After being on a $75/month Sprint plan that delivers overwhelmingly mediocre service, this is the device that will get me to jump from contract to prepaid devices.
I'm currently on a $30 T-Mobile Mothly4G plan on a Galaxy Nexus. The catch is that, in my area, T-Mobile's service isn't quite as good as Verizon's, who I was previously with.
And that's it. That is literally the only complaint I've had and, for $30 a month, I'm willing to live with that.
I've heard it repeated that the Nexus 4 can be used with T-Mobile prepaid, but can it be used with Virgin Mobile USA? VM looks to be $35/month rather than the $50/month that T-Mobile costs.
Also as far as I know VM doesn't let you "bring your own phone". You can supposedly fake a serial number (or whatever identifier they use) of another phone that you purchased, but that's unadvisable.
I hear that Simple Mobile and Straight Talk are valid options.
Virgin Mobile's rates are attractive, but unfortunately they're a Sprint subsidiary, and as such use CDMA. Nexus 4 is GSM, so your best bet is StraightTalk, T-Mobile, or other inexpensive prepaid GSM carriers. As others have said, check out T-Mobile's web-only $30/month option. It's about as close as you can get to what we've all been wanting: a data-only plan.
This is the one I'm looking at. I make most of my calls via my PC using Google Voice anyways. Also they only throttle you when you go over (as opposed to charging you big overages).
Only thing which holds me back from grabbing one of these is the 4.7" screen. It strikes me that it would be a sacrifice of comfort for screen real estate (and space for high-end components). That said, I've never held one for more than a minute.
Anyone have a 4.7"+ (S3, One X, Optimus G, etc) who can share their assessment of Size vs Usability?
I had the 4.65" Galaxy Nexus; it was still usable but just barely. I'd have a hard time being convinced to go any bigger (I'm now on a 4.3" Razr M; no fault of the SGN, I switched networks and can't stand TouchWiz)
Totally, I went from the Droid OG to the Galaxy Nexus and swore I would never go any larger, although it feel's kind of small now after using a Galaxy Note on and off!
I have the 4.65" GN and have no problems one-handing it. Of course, I'm tall with big mitts - I wear XXL or XXXL in gloves, but my 5'4" wife has one as well and has no complaints.
With all that said, I will say that I have to imagine the size would make things less than optimal for some folks, but I don't think it's a matter of device size so much as the way most software behaves.
I'd like to see more apps consider a bit more than simply extending their basic portrait / landscape layouts.
I'm disappointed I haven't seen more things along the lines of the old Xoom radial menu [1] or the split and / or off-center controls you can find in some third-party keyboards.
Who cares? With most of the phones being sold with contract, this is just a gimmick. What does it have going for it other than a cheap price anyways? Poor camera? no expandable memory? No LTE? Poor speakers? Manufacturer with questionable quality record?
"Value" is an aggregate of features, service and price among other data points.
And contract subsidies are slowly falling out of fashion as phone tech stabilizes, more people are interested in prepaid, and operators realize that the subsidy game is making them all collectively lose money to manufacturers.
I'm not on contract so I don't get my phones subsidized (for this exact reason - I want more choice). I don't need LTE and in any case the carriers in my area charge more for LTE than HSPA+. The value proposition seems very attractive to consumers like me. And I'm sure there are many more out there who find this phone in the "sweet spot" of price vs. features. Price is no gimmick in the free market.
Looks like your opinion is not welcome on HN anymore. Unless we are bashing Apple and praising Android its not going to get anywhere in afraid. I completely agree with you on all those points, for instance if it was an Apple device it would be 'featured' on HN every day for weeks ripe for the trashing. Its an uninspired device with little to offer, built down to a price to undercut to competition.
With price as a consideration, I think the reviewer thinks it is. At half the price, I think it need only be close product-wise to be a net "better".
That says, I think the build looks better than S3 and software potentially better than both. Completely unqualified though, just my impressions from reviews.
It's better than the GSIII in nearly every way: much cheaper, the latest stock version of Android instead of the janky Samsung skin, IPS display instead of Pentile OLED, better battery life and performance. The downsides are that apparently the GSIII has a slightly better camera and of course it offers LTE. Not sure about the N920.
I'll probably end up waiting until some consumer reviews are out, but I can't see why this isn't a perfect albeit perhaps niche device for me.
I don't want a contract phone, I could care less about LTE and pure Android seems like a solid OS. I'll probably give this guy a go on either Straight Talk or Solavei. Worst case scenario is that I end up not liking it and using an upgrade on an iPhone.
What a poor review, I personally dont get the hype surrounding LTE (sure it's a great protocol but hardly widely adopted), or understand the need to spend the 1st 2 paragraphs bleeting on about it. HSPA+ does everything I need (and probably more).
I'm in the US and I share your thoughts. Having seen LTE (on an AT&T phone), it's quite nice, but not noticeably faster than HSPA+ (T-Mo US) for general usage. I have no issue waiting until the various LTE networks are more fleshed out and the LTE chips are a bit better battery-wise.
I was perfectly happy with the 3G service on my iPhone 4, and the HSPA+ service on family members' 4Ses was nice, but I didn't expect to care much about the LTE service on my iPhone 5.
I've gotta tell you, it's very nice, and pulling up pages feels like you're on WiFi. But the first time I really noticed it was when I was sitting in a parking lot and asked my phone to pull down a 1/2 hour podcast. I pressed the little download button and watched in amazement as it downloaded in a couple of seconds. I pulled down the Speedtest.net app (also quick) and was stunned to see that I was getting 20 Mb/s down, nearly double the speed of my home connection.
It's a bit like the retina display. No one actually needs one, but it's just so much nicer than what you had before that you can't help but love it. Given that the power draw on the newer chipsets means battery life isn't gone, it's turned out to be a surprise great feature.
The thing is, I get about that speed on T-Mo's HSPA+. Sitting in my apartment, also running the Speedtest.net app, I'm getting 16 Mb/s down. The tiny extra oomph isn't worth worrying about for me.
I totally agree that the Wired review wasn't all that it could have been. It did answer some of my basic questions though (like 'how does the battery life hold up?' and 'is it a lemon or not?')
I can't really say the same for the Verge video, though. It felt to me like Google's PR video, made by a third party. The only even vaguely critical question was "so it's like Swype?" IIRC the interviewer doesn't even get to hold the phone. Surely tech journalism can do better.
I went and reread it, because I'd skipped the Nexus 10 section last week.
At least the article describes the author's experience of holding the phone, if not actually using it.
But I didn't feel my two questions were answered. The only part that came close as the Google person saying that LTE increases battery usage. I want to know more than just what the manufacturer says about it, ideally based on some hands-on experience. Which is what I at least appreciated about the Wired review.
I do agree the article is better than the video, but it's still mostly just repeating what Google said on launch day.
When I used an LTE device, it was the first time browsing over cellular felt like a WiFi connection. It was definitely really nice, though I think you can blow your data budget pretty quickly.
HSPA+ runs about 8mbit from what I understand. LTE is in most major cities now and people regularly pull down 35mbit (I have witnessed this myself on Telstra in Melbourne). Pretty big difference.
I was awaiting this new phone but severely disappointed at such a blunder on Google's part. Phone is basically dead and obsolete on arrival. Shame.
Are you sure the Nexus 4 is the best phone for you? From almost every review I've read, it's described as a glass sandwich - gorilla glass breaks when you drop it too.
My phone is due for replacement as well (also cracked screen), but I've put off picking one up until I can find one that I'm convinced is reasonably durable - I have a two year old son.
It had a pretty bad fall about 5 meters down concrete stairs! Digitiser and screen still (mostly work)! Coped fairly well all things considered. Wouldn't be worried about the little fella! Let him at it!
These specs seem almost unbelievable for the price but there is one glaring draw back for me which is the lack of removable storage. I understand the inherent risks of storing anything you want to remain private on a smart phone but without a microSD card, it feels like the when I inevitably brick my phone somehow, there's no easy way to get the files I want to keep private off the phone. What would be the options to ensure that either 1) the shop/company that does a warranty repair doesn't just data mine the phone once they fix it or 2) that the memory is properly destroyed if the phone cannot be fixed? It also feels like if there was an issue, like an update of Android going awry somehow, that you would lose all your data if you just needed to do a factory reset. I understand that it's all about the cloud now but even then it seems like there would be some corner cases where it would be invaluable to have a removable piece of storage in there even without considering privacy an issue.
I've thought about this recently. I have a HP Touchpad with personal data on it that's stopped turning on. I'm not interested in fixing it, but I'm also unsure of how to dispose of it and keep my data safe. Drilling a bunch of holes in a device that doesn't have a removable battery isn't something I can do. So for now, the device just sits at the bottom of a drawer.
Is there a common way of keeping a backup of Android phones?
I've been an iPhone user since the 3G came out. I don't really worry about this kind of thing because I know that iTunes makes backups when I sync. Now that iCloud is integrated, it's supposed to keep backups too (although I don't trust it as much as iTunes). Those backups have meant that upgrading to a newer model has been basically seamless.
I know that Android doesn't have a centralized piece of software like iTunes (which is arguably a good thing), but how are backups handled? Are they left to the end user, or is the fact that your account is syncing with Google supposed to take care of your important data (Gmail, Google Calendar, etc)?
For the most things that commonly matter - it is automatic. Your GMail, Google Music (or Amazon for that matter), Photos (If you have G+ app installed), Contacts, App list, wallpaper, WiFi and other settings are all automatically backed up to the cloud and restored when you factory reset or get a new phone and sign in to your Google account.
For things such as SMS and full system backup - you have to take things in your own hand. SMS is easy with a 3rd party app, full system backup can be done using Titanium if your phone is rooted or by using command line scripts using adb. (adb supports encrypted backup to the desktop.) Also various OEMs provide their own Desktop sync program - like Samsung Kies - that make it easy to backup/restore using a PC. But it is fairly unnecessary to go to that length - default backup + SMS backup app works quite well for most.
I thought the suggestion was more that by producing just one variant for all markets/regions/carriers, Google/LG can leverage economies of scale to bring the overall price down.
I haven't looked at the S3, but past Samsung models have had a bunch of variants marketed under the one model name.
(How much this really factors into the pricing, I doubt if we or Wired can really know.)
Simple, Samsung has to sell there product in an attempt to make a profit on them, Google on the other hand is selling theirs at or near cost as a "Content delivery system". They don't need to make money up front for the device.
Well lets assume they want a markup of 40% for profit, that would bring the cost to 420. The price I am seeing is $550 on amazon. This brings the cost difference at $110, and IMO this could easily be chocked up to R&D and other misc costs.
I like to find gadget reviews on HN. I think only the really outstanding ones reach and stay on the front page. And that is a good thing for someone like me that loves gadgets but don't visit gadget review sites anymore.
Paragraph #3: major omission: It’s not compatible with any LTE networks
Paragraph #4(paraphrased): Nobody outside the USA has plans to roll out LTE any time soon and even in the USA there's very limited coverage by only two carriers.
And that's where I stopped reading. I give this article 1½/10, it's the best I can do.
61 comments
[ 4.8 ms ] story [ 152 ms ] threadhttp://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=4733264
And that's it. That is literally the only complaint I've had and, for $30 a month, I'm willing to live with that.
I hear that Simple Mobile and Straight Talk are valid options.
Anyone have a 4.7"+ (S3, One X, Optimus G, etc) who can share their assessment of Size vs Usability?
With all that said, I will say that I have to imagine the size would make things less than optimal for some folks, but I don't think it's a matter of device size so much as the way most software behaves.
I'd like to see more apps consider a bit more than simply extending their basic portrait / landscape layouts.
I'm disappointed I haven't seen more things along the lines of the old Xoom radial menu [1] or the split and / or off-center controls you can find in some third-party keyboards.
1: http://cdn3.jeftek.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/02/Xoom-Brows... (Couldn't find a more recent picture, the more recent version has several layers of buttons.)
And contract subsidies are slowly falling out of fashion as phone tech stabilizes, more people are interested in prepaid, and operators realize that the subsidy game is making them all collectively lose money to manufacturers.
It doesn't have a poor camera, it has a very good camera, only not as good as the GS3 or iphone
The GS3 is the only other high end smartphone that has expandable memory, and you don't see that selling at $350.
LTE - well i'm not even going to go into this one
That says, I think the build looks better than S3 and software potentially better than both. Completely unqualified though, just my impressions from reviews.
I'll probably end up waiting until some consumer reviews are out, but I can't see why this isn't a perfect albeit perhaps niche device for me.
I don't want a contract phone, I could care less about LTE and pure Android seems like a solid OS. I'll probably give this guy a go on either Straight Talk or Solavei. Worst case scenario is that I end up not liking it and using an upgrade on an iPhone.
This and the accompanying video are a much more informative and entertaining read. http://www.theverge.com/2012/10/29/3570034/inside-android-bu...
Regardless I will be picking one up! Cracked my Galaxy Nexus's screen this morning.
(NB: In New Zealand things might be different elsewhere).
I've gotta tell you, it's very nice, and pulling up pages feels like you're on WiFi. But the first time I really noticed it was when I was sitting in a parking lot and asked my phone to pull down a 1/2 hour podcast. I pressed the little download button and watched in amazement as it downloaded in a couple of seconds. I pulled down the Speedtest.net app (also quick) and was stunned to see that I was getting 20 Mb/s down, nearly double the speed of my home connection.
It's a bit like the retina display. No one actually needs one, but it's just so much nicer than what you had before that you can't help but love it. Given that the power draw on the newer chipsets means battery life isn't gone, it's turned out to be a surprise great feature.
I can't really say the same for the Verge video, though. It felt to me like Google's PR video, made by a third party. The only even vaguely critical question was "so it's like Swype?" IIRC the interviewer doesn't even get to hold the phone. Surely tech journalism can do better.
At least the article describes the author's experience of holding the phone, if not actually using it.
But I didn't feel my two questions were answered. The only part that came close as the Google person saying that LTE increases battery usage. I want to know more than just what the manufacturer says about it, ideally based on some hands-on experience. Which is what I at least appreciated about the Wired review.
I do agree the article is better than the video, but it's still mostly just repeating what Google said on launch day.
I was awaiting this new phone but severely disappointed at such a blunder on Google's part. Phone is basically dead and obsolete on arrival. Shame.
Are you sure the Nexus 4 is the best phone for you? From almost every review I've read, it's described as a glass sandwich - gorilla glass breaks when you drop it too.
My phone is due for replacement as well (also cracked screen), but I've put off picking one up until I can find one that I'm convinced is reasonably durable - I have a two year old son.
I've been an iPhone user since the 3G came out. I don't really worry about this kind of thing because I know that iTunes makes backups when I sync. Now that iCloud is integrated, it's supposed to keep backups too (although I don't trust it as much as iTunes). Those backups have meant that upgrading to a newer model has been basically seamless.
I know that Android doesn't have a centralized piece of software like iTunes (which is arguably a good thing), but how are backups handled? Are they left to the end user, or is the fact that your account is syncing with Google supposed to take care of your important data (Gmail, Google Calendar, etc)?
For things such as SMS and full system backup - you have to take things in your own hand. SMS is easy with a 3rd party app, full system backup can be done using Titanium if your phone is rooted or by using command line scripts using adb. (adb supports encrypted backup to the desktop.) Also various OEMs provide their own Desktop sync program - like Samsung Kies - that make it easy to backup/restore using a PC. But it is fairly unnecessary to go to that length - default backup + SMS backup app works quite well for most.
I haven't looked at the S3, but past Samsung models have had a bunch of variants marketed under the one model name.
(How much this really factors into the pricing, I doubt if we or Wired can really know.)
Check this out about background noise: http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=4737550
HN's front page is like a curated page of interesting stuff about anything. The important word here is _curated_.
Paragraph #4(paraphrased): Nobody outside the USA has plans to roll out LTE any time soon and even in the USA there's very limited coverage by only two carriers.
And that's where I stopped reading. I give this article 1½/10, it's the best I can do.