Topic: Everything Android - The Official Android Thread

[tendoboy1984]

All of the other things wrong with android are due to manufacture customizations.

And the fragmentation caused by Google's procrastination and laziness with sending out updates to non-Samsung devices. Why do some Android devices take precedence over others when it comes to getting timely updates? You don't see this problem with Windows devices (PC or Phone). Could you imagine if an HP PC got a major update weeks later than an ASUS PC?

[MegaByte]

Most of the update delay is not Google (not including Nexus devices); it's the manufacturers and carriers. We've been over this.

[tendoboy1984]

Most of the update delay is not Google (not including Nexus devices); it's the manufacturers and carriers. We've been over this.

If Microsoft doesn't have those problems with Windows Phones, then why should Google? Look at Apple, iOS 6 was released on all Apple devices on the same day, regardless of carrier.


Google controls the Android OS and its distribution, so don't they have the final say as to when the updates are rolled out?

[MegaByte]

No. It's not part of their agreement. Microsoft and Apple keep control of their OSes, but Google only keeps control of its apps. It does suck, on the other hand, if Google hadn't deferred OS control to these parties, the uptake of Android probably wouldn't have been so swift. Google's recently started making it easier to get updates done quickly on diverse hardware, so hopefully the lag won't be as bad in the future... but they say that with every update.

[tendoboy1984]

No. It's not part of their agreement. Microsoft and Apple keep control of their OSes, but Google only keeps control of its apps. It does suck, on the other hand, if Google hadn't deferred OS control to these parties, the uptake of Android probably wouldn't have been so swift. Google's recently started making it easier to get updates done quickly on diverse hardware, so hopefully the lag won't be as bad in the future... but they say that with every update.

Wait, Google doesn't control the Android ecosystem? Then who does? The manufacturers?

[MegaByte]

http://www.openhandsetalliance.com/

[shingi_70]

So Joshua Topolsky said on the most recent vergecast that he expected the next Nexus phone to be announced sometime next month.


As sexy as the Galaxy Nexus is i'm hoping Google decides to partner with someone else this time around.  Wouldn't mind HTC make one as they have made some of the best phones around.







they even made the first flashship nexus device





Not sure if i'm just burned out on mobile tech in its regard to Android but I just find alot of it boring. I dunno the Galaxy S III got my really unhyped even though I know that its a good phone.





Now compare that to when I played with the Galaxy Nexus or iphone where playing with the gets me excited and a renewed enegry. where the hardware is made with the OS in mind and you can see the attention to detail and is just pure.

[tendoboy1984]

So Joshua Topolsky said on the most recent vergecast that he expected the next Nexus phone to be announced sometime next month.


As sexy as the Galaxy Nexus is i'm hoping Google decides to partner with someone else this time around.  Wouldn't mind HTC make one as they have made some of the best phones around.







they even made the first flashship nexus device





Not sure if i'm just burned out on mobile tech in its regard to Android but I just find alot of it boring. I dunno the Galaxy S III got my really unhyped even though I know that its a good phone.





Now compare that to when I played with the Galaxy Nexus or iphone where playing with the gets me excited and a renewed enegry. where the hardware is made with the OS in mind and you can see the attention to detail and is just pure.

What's the difference between the Galaxy Nexus and any other Samsung Galaxy phone? One is endorsed by Google, and the other isn't. They're both "Galaxy" devices (made by Samsung).


Now the Nexus 7 tablet, that's a different story.

[shingi_70]

Galaxy nexus is a nexus phone and has a lot of input from google. Google picks a lot of the specs and has input onhardware design.

The other galaxy phones push the samsung brand moreso than the android brand.

Really wush another oem would make a non nexus pure google phone. Its one of the reasons whyI love the G2.

[tendoboy1984]

Galaxy Nexus is a Nexus phone and has a lot of input from Google. Google picks a lot of the specs and has input on hardware design.

The other Galaxy phones push the Samsung brand more so than the Android brand.

Really wish another oem would make a non nexus pure google phone. Its one of the reasons whyI love the G2.

But that's what the Nexus brand is for, having a pure Google experience. And the Galaxy Nexus looks just like any other Galaxy phone, it's hard to tell them apart.

[BranDonk Kong]

Are you kidding me? Have you ever actually put a Galaxy Nexus and say, a Galaxy S 2 (or 3) side by side? You really don't even need to. A Nexus device gets its updates straight from Google - there is no Touch Wiz, Sense, Blur, etc. You might get an app or two from the carrier, but that's mandated on all of their phones.

[tendoboy1984]

Are you kidding me? Have you ever actually put a Galaxy Nexus and say, a Galaxy S 2 (or 3) side by side? You really don't even need to. A Nexus device gets its updates straight from Google - there is no Touch Wiz, Sense, Blur, etc. You might get an app or two from the carrier, but that's mandated on all of their phones.

I was at Verizon the other day and saw a display with the Galaxy Nexus next to other Galaxy phones. They all had a similar design that's typical of the Galaxy brand.


Why don't all Android devices get their updates straight from Google? It is their operating system right? Don't all Windows Phone devices get their updates straight from Microsoft?

[BranDonk Kong]

Are you kidding me? Have you ever actually put a Galaxy Nexus and say, a Galaxy S 2 (or 3) side by side? You really don't even need to. A Nexus device gets its updates straight from Google - there is no Touch Wiz, Sense, Blur, etc. You might get an app or two from the carrier, but that's mandated on all of their phones.

I was at Verizon the other day and saw a display with the Galaxy Nexus next to other Galaxy phones. They all had a similar design that's typical of the Galaxy brand.


Why don't all Android devices get their updates straight from Google? It is their operating system right? Don't all Windows Phone devices get their updates straight from Microsoft?

You're just looking at the exterior of the G'Nex, the software (or at least the UI) is completely different. The Galaxy S 3 is completely Samsung-branded with Touch Wiz, the G'Nex is 100% Google with vanilla ICS (or Jelly Bean if they update the phones on display).

Do Windows phones get their updates straight from Microsoft? No, but has of now they are basically free of manufacturer implemented UIs, and there is only one Windows phone out there for every 40 Android phones, and far, far less actual devices, by far, far less manufacturers, so they can get updates out quicker. Also to be fair, there have hardly been any actual updates to Windows phone.

[TJ Spyke]

tendo, you seem to keep asking questions over and over, even after been told the answer. Android is open source, Google develops updates and releases them out. It is up to each phone manufacturer and carrier to decide if/when they want to supply it and what changes they want to make. Google pushed Android this way to get more adoption of it.

[tendoboy1984]

Are you kidding me? Have you ever actually put a Galaxy Nexus and say, a Galaxy S 2 (or 3) side by side? You really don't even need to. A Nexus device gets its updates straight from Google - there is no Touch Wiz, Sense, Blur, etc. You might get an app or two from the carrier, but that's mandated on all of their phones.

I was at Verizon the other day and saw a display with the Galaxy Nexus next to other Galaxy phones. They all had a similar design that's typical of the Galaxy brand.


Why don't all Android devices get their updates straight from Google? It is their operating system right? Don't all Windows Phone devices get their updates straight from Microsoft?

You're just looking at the exterior of the G'Nex, the software (or at least the UI) is completely different. The Galaxy S 3 is completely Samsung-branded with Touch Wiz, the G'Nex is 100% Google with vanilla ICS (or Jelly Bean if they update the phones on display).

Do Windows phones get their updates straight from Microsoft? No, but has of now they are basically free of manufacturer implemented UIs, and there is only one Windows phone out there for every 40 Android phones, and far, far less actual devices, by far, far less manufacturers, so they can get updates out quicker. Also to be fair, there have hardly been any actual updates to Windows phone.

I thought Windows Phone updates were distributed the same way Apple distributes iOS updates, directly through the company (Microsoft). With iOS, updates are sent out to all iOS devices, on a timely schedule, directly from Apple.

[TJ Spyke]

With iOS, Apple is distributing Apple software to a Apple device. Microsoft doesn't make their own phones (anymore, the Kin One and Kin Two bombed), so they are distributing their software to other companies hardware and those companies then send it to customers.

[tendoboy1984]

With iOS, Apple is distributing Apple software to a Apple device. Microsoft doesn't make their own phones (anymore, the Kin One and Kin Two bombed), so they are distributing their software to other companies hardware and those companies then send it to customers.

Ah, but Microsoft does make their own tablets (Surface). But that's besides the point.


I thought the situation for Windows Phone was the same as Windows PC's. Other companies manufacture Windows PC's, yet all the software updates come directly from Microsoft.


Microsoft created Windows Phone, they have full control of the OS, so they should be able to send updates to whatever device they want. It's not like Android, where Google gives some control over to the phone manufacturers.

[shingi_70]

Windows phone 7 got it updates through the carrier. The reason whythe updates were ontime is that microsoft had a very strict hardware spec in that all the phones were pretty much the same were itcounted.windows phone 8 is gping tobypass the carriers and just update straight to the device like ios does. To add to that microsoft is going to have a program where the enthusiast crowd can grab the lastest os before its out.

Also I'd aruge that the galaxy nexus doesn't look like any other android device. Its about how the hardware is designed around the os. THe curved glass of the screen works perfectly with the fact that the phone has no physical menu keys. The curve is uber subtle and blends the bezel of the device to the amoled screen that makes it look like one panel. The phone itself has a nice curve as well that gives it a nice in the hand feel. The lack of SD while crappy is built around the fact that google wants you in their ecosystem.

Also ICS android is pure sex. It cleans up everything android had wrong and was missing. It gave android its own look and design language which was missing for the longest time.

Damn already have my mind set on the 8X as my next phone and the surface as my next tablet, but the galaxy nexus and nexus 7 are looking really good.

Def going to root my G2 and throw a Jellybean rom on it come september.

[tendoboy1984]

I hope Google expands upon their Nexus brand and makes a bunch of different Nexus devices, showing the manufacturers how Android is really done. Hopefully that will also stop the fragmentation among OS versions.


So Microsoft wants Windows Phone to be more standardized like iOS? In my opinion, that's a better strategy than what Android has become. But Google is trying to make Android better with it's Nexus brand, so we'll see how it turns out for them.

Nexus

I thought you hated Android? You hated how fragmented it was.


I want a Nexus 7 tablet, but I read reports on all the defects (the screen sometimes pops out of the casing, and there are tons of pixel defects) and it really turned me away from considering it.

[BranDonk Kong]

Forcing manufacturers to ship with nothing but vanilla Android would be the exact opposite of "showing manufacturers how Android is really done."

[shingi_70]

I only hate intusive custom skins and mid range devices. I'm a sucker for any pure google device and any high end thing with great specs. I guess my dislike of the galaxy S III comes from the whole touchwiz nature bullshit that prettymuch takes all that was great about ICS and roboto.

Also as long as windows 8/windows phine doesn't. Have a goole+ app I'll be carrying a android device of some kind.

Really hoping the 8X can stand up to the iphone 5, 8X, and lumia 920. Espically the camera seeing as thatwas the worstpartabout the galaxy nexus.

[Chozo Ghost]

Your mom has the most boring hardware in the industry.

Boring? Perhaps. But it makes a great thanksgiving dinner. Can your hardware do that?

[tendoboy1984]

Forcing manufacturers to ship with nothing but vanilla Android would be the exact opposite of "showing manufacturers how Android is really done."

Google isn't forcing anyone to use the Nexus brand. And it's their OS, so they can do what they want with it.

And that's like complaining about Microsoft "forcing" manufacturers to use vanilla Windows 7 and Windows Phone. If a manufacturer wants to use an OS, they have to adhere by that company's guidelines and rules.

[shingi_70]

 http://www.droiddog.com/android-blog/2012/09/image-leak-on-picasa-reveals-alleged-camera-capture-samples-of-galaxy-nexus-2/

So apparently images from the Galaxy Nexus 2 have popped up on Picasa/Google+.



Looks like Samsung is making the next nexus device which shouldn't suprise anyone. They are the most popular oem and it makes sense to have the flasgship attached to their brand.

The actual specs I'd say take with a grain of salt but if that image is accurate than the Gnexus2 is going to have a bad camera like the first one. The. GSIII has a better camera than what's being reported. But that shouldn't suprise anyone as the galaxy S 2 has a better camera than the galaxy nexus.


This is odd for two reasons

1) The iphone 5, Lumia 920, gs3, 8x, and note 2 all have amazing to great cameras.

2) Google+ has become a haven for a lot of photographers as a cool twitter/blog/flicker hybrid. With google buying nik software and intergrating it into G+/Android it seems it would make sense to try and grab the photographer market most of which are in the ios camp. That and microsoft showed off some coolinovations with the camera with the lens feature.

[tendoboy1984]

I'm surprised that Google chose ASUS to make the Nexus 7 tablet. Samsung is a much more popular brand, with their Galaxy phones and tablets.