROID RAZR, Moto should have some good products to carry itself through much of 2012. It still seems unlikely to me that the lure of specs, especially with the 1.5 GHz dual core processors out, that Moto won’t somehow need to release or update these products again before even a 6 month life cycle is up.

[via allthingsd]

Mobility Digest Review: Motorola Droid RAZR

Doug Smith — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 23:38:31 +0000

In the third quarter of 2004 Motorola made history by releasing the most popular flip phone which took the world by storm. Thin, with sharp lines, this clamshell device would become a fashion icon and sell more than 130 million units in it’s four year lifespan. That devices was the Motorola RAZR. Several variations of the RAZR would follow but none of them would match the original in sales. Soon after the RAZR dynasty would be laid to rest while the iPhone and BlackBerry gained momentum with their smartphones. Fast forward to October 2011. After regaining much of it’s lost glory, Motorola returns with a vengeance and begins selling high end Android Devices with cutting edge hardware. Motorola would call these devices “Droid”. Motorola regained past glory with string of very successful devices packing them with specs second to none while Android, an open source platform, quickly evolved and matured releasing major updates to the OS in rapid succession. Impressed with Motorola Mobility’s success, they would be bought by Google. A perfect alliance may not be the best description but what would is for sure is that Motorola shows no signs of falling asleep at the wheel like they did after the original RAZR. In October of 2011 Motorola Mobility, a Google company would call upon the name of it’s former glory once more and create a device second to none, Motorola would release the Droid RAZR for Verizon. The legend continues.

WHAT’S IN THE BOX

The packaging, which is not standard for Android phones, is very well done. Inside you will find of course, one Motorola DROID RAZR, Sync Cable, assortment of reading material, and last but not least, and interesting little AC Plug. Unlike the typical AC Plug that we have seen so many times in the past, the one supplied with the Motorola DROID RAZR has two USB ports making it able to charge say, two DROID RAZRS should you have them.

SPECIFICATIONS & DESIGN

The Motorola Droid RAZR is superbly built and feels very solid for how thin it is. How thin is it you ask? The RAZR is amazingly thin measuring just .28 inches thick! It widens out quite a bit towards the top of the device where the camera hardware is located. The DROID RAZR is 5.15 inches long and 2.71 inches wide. Weight is 4.48 oz. and even though this device is very solidly built, it feels very lightweight in your hand.

So it is safe to say that how incredibly thin this device is that it is the first thing that draws your attention. If that is the case, then the second thing is KEVLAR back cover for the device. If you are looking at the pictures below, you can immediately see how amazing it looks. To hold the RAZR is just as cool. The KEVLAR does show fingerprints and has a very grip able feel to it making holding on to this device very easy.

Starting with the bottom of the RAZR, there are no ports along the bottom that is sometimes seen in Android devices. There are the 4 standard Android buttons across the bottom of the screen, menu, home, back, and search. There is also an opening for voice microphone just below the menu and home buttons. The left hand side of the device is where the bay is located for the SIM card as well as the microSD storage card. I am not a huge fan of these kinds of covers on devices, but this one is very well done and would not stay open on it’s own. On the top side of the DROID RAZR is located the micro USB and HDMI ports for your syncing and media viewing pleasure using the mirror mode with the micro HDMI port. Also located on the top is the 3.5mm audio jack which is really the only place it should be located. The right hand side of the RAZR has the power button towards the top and volume up and down rocker colored in black to match the bezel. The back side of the DROID RAZR has again the very cool KEVLAR coating as well as a thicker area where the camera is located. Across the top from left to right is the 8 megapixel camera and the LED Flash. on the right hand side is located the speaker for the DROID RAZR. Towards the bottom there is another microphone for recoding while using video capture.

SCREEN

Behind the 4.3 inch Gorilla Glass protected screen is a 960 x 540 qHD Super AMOLED Advanced panel that is a PenTile Matrix display. A lot of people have complained about the PenTile Matrix displays which even included me on several other Android Device reviews, but here on the DROID RAZR, I really liked what I saw. The display is sharp and when comparing it to the iPhone retina screen does a very good job. Colors seem to be a little saturated and dark, but are at the same time very rich. The RAZR screen is sharp and while watching my favorite Netflix streamed movie, the Lord of the Rings, I enjoyed the color and sharpness and the whole experience for a smartphone.

Motorola DROID RAZR 4G Android Phone (Verizon Wireless)

PROCESSOR

The Motorola DROID RAZR sports a 1.2 GHz dual core processor that is amazingly fast on this device. As a matter of fact, I have been very impressed with the speed of the Motorola devices used in daily routines. Unlike other high end Android devices that are sometimes prone to lags, the Motorola DROID RAZR does not lock up or lag at any time that I used it for this review. I ran some test as you can see below and looking across the internet at some other peoples scores on the RAZR, mine did come up short. Only scoring a 2404 Quadrant rating, that was an average of 300-500 points less than what I found others getting. However, I still contend that this is the fastest and best daily use Android device I have ever run.

MEMORY

The DROID RAZR comes with a 1 GB of LP DDR2 RAM, 16GB internal memory + 16GB microSD card preinstalled in the device making for 32GB of total storage for all your photos, videos and music.

CAMERA

The cameras on the Motorola DROID RAZR do a decent job but are not in the same league as other 8 megapixel cameras like the iPhone 4S and HTC Titan (Windows Phone). I found that the Bionic rear camera had some blurry issues at times and also had a hard time with certain red colors. But all in all the camera is pretty good and you can rest assured when using it that do a pretty decent job. The front facing camera on the Motorola DROID RAZR is a 1.3 megapixel webcam that has 720HD video recording capability. This made my Skype calls very nice on the other end for users I regularly conference with for work related usage. The video camera on the RAZR also has the same blurry problems as the camera and I thought the mic did a good job with sound. It records in 1080p HD Video which is pretty cool when using the HDMI out function (1080p HMDI Mirror Mode) to share your videos. The bottom line is that DROID RAZR has some high end hardware specs but falls short compared to some other devices on the market.

Below are some photos I snapped with the RAZR in great outdoors while deer hunting. As you cans see, the pictures are pretty decent until you have to zoom, then they get very grainy. Compared to the iPhone 4S, the RAZR has some more work to do.

RADIOS

The WIFI and Bluetooth (v2.1+ EDR) radios on the RAZR perform as expected and I had no trouble connecting either to my Jawbone headset or wireless. It is the speed of Verizon’s 4G LTE network that was the biggest surprise! I knew the capabilities of the 4G LTE service but since I live in a very rural area (it is actually closer to the middle of nowhere) I do not get any type of 4G service. Speeds on the Verizon network reached 25 mbps download and 13 mbps upload. It is amazing to see a smartphone stream that fast. The DROID RAZR on the Verizon 4G LTE service has some serious horsepower and the download speed is sick. Watching steaming services like Netflix and Pandora are amazing. Facebook, YouTube, and just plain surfing the net is an absolute joy! I have been critical of Verizon’s $100.00 premium that put on new 4G LTE devices which are $299.99 with two year purchase, but if you live in, or frequent a 4G LTE area I am would seriously consider the the extra money and almost justify it! I do think that Verizon will have only a short time left to enjoy the extra $100.00 premium for their 4G LTE devices because AT&T has started selling their 4G LTE devices and have maintained the $199.99 price point for them with of course the two year contract. To sum up the DROID RAZR running on the 4G LTE network is easy, it is simply blazing fast and where the 4G LTE markets are available.

SOFTWARE

Motorola has finally listened to the people and flushed MOTOBLUR. It was hard for me to use and had some serious side affects to the devices that had it on it. The DROID RAZR is running Android Gingerbread 2.3.5 and is loaded with Verizon apps otherwise know as bloat ware. I am not a huge fan of these apps and generally remove them from the today screen in favor of other widgets or apps I download myself. The Verizon app list is:

Mobile Hotspot with support for up to 8 Devices
Backup Assistant +, Visual Voice Mail, Verizon Video, VCAST Tones, VZ Navigator, My Verizon Mobile
Full Suite of Google Apps incl.: Google Maps with Street View, Places and Latitude; Google Talk with Video Chat; Gmail; Google Books; YouTube™; Google Calendar
1000’s of apps &100’s of widgets avail. on Android Market
Photo Sharing: Facebook, Flickr, Picasa , Photobucket®

The five panels on the today screen scroll incredibly smooth as do any of the screens I navigated to and from. Gingerbread is a much more complete OS than any of the former versions and is a lot more stable and less consuming on the battery. Out of all the Android devices I have used it is Motorola’s user interface I know like the best. It is a lot easier to scroll through and is simpler to view . Another add to the DROID RAZR is Smart Actions. Smart Actions is what Moto calls it’s artificial intelligence that learns from your usage patterns and can make recommendations to save you time and battery life. It will start up programs that you use at certain times like the morning news and weather, and can even switch to silent mode during working hours so that you won’t get busted for forgetting from that nagging boss. It is very easy to use and I thought was perfect companion to the DROID RAZR to help you maximize your experience.

CONCLUSION

I think I am going to leave this as one of the shortest conclusions I have ever written. The Motorola DROID RAZR is a must have device if you are wanting blazing fast Verizon 4G LTE speed and all access to the Android world. The RAZR is fast and I really liked the look and feel to it. I personally put an OtterBox on everything I own, but with the RAZR, it seems covering it up would be a crime. It fits great into your front pocket. I wish the camera would have been a little better, and maybe a few other little picky items, but the device as a whole is stellar. Motorola has committed to putting the newest of operating systems on the RAZR as soon as possible in 2012. It will be among the first devices to receive it. So if you like the form facture, you should not worry about getting left behind with the old operating system and wait for the new version 4.0 Android devices other than the Samsung Galaxy Nexus which is currently available with Ice Cream Sandwich. The DROID RAZR when originally launched was $299.99 with a two year contract but I have seen pricing drop to a more palatable $199.99. Look for the recently announced purple version if the color suits you, and a DROID RAZR MAXX with longer battery life to hit the Verizon store shelves early 2012.

Verizon Wiresless + LG at CES 2012 = LG Spectrum

Rama Uppugunduri — Tue, 10 Jan 2012 02:26:51 +0000

LG Spectrum is one of the cool and fast smartphones that are coming to Verizon Wireless during 2012. The Spectrum is powered by Android Gingerbread initially that lives up to its name with 4.5” True IPS (In-Plane Switching) Screen that is used in LG HDTV sets. The LG Mobile press release states "Intensifying its HD capabilities, Spectrum by LG will give customers exclusive HD access to the ESPN™ ScoreCenter application. " LG touts it as True HD.

"ESPN’s ScoreCenter app is supported by an exclusive HD video feed, giving customers the exclusive access to ScoreCenter stats, images and videos in 720p HD. Scoreboards and live game details include in-game stats, news and video. Personalization features allow fans to customize their ScoreCenter experience by highlighting their favorite teams and leagues from around the world, all in crystal clear high-definition."

I guess this phone will fulfill the needs of sports lovers, who can’t glue to their TV sets while their favorite team is playing and they have to work.

The specs of this phone from LG’s press release are:

4.5-inch True HD IPS display provides natural colors and brilliant, undistorted HD images in 16:9 aspect ratio. Pictures and texts are incredibly sharp with 329 pixels per inch (PPI) screen density.
Protected by Corning® Gorilla® Glass, the True HD IPS display uses Real Stripe sub-pixel arrangement so images never get blurred.
Android™ 2.3 Gingerbread (Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich upgrade available the first half of 2012); support for Google™ Mobile Services including Gmail™, YouTube™, Google Talk™, Google Search™, Google Maps™ and access to more than 300,000 apps available to download from Android Market™.
Preloaded Netflix app allows Netflix subscribers to stream the latest movies in high-definition quality.
Qualcomm 1.5 GHz dual-core processor makes multitasking seamless. Customers can surf the Web, check email and update social networks effortlessly.
ESPN’s ScoreCenter app offers the most comprehensive sports coverage available on an Android device whether you follow the NFL or Premier League, ICC Champions League or MLB™, NASCAR or Formula One™. Customers can follow teams from more than 500 leagues around the world with an exclusive 720p high-definition feed for Spectrum by LG while connected to the Verizon Wireless 4G LTE network or Wi-Fi.
Spectrum supports Dolby® Digital Plus, which allows users to maximize their HD multimedia experience. Dolby Digital Plus can stream up to 7.1 channels of surround sound through home entertainment systems.
8-megapixel rear-facing autofocus camera with LED flash to snap beautiful pictures and 1080p video capture. Front-facing 1.3-megapixel camera for video chat
SmartMovie HD app—create and edit HD videos right on the Spectrum by LG
Mobile Hotspot capability—share 4G LTE connection with up to 10 Wi-Fi-enabled devices
Bluetooth® Version 3.0
16 GB microSD™ card pre-installed with support for up to 32 GB microSD card
SmartShare—share media wirelessly to DLNA®-enabled devices
HDMI mirroring capable via MHL

The press release didn’t stop there, they provided the pricing and availability of this flagship phone from LG on Verizon Wireless.

Pricing and availability:

“Spectrum by LG will be available on Jan. 19 in Verizon Wireless Communications Stores and online at www.verizonwireless.com for $199.99 with a new two-year customer agreement.
Customers who purchase a Spectrum by LG will need to subscribe to a Verizon Wireless Nationwide Talk plan beginning at $39.99 monthly access and a smartphone data package starting at $30 monthly access for 2 GB of data. “

Side Note: LG and Verizon Wireless are promising that this will be upgraded to Ice Cream Sandwich during first half of 2012, by then Google comes with another sweet flavor of Android for sure and I am not sure why LG always slow in adopting latest version of Android in their flagship phones. And I normally take the carriers and makers words with grain of salt about upgrading Android to promised version anytime. After spending good chunk of my fortune, I realized the upgradeability officially is a myth in the case of Android phones.

This phone is exclusive to Verizon Wireless.

Source: LG

Verizon Jetpack Global Ready Hotspot with 4G LTE

Doug Smith — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 20:51:37 +0000

Verizon has just announced at the Consumer Electronic Show the addition of a new mobile hotspot called the Jetpack . The Verizon Jetpack Mi-Fi 4620L is a global ready intelligent mobile hotspot that will allow the user to connect up to 10 Wi-Fi enabled devices. The Jetpack provides global support allowing consumers to stay connected while traveling abroad, supporting Quad Band EDGE and HSPA technology.

The Verizon Jetpack – MiFi 4620L creates a personal Wi-Fi cloud, capable of sharing high-speed 4G LTE and 3G Mobile Broadband Internet connectivity with up to 10 Wi-Fi-enabled devices simultaneously. The Jetpack supports the latest security requirements, complying with the strictest corporate VPNs, including VPN pass-through and NAT firewall. It includes new features such as an interactive OLED display, allowing customers to scroll through menu options, check security settings, view battery life and manage connected devices at any given time.

Verizon will launch the Jetpack in the coming weeks and allow users to connect to the 4G LTE network for Ve3rizon that is now currently in over 190 markets.

Key features:

4G LTE – Customers in the United States can expect fast download speeds of 5 to 12 megabits per second (Mbps) and upload speeds of 2 to 5 Mbps in Verizon Wireless 4G LTE Mobile Broadband coverage areas
Global Ready, allowing customers to enjoy wireless data service in more than 205 countries, including more than 125 with 3G speeds
Support for up to 10 Wi-Fi-enabled devices
Backward compatible with the Verizon Wireless 3G network
Simple one-touch connectivity
OLED display and multi-color LED status indicator
Security: WEP/WPA/WPA2 and VPN pass-through support
Supports Windows^®, Macintosh^®, Linux, and most other Wi-Fi-enabled devices
No software installation required
Advanced integrated antenna technology
Wi-Fi Connectivity: 802.11b/g/n
Dimensions: 3.76" x 2.36" x 0.53"

Motorola Droid 4, RAZR, and RAZR MAXX

Doug Smith — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 20:37:57 +0000

The Consumer Electronics Show is in full swing and the mobile news is coming hot and heavy. HTC just blew us away with a 16 megapixel Titan II headed to AT&T and now it’s time for Big Red and Moto to make their presence felt! Verizon and Motorola have announced the Droid 4, a purple flavored RAZR, and the new DROID RAZR MAXX! The Droid 4 looks amazing and has got the specs to back it up. The slide out keyboard looks amazing with a fresh 5 row keyboard while not sacrificing too much screen space with it’s 4 inch qHD Display. 4G LTE will speed up any streaming you want to do and the Droid 4 will come with a 16 GB storage card compatible up to 32 GB microSD Card. The Droid 4 will also come with accessories like a 10.1 inch lap dock 100, 14-inch Lapdock 500 Pro with built-in webcam and Ethernet connection, HD Dock, HD Station and vehicle navigation mount. An 8-megapixel camera with 1080p HD video capture and Mirror Mode to display images and video on an HDTV will make any soccer mom happy . What OS, nope, no Android 4.0 yet, but Moto says it’s coming and to enjoy Gingerbread for a month or so.

The Droid RAZR is getting a face lift with a new purple flavor added to the mix. If you hate cases and want to sport that Kevlar back panel and have no fear with the Gorilla Glass getting scratched, then check out the new purple color for $199.99 and two year contract on Verizon!

Last but not least Motorola is dropping the Droid RAZR MAXX for everyone wanting even more out of the RAZR. It will have the same sleep and super thin design of only 8.99mm thick! Expect longer batter life with the Droid RAZR MAXX up to 21 hours on a straight single charge.

I’m a huge fan of the Motorola Droid RAZR and look forward to seeing the Droid RAZR MAXX. Expect the Droid 4 and the RAZR MAXX to come out of the block priced at $300 bucks each with 2 year contract, but like the Droid RAZR, watch as the price drops quickly after launch.

Stay tuned for more from Verizon and Motorola!

AT&T 4G LTE live in 11 more markets

Doug Smith — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 18:55:35 +0000

AT&T customers in the New York City metro area, Austin, Chapel Hill, Los Angeles, Oakland, Orlando, Phoenix, Raleigh, San Diego, San Francisco and San Jose markets are going to be seeing some 4G LTE goodness today as AT&T just went live in their neck of the woods! Bring the magic number up to 26 total markets for a coverage of 74 million consumers and AT&T is starting to gain some ground on Verizon who still holds a sizable lead in the LTE race. New York, the source of many of our own writers distress (1, 2) have long been the victim of the overly saturated network resulting in dropped calls, slow connection speeds, and general misery all around. It will be interesting to see how LTE compares to other markets in New York, and if the network there will support the demand placed upon it.

If you are using a 4G LTE hot rod from AT&T and live in one of these areas, drop a comment and let us know how it is working for you!

AT&T Rolls Out 4G LTE to Customers in 11 More Markets

AT&T 4G LTE Now Available in 26 Markets Including NYC Metro, San Francisco, Los Angeles. AT&T’s Blazing Fast 4G Speeds, Device Lineup, Apps Will Make for Best Customer Mobile Broadband Experience
San Francisco, California, January 05, 2012

AT&T* customers are now enjoying blazing fast 4G LTE (Long Term Evolution) speeds in 11 more markets, including New York City metro area, San Francisco and Los Angeles. This addition makes AT&T 4G LTE available in a total of 26 markets to 74 million consumers. John Stankey, President and Chief Executive Officer—AT&T Business Solutions, provided an update at Citi’s 22nd Annual Global Entertainment, Media and Telecommunications Conference in San Francisco.

New markets where AT&T 4G LTE is now available are: New York City metro area, Austin, Chapel Hill, Los Angeles, Oakland, Orlando, Phoenix, Raleigh, San Diego, San Francisco and San Jose.

The expansion adds to 15 AT&T 4G LTE markets launched in 2011: Athens, Ga.; Atlanta; Baltimore; Boston; Charlotte; Chicago; Dallas-Fort Worth; Houston; Indianapolis; Kansas City; Las Vegas; Oklahoma City; San Antonio; San Juan, Puerto Rico; and Washington, D.C.

“We’re building a 4G LTE network that’s blazing fast, and we offer dual layers of 4G technologies to provide customers with a more consistent speed experience,” said Stankey. “Our network, together with our unsurpassed 4G device portfolio and innovative applications, will give our customers an industry-leading mobile broadband experience.”

AT&T is the only U.S. carrier providing 4G using both HSPA+ and LTE technologies. HSPA+, when combined with enhanced backhaul, provides customers with access to 4G speeds — meaning AT&T customers get a faster and more consistent 4G experience on their compatible devices, even when outside of a 4G LTE area. Customers of other carriers that have transitioned to 4G LTE without further speed upgrades to their existing networks are likely to see a jarring drop-off in speeds when they move out of LTE coverage.

Another benefit of AT&T’s network strategy is that only AT&T’s network lets your iPhone 4S download three times faster.

AT&T’s mobile broadband service currently covers 284 million people and more than 90 percent of the population, including the top 100 U.S. markets.

AT&T expects its 4G LTE deployment to be largely complete by the end of 2013.

AT&T customers can choose from a growing lineup of 4G LTE-compatible devices, including HTC Vivid, Samsung Galaxy S II Skyrocket, and LG Nitro HD smartphones and HTC Jetstream and Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9 tablets.

Limited 4G LTE availability in select markets. 4G speeds delivered by LTE, or HSPA+ with enhanced backhaul, where available. Deployment ongoing. Compatible device and data plan required. LTE is a trademark of ETSI. Learn more at att.com/network.

3X claim based on national average iPhone 4S data speeds on AT&T’s network vs. other U.S. networks.

*AT&T products and services are provided or offered by subsidiaries and affiliates of AT&T Inc. under the AT&T brand and not by AT&T Inc.

Verizon Backs Down on $2 Fee

Kristofer Brozio — Fri, 30 Dec 2011 22:47:17 +0000

Well look at that, a company actually listened to it’s customers!! There will not be a $2 fee to pay your phone bill. The PR only mentions wireless, if I remember correctly it was most all of VZW services that are getting the fee. So I guess since I have FIOS TV and Internet through them I still get charged the $2 fee to pay my bill?!?! Then again $2 isn’t that bad I guess as I was paying a $10 convenience fee to Subaru to pay my car online for a few years. They stopped doing it at sometime or another though, which made me happy. Still though I paid them at $10 per month for several years….

Verizon Wireless Will Not Institute Single Payment Fee

Verizon Wireless has decided it will not institute the fee for online or telephone single payments that was announced earlier this week.

The company made the decision in response to customer feedback about the plan, which was designed to improve the efficiency of those transactions. The company continues to encourage customers to take advantage of the numerous simple and convenient payment methods it provides.

"At Verizon, we take great care to listen to our customers. Based on their input, we believe the best path forward is to encourage customers to take advantage of the best and most efficient options, eliminating the need to institute the fee at this time," said Dan Mead, president and chief executive officer of Verizon Wireless.

http://news.verizonwireless.com/news/2011/12/pr2011-12-30.html