Google's 2012 Nexus handset, the Nexus 4 marks the company's first Nexus partnership with LG. The phone is essentially the LG Optimus G, though with its LTE radio disabled by default. The launch of the Nexus 4 was notable for the exceptionally low price at which Google was able to offer the phone, with the 8GB model selling for just $300 without contract obligation. The Nexus 4 runs a 1.5GHz quad-core Snapdragon S4 Pro, has 2GB of RAM, and features a 4.7-inch 720p display.
-
by Michael Fisher | February 13, 2013 3:22 PMRead On
Rarely has the "lull" between trade shows given us so much to talk about. We kicked off the week with an exciting announcement welcoming two new members to the Pocketnow team, and since then we've barely been able to keep news, editorials, and videos on the front page long enough to read them. This feed is on fire. From ever-strengthening rumors about the HTC M7 and Samsung Galaxy S IV, to interviews with newcomers like Jolla, to new looks at old friends with BlackBerry 10, to modding and jailbreaking today's top smartphones, we've gotten a lot done since the last episode of the Weekly, ...
-
by Joe Levi | February 12, 2013 3:30 PMRead On
The latest update to Android 4.2 Another Flavor of Jelly Bean has started to roll out to select Galaxy Nexus, Nexus 7, and Nexus 10 devices. Suspiciously absent are reports of an update for Google's latest flagship device, the Nexus 4. This version, 4.2.2, is a 0.0.1 update to the operating system and weighs in around 46MB (depending on which device you're installing it on), so to say it's a "minor update" is a bit of an understatement. The code hasn't yet hit the AOSP, so custom-ROMs based on it aren't being developed just yet. In the meantime, if you own the GSM variety of the Galaxy ...
-
by Stephen Schenck | February 11, 2013 2:20 PMRead On
Early this month, we saw retailers open pre-orders for the long-overdue wireless charging dock for Google's Nexus 4, finally giving us a price for the accessory: sixty dollars. Sure, that's a bit expensive for something that only charges your phone, but it wasn't that excessive compared to what some other wireless chargers sell for. It was nice to see the charger finally about to become available, but it kept us wondering if Google would ever get around to offering the accessory itself. Well, less than two weeks later it finally has, and today the charging orb is now available for sale in ...
-
by Stephen Schenck | February 11, 2013 11:46 AMRead On
While BlackBerry and Samsung premiered their latest ad spots one week ago during the Super Bowl, Google decided to wait until last night's airing of the Grammy Awards to break out its latest promotional offering, a Nexus 4 ad where Google Now takes center stage. While this is all shown in the context of the Nexus 4, the bit is really about showing how Google Now can simplify the lives of its users, drawing upon all of Google's scheduling, mapping, translation, and other services and delivering them in a seamless, quickly accessible interface. Considering all the money Apple has spent ...
-
by Stephen Schenck | February 8, 2013 12:51 PMRead On
It's not the thinnest phone around, nor the one with the best battery life, and it's got its competition cut out for it with lots of new Androids on the horizon with big, beautiful 1080p screens, but none of that seems to have any effect on just how popular the Nexus 4 remains. While it has been tricky in the past to get your hands on the phone, it sounds like Google's still been turning some brisk business, as estimates are now suggesting that one million of the LG-made smartphones have been sold. This number comes from users reporting the production numbers of their Nexus 4s. A thread on ...
-
by Stephen Schenck | February 7, 2013 3:33 PMRead On
For as similar as the LG Optimus G and the Nexus 4 are, they have their differences. Maybe the most well known is the disabling of the LTE radio in the Nexus 4, but the two phones also treat their displays differently, thanks to just how LG and Google configured their software. If you wish the Nexus 4 had the sort of bold colors seen on the Optimus G, you're in luck, as a new kernel mod from the guys behind Paranoid Android (which is itself an awesome custom ROM) seeks to create a "best of both worlds" situation on the Nexus 4. While this effort took a whole lot of hands-on tweaking to get ...
-
by Joe Levi | February 7, 2013 3:25 PMRead On
Gravity is all around, pulling us down. Without it we'd fly off the earth into space -- cell reception isn't very good in space. In the meantime, we've got to guard against gravity and the dramatic influence it can have over our smartphones. I felt that influence first-hand last night when I dropped my Nexus 4 onto the floor. After getting home from work I parked in the garage. Loaded up my hands with all the papers and miscellanea from my day at the office, and tucked my smartphone under all of that. Bad idea. Some papers slipped and my Nexus 4 flopped onto the hard cement, face first. I ...
-
by Stephen Schenck | February 5, 2013 3:44 PMRead On
Just under two months ago, Google mysteriously yanked the factory image for its Nexus 4 from Google Developers. Employees refused to comment on the disappearance, and speculation at the time suggested that the move might be related to the hidden (and FCC unapproved) LTE support that the smartphone has. Now, just as abruptly, the factory image is back, leaving us with only more questions. The really odd thing is that the download's MD5 hash appears to be the same as before it was removed, meaning that these are exactly the same files as were available before. That would suggest that the ...
-
by Anton D. Nagy | February 5, 2013 4:28 AMRead On
A Bluetooth fix was mentioned by a certain Google employee which could be one of the features in the upcoming Android 4.2.2 update -- spotted in the wild on Nexus 4 devices -- but unfortunately the new Android codes we've seen over the weekend appear in AOSP are not referring to this point-update. According to reports, unnamed Google employees rocking a Nexus 4, 7, 10, and Galaxy Nexus phones are currently testing Android 4.2.2. International Business Times claims to have tested the updates and concludes that it's "minuscule at best, with minimal changes to security and bugs". Should be ...
-
by Anton D. Nagy | February 3, 2013 1:59 AMRead On
It might not be the mysterious Android 4.2.2 version which we've seen running in the wild not so long ago but it is said to fix a couple of issues. A new source code has surfaced on AOSP (Android Open Source Project): android-4.2.1_r1.2. The build number is JOP40G and the changes don't seem the include the Bluetooth fix mentioned by a Google employee, which will probably be the star of the 4.2.2 refresh. However, improvements seem to fix some power management issues alongside introducing some tweaks to the way the EXT4 partition handles file creation. There's no information yet on when ...
-
by Stephen Schenck | February 1, 2013 3:38 PMRead On
The Nexus 4 is one of the handful of smartphones currently available that natively support wireless charging right out of the box. Unfortunately, the handset didn't launch alongside its wireless charging orb, leaving you to track down third-party solutions if you wanted to take advantage of the feature. Last month, we learned that the accessory was finally about to arrive, but had our concerns with just how much it might cost – the Swedish site that listed the charger gave it a price tag that worked out to well over $100, but it wasn't at all clear if that was just an expensive place to ...
-
by Michael Fisher | February 1, 2013 3:22 PMRead On
One man returns from a mission to Canada, and is greeted by friends. Friends with questions, observations, and inflammatory declarations about the future of a very special smartphone. A smartphone called BlackBerry. Yes, it's a special edition of the Pocketnow Weekly podcast, covering all the ups, downs, and all-arounds of the new Research in Motion BlackBerry smartphone platform, BlackBerry 10, as well as the sleek black slab of potential it's riding on, the Z10. Join us as we welcome an old friend back into the smartphone space by discussing things like Peeking, Balance, Hub, and even ...
-
by Jaime Rivera | January 30, 2013 7:00 PMRead On
Watch today's Pocketnow Daily as we talk about Nokia's MWC 2013 Press event details. We later go through some more Nokia news as we now have Windows Phone 7.8 information for legacy Lumia devices. The white Nexus 4 takes the spotlight next, but with the tough reality of getting the black model, we don't know if we should celebrate. Microsoft is next as we discover that the Surface Pro can barely provide you with storage if you stick to the 64GB model. We end today's show by talking about BlackBerry 10, the Z10 and Q10, aside from some bloopers at the end. All this and more after the break. ...
-
by Joe Levi | January 30, 2013 1:17 PMRead On
We've been taunted and teased with the dream of inductive charging for years, and now it's finally here! Well, it's here for some of us. After more than a few competing standards have been quietly battling it out, the Qi (pronounced "chee") standard seems to be the one that is going to be here to stay. In the early days if you wanted to inductively charge your device you needed to either buy a replacement battery and door with the technology built-in, or a "backpack"-style case that included the necessary induction coil and circuitry to enable chargers to replenish the battery inside your ...
-
by Stephen Schenck | January 30, 2013 12:08 PMRead On
Yesterday, we finally got to take a look at the rumored white version of the Nexus 4, which had been tipped last fall by its appearance in the computer systems of a couple retailers. We had largely forgotten about it, but all of a sudden it seemed like it could be very much real. Today, the floodgates have really opened, and that one pic is joined by a whole bunch of new ones, really showing-off this white Nexus 4 from all angles. Now we can finally see the front of the phone, which appears to be staying unchanged with its all-black bezel. The power and volume rockers seem to be keeping ...















