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Tuesday, June 4, 2013

[Mobile Cellphone Info] A Nexus 4 Refresh Would Be Super Lame

Mobile Cellphone Info has posted a new item, 'A Nexus 4 Refresh Would Be Super
Lame'




Every Nexus smartphone to date, hardware and specs aside, has been subjected to
an abnormal amount of hype.
The LG Optimus G is a perfect example. Internally, the Nexus 4 and Optimus G are
excruciatingly similar. They even feature similar design language (speckled
glass panels on the back) and build quality. But in many ways, the Optimus G is
better than the Nexus 4 storage, camera and LTE. However, the Nexus 4 has
received much more hype, adoration, attention on many fronts.
This is solely due to its Nexus branding, the fact that it ships with the latest
version of Android, gets direct updates from Google and is on the receiving end
of an insurmountable level of developer support.
As indicated by the Optimus G, any other device with similar or often much
better specifications is almost always subjected to a much harsher reality, in
which it receives less praise and, likewise, the sooner inevitability of
obsolescence.
Googles branded phones, regardless of specifications, are notably more
resilient, withstanding the test of time with a vigor specific to the Nexus
brand. I see my techie friends still talking about the Galaxy Nexus. In fact, my
good friend Dustin Earley of Android and Me mentioned on Friday that hes pining
for the Nexus from 2011, that he would trade his Nexus 4 for a Galaxy Nexus plus
a little cash.



I kind of want to trade my Nexus 4 for a Galaxy Nexus plus cash. Miss that
phone.
Dustin Earley (@du57in) April 26, 2013



To that end, Nexus phones always feel a little more timeless than their
non-stock, non-Nexus counterparts, even when not every last specification is up
to par with the most current flagships.
But if theres something the last year has taught us, its that were not easily
amused, and we no longer swoon over rehashes, minor updates and incremental
design changes.
We have grown to enjoy and even expect the rapid advancement of mobile
technology and feel new hardware and software should compliment it. We
constantly long for shock and awe from every manufacturer, every time they
update something.
The iPhone 5, for example, was allegedly built and designed from the ground up.
The end product was, unsurprisingly, similar to the previous years model. Apple
felt that lent credence to how great the prior products were. But many,
including the enthusiasts, took the trivial hardware and trite software changes
as a sign of Apple being idle and arrogant.

The Galaxy S 4 hype deflated quite a bit after the announcement.

In fact, I visited an Apple store last night, and an Apple employee said to me,
The upgrade to the iPhone 5 wasnt worth it, was it?
Weve seen similar disappointment and disinterest, to a degree with the Samsung
Galaxy S 4. Although we knew the successor to the Galaxy S III wouldnt come with
any massive overhauls, we longed for it begged for it. Alas, the Galaxy S 4 is
simply a refined and updated Galaxy S III. It has better specifications, more
software features and marginally better hardware, yet much of the tech industry
and many consumers are still mostly disappointed or unmoved by the S 4.
And this is exactly why HTC is stealing the show so far in 2013. Not only is the
HTC One a fantastic device on many fronts, its a radical step in a different
direction with plenty of shock and awe.
In April, rumors spread of what would happen at the upcoming Google I/O
developers conference. Among those were reports stating that the world would not
be introduced to a brand new Nexus phone, but we would see an improved Nexus 4
with 32GB of storage and LTE instead.
This new and improved Nexus 4 would come alongside Android 5.0. And, truthfully,
the Nexus brand has always been more about the software than hardware. After
all, its the software not hardware that set Nexus smartphones apart from every
other Android smartphone available.

The back of the Nexus 4 has been found to be quite fragile.

Like with every other phone that has disappointed me lately, though, I will also
be upset if this is the route Google and LG take with the Nexus in 2013.
Introducing an update Nexus 4 wouldnt be a bad idea. But unveiling an entirely
new Nexus handset alongside the updated Nexus 4 would be a much better approach.
Re-releasing the same hardware isnt going to cut it in this vicious market. Even
better specifications and a slightly modified design have proven that. But if
nothing else, the 2013 Nexus 4 should at least come with a better camera and
something more durable than the glass panel on the back. It wouldnt hurt to
update it with more modern specs either a Snapdragon 600 chip,
I would be hard pressed to buy another Nexus 4, even an updated one, this time
around. And I imagine many will feel the same. I would much rather fork over the
extra cash for the developer edition of the HTC One and pray a stock ROM finally
makes its way to the forums.
What say you, folks? Would you be satisfied with an updated Nexus 4 with more
storage? Or do you feel the Nexus brand is deserving of a little more love, in
the form of an entirely new device with new hardware to compliment the Android
5.0 (or 4.3) update?


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