Nexus! January 7, 2012

Reviewer:  Hue Lam 

Waited for this phone for so long and really enjoying it. Ice cream sandwich is great and the phone is very fast.

Pretty Amazing, Just Be Patient January 6, 2012

Reviewer:  Jesse Honigberg "jessedh"  (Great Neck, NY USA) -

I have had this for about 3 weeks now. At first I was excited, then disappointed and now happy.

Stage 1 - Excited: This is a cool looking phone. It is huge, the screen is great, it is fast. Really fast. Especially when compared to my DroidX. ICS is a big improvement.

Stage 2 - Disappointed: The battery dies quickly on LTE (get an app to toggle it). The screen can almost seem too big. Verizon's car dock SUCKS. You might need to buy a new car charger (I did) after realizing that your existing one can't keep up with the screen and LTE. The anti-glare screen protector that VZ pushed on me is garbage (remove it) and the extended battery is overkill.

Stage 3 - Happy: Once I figure out solutions for all of the annoyances I am really happy with it. I can easily get a day with the normal battery and email use / web browsing. The MHL adapter is awesome. It replicates your screen on a TV (just make sure that you have power to it). I am sure that (fill in the blank) might be better in some one off aspect, but I am still happy with this purchase. The phone and ICS are (IMO) about as good as it gets right now. Until iOS gets widgets, it isn't better.

Awesome phone January 3, 2012

Reviewer:  BooJAI 

Like the title says really nice phone purchase mine from Verizon store (early upgrade)the phone is so good I just had to say something about it.

Really nice screen, watching videos either movies or HD youtube video are stunning on the 4.65 inch screen. With that said the device is huge and I have pretty medium size hands (this is really hard to describe or show) and though it fits nicely in my hand I did have some difficulty operating the phone with just one hand. For its size its light and the minor contour and curve of the phone does fit "ergonomically" in my hand. Same can be said for it fitting in my front jean pockets as my biggest fear was having this phone weighting down and create a bulge in my jean, fear all gone: tried and tested sometimes I even forget that its in my jean pockets.

"OS" does get some getting use to, however it is simple and straight forward to operate. Has tons of features and I am still learning the features the phone come packaged with. Running apps on it is fast and simple though I have run into some apps that are not fully compatible that lead to frequent app crash not a biggie but a little annoying.

Battery life is so-so to say and it really depends on your particular usage: power user vs normal user. Quick note device tend to get hot (top half of phone) when streaming a video over wifi or 4G network. Not a really downfall of the device but it did give me a little scare from my initial encounter with this issue. Again the big screen and abundant pixel density offer a really nice web browsing experience text is clear and you get a decent amount of webpage displayed on the screen. Back to the battery under high usage battery goes really quick fastest was 4-5 hours from 100%, normal usage 7-8 hours and when mostly standby two day (so far tested, might be more than that) Having tested it out I opted to purchase the extended battery though the extra 350mAh is not a lot it does help in the long run, especially for me.(Battery life was maximized with battery optimizing + task killer app and static background - with live wallpaper different story)

Now for my negative - speaker is really not on par to most phones out there I tend to get a lot of miss calls. At its maximum and in my jeans I rely on the vibration notification more than the ringtone. Same issue when playing music I am not saying its bad but it could be better. Its loud in a quite room, audible at a family dinner, impossible to hear in any louder environment. I know this might not be the best way to describe the speakers loudness. Plug in some headphone and the difference is day and night when playing music due to the built in equalizer.

Camera phone is fast almost zero shutter lag, but with that comes blurry image made worse if in low lit setting, under normal phone taking session letting the camera auto focus and snapping picture the photos taken are amazing, outdoor with optimum sunlight practically no issue. Again the Camera does lack in pixel (MP) but make up for it in quality, blowing the picture more than 8X10 then you might have some pixellation issues. Like the panorama feature and the video taken are absolutely amazing. (keep in mind this is a camera phone don't expect DSLR quality) has a built in flash for low light/night. No extractable storage (micro SD) so rely on built in storage (16-32GB).

Final thoughts a really well rounded phone with its down but most ups! good luck with finding a nice case for it especially with the extended battery, invest in a screen protector. Also for power users look into an external battery charger (for the extra money you won't regret it)and no SIRI.

An Awesome Android Phone December 26, 2011

Reviewer:  Jacob959 

This is my first android (first smartphone really) and I have to say that I am thoroughly impressed. It is very fast and everything seems very smooth. My biggest concern was the battery life and I have not had a problem so far! Granted, I got the extended battery but for the first day today I put my phone throuh A TON of activity and it has lasted over 10 1/2 hours! That is great battery life in my opinion. I also never had to disable data or continous syncing or any refresh of anything. Great phone all around! Very impressed. Don't hesitate to buy!

Best Android phone yet December 26, 2011

Reviewer:  bkfist  (North Carolina, USA) -

This phone might not have "cutting edge" hardware by the time you read this, but the aoftware will be long after other lesser phones stop receiving software updates from the carriers.

Nobody who cares about being up to date should consider anything but a Nexus device.

Learning Curve from OS 2.2, but a Great Phone December 25, 2011

Reviewer:  LadyPilot  (Millbrae, CA United States) -

I may have been a little behind some users, going straight from Motorola Droid to Samsung Galaxy Nexus, but it was worth the wait. Man, is this phone fast. Took some searching to learn basic navigation (e.g. in the browser you hold the backspace key to see favorites), but I am loving the phone. I was also thinking of purchasing a tablet computer, or adding mobile hotspot to connect the phone to my laptop, but considering the size of this screen and how much easier it is to zoom and click on it, I think I can save the $$ and extra Verizon fees.
Face recognition unlock works - - neat - - microphone still not very good :( - - camera MUCH improved - - and a pleasure to watch videos, surf the internet, use voice commands. 4.5 stars!

My phone for 2 years or more December 24, 2011

Reviewer:  Spyderboy 

This phone is fast and capable, unrestricted... it's the best smartphone out there right now. The iPhone takes better photos, but this is just a better smartphone all the way around.

GNEX = Awesome Phone December 24, 2011

Reviewer:  Easy Reader "NB"  (Charlottesville, VA) -

Got 2 - one for my wife and one for me. Love it. Big, beautiful screen. Fun camera. Just terrific. Ok, plenty of reviews are way detailed so the next sentence is for those thinking about switching from iPhone. ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT THINGS: After years of owning iPhones, I will NEVER have to look at that terrible piece of software called iTunes again. Just copy + paste and there you go. Also, multiple apps can run and interact together. You will get Gtalk notifications while you're not in the app.

Loving this phone - I highly recommend you buy one.

The best Android phone available on Verizon right now December 23, 2011

Reviewer:  charles walker 

This phone offers Google's newest Android OS (ICS) and runs stock, that is to say there is no Samsung TouchWiz skinning on the device. If you are an Android and Verizon user, this is the best phone on the market as of right now.

@honi December 23, 2011

Reviewer:  unussupra 

IT is actually the OS giving all those problems. Verizon and Google already announced that they will fix those problems with OS upgrade which means there shouldnt be any mechanical problems with the phone itself. Well my phone is working w/o any problems.

Wanted to like it...but disappointed! January 30, 2012

Reviewer:  EJF 

First Samsung Nexus arrived... on the first day (with a full charge)it powered itself off several times (during phone calls, exploring apps and while text messaging). Sent it back and received a replacement Samsung Nexus w/in a couple days. The second day of ownership, the speaker on the bottom goes out... no ringing, can't go hands free, and no sounds w/ the exception of the earpiece speaker for phone calls. Had to leave the phone on "vibrate" to notify me of incoming calls... sending this one back too. 2 strikes in a weeks time. Tied into a 2 year contract I'm not going to take my chances on a third Samsung Nexus. I'm opting for something else. Wanted to like it, enjoyed it when it worked, great screen/display. After 1 week and two Nexus later, ended up hating it!

Very disappointed April 1, 2012

Reviewer:  Nick 

I bought this phone to replace an aging iPhone 3GS. I wanted to try something new, to expand my knowledge beyond just iPhone. In the end, I returned the Galaxy Nexus because I felt it was inferior to the 2.5 year old iPhone I was replacing.

First, the battery life is a joke. The battery in my 3GS is 2.5 years old and lasts better than the brand new extended battery did on the Galaxy Nexus. I was turning off wifi, sync, bluetooth and dimming the screen to minimum while at work, and it still wouldn't make it 10 hours without a charger. I did not turn off 4G, notably.

Keyboard lag: I found when typing, particularly in landscape when typing more than a few sentences, that the keyboard would start lagging. I could get several words ahead of it. My original iPhone had this problem when the 2.0 software came out in 2008, and it felt like I was taking a step back 3.5 years with the Galaxy Nexus. I did try several fixes suggested by the numerous forum discussions I found on it, including turning off the sound and tactile response. Nothing improved this lag.

Spell check bug: This was ridiculous and a blatant bug in the software. When in landscape, if I mistyped a word, it would put the red line under it normally. Touching the word brings up a list of suggested words, and I would select the correct spelling. Then when I'd go back to the end of the sentence to continue typing, my original misspelling was back. In portrait, this worked fine (and I preferred it to the similar function on an iPhone), but in landscape it happened consistently.

Scrolling: I noticed this primarily in the official Twitter app, but it showed up to a lessor degree in others. The scrolling was often very choppy, to the point of not being usable. I searched around for fixes for this, and the general consensus in forums was "Yeah, you'll get that. I hope they fix it next time."

Verizon coverage: I'd never been completely satisfied with AT&T, and I was looking forward to Verizon's reputation for having better coverage. Frankly, I found it worse. Maybe it was the 4G, and sticking to just CDMA might have been satisfactory. The 4G would come and go, even when I was in LA, sometimes even when not moving. The switch between 4G and 3G was very frustrating, because the phone killed all data while it established a 3G connection.

After I switched back to my iPhone, I had people tell me the voice quality with the AT&T iPhone was better than the Verizon Galaxy Nexus.

One pro I miss with the iPhone is Google Chrome. I use Chrome on my home computer, and syncing the home and mobile versions was very cool. However, that was far from enough to get me to keep the Galaxy Nexus, and there were as many little cons as there were little pros.

Amazon Wireless rocks December 16, 2011

Reviewer:  pikafunk "pikafunk"  (Aurora, Co United States) -

For anyone interested in what 'backordered' really means.

I ordered this phone December 15th @ 4:40. It "shipped" December 16th @ 5:20.

Nothing but a paper weight April 19, 2012

Reviewer:  Sergei A. Svarovsky "alfascan"  (San Diego, California) -

I had Nexus One for the past couple of years and I was very happy with it with the exception of few overheating/locking issues while navigating. So when Nexus Galaxy came out I decided to upgrade thinking that things have changed dramatically over the years and I would be getting a real gem of a phone. Boy was I wrong! The screen for sure is bigger and prettier. The Ice Cream Sandwich is sleek and more intuitive. But hardware implementation is a major turn off. Battery drains so fast to a point of being unusable over a normal workday. The worst part however is the radio. This phone should not have been released into the wild with this radio. Honestly, what have Samsung/Google been thinking? I live in a major metro and believe me the signal bar is either barely breathing (1-2 bars at the most) or greys out completely multiple times a day. A sporadic service is more than annoying, it is simply unacceptable in a phone within this price range. Finally, although I am not a big fan of Motorola, I had to settle with their Razr Maxx, which I must admit has much cruddier interface, poor screen quality, and weird form factor but at least it has no problems with the signal strength in the same areas where Nexus wouldn't even pick one bar. Isn't the primary purpose of any phone to provide a reliable service first and then the rest, not a vice versa?

My conversation in Verizon store:

Me: This phone has major connectivity issues (the signal fades in and out three times while at the store).

Clerk: Didn't you know about it before you bought it?

Me: Nope..(looking puzzled) How could I?

Clerk: Hmm. let me see what i can do. Let me change the SIM card, that will definitely help (replaces the card, voila ready to go!)

Literally on exit from the store the signal drops to ZERO! I return showing the zero bars. Clerk looks annoyed, calls for manager.

Manager: This is a software issue. You should wait for an update.

Me: How long? and why this has not been taken care of before the phone went on sale??

Manager: It's Samsung, not us.

Me: (Quite annoyed and bedazzled by the situation) So what should I do in the meantime? I use this phone for business and cannot afford dropped calls.

Manager: Just switch it to 3G and wait for an update (switches my phone to 3G and hands it to me).

Me: (begging) But I pay for 4G...

manager: Not my problem.

Issues continued unabated in 3G as well.

I kid you not. That is beyond my comprehension. I think someone has to initiate a class action against this.

Price Match December 17, 2011

Reviewer:  Walter W. Stumpf Jr. "WWS2"  (New Jersey, USA) -

We bought 3 yesterday at Best Buy and they matched the amazon.com price, plus gave me my $50 credit due for me from Verizon.

STAY AWAY September 21, 2012

Reviewer:  Gregory M. Miller 

I am now on my second one in 2 months. The first one froze up and could not unlock. This came with the fun of losing all my vacation pictures since there is no removable memory card. Before that, it would drop my side of the call often. This is a known issue that both Samsung and Verizon like to point fingers at each other while the customer loses out.

So after my phone froze up, Verizon switched it out with a refurb. I even mentioned it to Verizon that a refurb will be worse than the current phone since it was already known to have issues. Well now I lose a connection to the towers about once an hour. This is fun when in the middle of a call.

In short, there are hundreds of reviews out there and complaints about how terrible this phone is, despite its nice features. STAY AWAY from this phone. It will give you nothing but troubles. I am at a loss for how frustrated I am that no one will admit to the problems with it even though there are tons of us out there with these bad phones.

The Verizon variant is not a true Nexus device. September 3, 2012

Reviewer:  BevoChan  (Boston South End, MA) -

If you want a Nexus device, do NOT buy the Verizon version. Nexus devices are supposed to get new early updates. Unfortunately, the Android 4.0.4 took about 5 months to get the Verizon Galaxy Nexus. The Jelly Bean has been out about 3 months, and it doesn't seem like it's going to be coming the Verizon Galaxy Nexus anytime soon. All the Nexus devices have already received this update. Now, there are few non-nexus devices that started to get the update.

If you don't care about having the "nexus" experience, then the phone is alright. But I probably would go with the S3 instead.

Nexus=Great, Verizon=SUCKS August 8, 2012

Reviewer:  P. Maranci  (Woonsocket, RI USA) -

The Samsung Galaxy Nexus is an outstanding phone. The only criticism I can make of it is that the glass is too easily scratched; a screen protector is a must, not an option. The Android operating system is great, and by all accounts the next iteration, "Jellybean", is breathtaking.

But I can't say for sure, because VERIZON WON'T RELEASE JELLYBEAN FOR THE PHONE.

This is the second time that Verizon has screwed their Galaxy Nexus users (they delayed the roll-out of Android 4.0, "Ice Cream Sandwich", for five months). There's no excuse; these phones are pure Google, ready for the update out of the box. It's just that Verizon seems to feel it necessary to torture their customers.

As for the price, make no mistake: Verizon isn't "giving" you the phone. They're BAITING you with it. Once you buy it, you'll be on the hook for a two-year contract. And their prices are sky-high, which is particularly aggravating considering how they jerk their customers around.

Be smart. Spend the money to buy the unlocked version of the phone directly from Google. You'll more than make up the cost within a few months by using at-will services. You can get unlimited phone/texts/data for $45 per month or less if you're not on a contract, as opposed to paying well over $100 per month ON contract.

And as an added benefit, you'll always have the latest version of Android - updated directly from Google.

The*VERIZON*Samsung Galaxy Nexus Failure July 15, 2012

Reviewer:  Gregory Lopez "Gregory Thomas"  (SOCORRO, NM, US) -

It's easy to play the blame game -- a Google engineer once said that "operator approvals" are at fault for the slow upgrades with carrier-based Google devices -- but the truth is that Verizon's Galaxy Nexus represents a failure by all parties. Verizon failed to deliver on what a Nexus phone is promised to be. And Google failed by allowing Verizon to carry its Nexus name without fully committing to its Nexus model.

More than anything, I wish Google had been more honest about the realities of the Verizon Galaxy Nexus from the start. Nexus products appeal to some of Google's most loyal Android enthusiasts. Those people, along with the rest of the phone-buying population, deserve better than a half-fulfilled version of what a phone is promised to be.

There is a better way -- and I'm happy to have transitioned into it -- but it shouldn't take this much backtracking to get there

Flawed May 25, 2012

Reviewer:  raybee "raybee98" 

Overall this is a "decent" phone but far from great. The battery life is pitiful. The camera is really awful. The speakers are tinny and vibrate. Phone calls are weak and choppy. Bottom line: I wish I had not bought this phone.