Ice Cream Sandwich has a very distinct theme look to it and it is called the Holo Theme. Now, Google is saying that if you want access to their apps then you will have to include this theme in your software. It is apparent that they are trying to push forward with a more consistant UI but this still doesn’t sound like a huge victory for everyone that hates skins.

The theme is simply just a set of widget elements a design accents that the 3rd party developers can use. By default the apps will use this holo look if not specified otherwise. We would love to see all the 3rd party apps have to same and look to feel as Google’s apps, but don’t expect to see it everywhere.

(via The Verge)

There are a lot of thoughts rolling through my mind on all what to say in this post, hopefully I can get them out like I want. First, let me preface this whole thing with a little info about my history in mobile for those who don’t know. I love tech and trying out new operating systems. I use a lot of the main platforms frequently and have switched back and forth several times. I am currently an iPhone 4S full time user, I love Windows Phone, and like Android also. I have been using Android since it’s launch on the G1, and have used every version to date, along with multiple skinned devices. I have been called an Apple Fanboy before, I personally do not label myself that because I am honest about the products that work best for me. They just happen to be mostly Apple. If that labels me a Fanboy, then so be it.

Okay, now that you know where I am coming from, let’s talk about the Galaxy Nexus. I was really hesitant to buy the Nexus to try, knowing how hard it would be to replace my iPhone. I waited a couple of days after the release and could not pass it up any longer. I needed to get the phone and use it extensively, day in and day out. I wanted to experience Ice Cream Sandwich on Google’s flagship phone, especially since I have owned the past two Nexus phones.

Let’s start with the hardware, the phone is big just like you have heard, or seen yourself. The device is hard to use with one hand for me, but will vary for individuals. Even though the device is huge, I really like the big screen. Every time I switched the phone on I would think wow I like this screen. The resolution is good, but still when compared to the iPhone retina display, the colors do not compare in the true real color. The AMOLED displays are still very vibrant but over saturated. Even though the phone is plastic, I loved the curved screen, the notification light at the bottom, and the mysterious look that the phone has. With that said, I think a 4 inch screen is the sweet spot for me, anything more is overkill.

I love the iPhone 4S hardware but let’s be real here, I get sick of every single average Joe walking down the street having the same exact phone that I have. I know that it is a good thing that so many iPhone’s are out there but, the geek in me wants to have something different so when people see it they say, what is that phone? The Galaxy Nexus fits that bill.

Getting to the software, Ice Cream Sandwich is a really, really, nice update for Android. Love or hate the looks of it, Google has really pushed forward with the user interface on the platform. The gestures, swipes and over all look, have been improved by fifty percent across the board. Google’s apps for the most part very clean and snappy. I didn’t hardly noticed any spots on the device’s OS where I got lag, it was very fast and the animations are beautiful. I do however get a little frustrated with Google’s lack of a consistant UI across their apps. It does seem that they are trying to fix the issue, but having a constant look across apps is very nice and necessary.

The Galaxy Nexus’s camera is a weak spot for me. The camera is one of the most important parts of a phone to me. I have two daughters and like to take pictures and videos quite often. I know that when they are old and go back to look at all the pics, I want them to be in the best quality possible. Sure, I could use a full camera but that isn’t in my pocket 24/7. The iPhone 4S just outshines the Galaxy Nexus’s camera in all ways, except for quick shots. Most of the time the quick shots are blurry though, so it is pretty much a useless feature for me.

Let’s hit on the 3rd party apps. Android is no where close at all, to having the quality 3rd party apps that iOS has. The apps do not look as classy, they do not operate as well, and some won’t even work on a 3 month old released phone. I found several apps (Path, Twitter, Facebook) that the scrolling was very choppy and would stutter. It is very annoying to have a flagship Google phone, scroll down a page and see lag. It actually infuriates me. The iPhone 4S scrolls so much more smooth and the touch sensitivity (however it has improved on Android) still is better by leaps and bounds.

Siri is my newest friend. Whether you like it or think it is a waste, there is no denying that if desired, it is a killer feature and makes the future look brighter for mobile devices. Google has good speech to text dictation but I do like to option to tell Siri to remind me, get me a phone number, what is 15 x 21, etc. I think Google is on the way with this type of voice integration, and I welcome it. It makes your life so much easier when used to it’s full advantage.

Next, is being invested in an ecosystem. I have mostly Apple products in my house. They work together in harmony, I AirPlay to my Apple TV’s very often and use photostream to transfer pictures. It all works and works good. Also, having iTunes on my phone is really convenient. Yes, I know Google has other services to offer, and you can buy content through them, but it still isn’t as seamless as iTunes is with iOS.

The battery life was not horrible, but was also not great on the Nexus. My iPhone 4S will make it though a day with no problem, and the Galaxy Nexus will also if you really pay attention to your use. I do not want to fully compare these features because of the iPhone lacking LTE. For a LTE Android device it was decent, but you can chew through the battery quick if you really push it. Bottom line, I really need a phone that will last through a day with hard use if I need it to.

One last thing I will hit on is accessories. I love the fact that you can find any style case, any dock, any skin, etc, for the iPhone. You don’t ever have to search hard to find a product that fits your phone or that is compatible. Almost every factory car and aftermarket radios now come with an iPod/iPhone hook up, to charge your device and hear your music right through the audio system.

The Galaxy Nexus was a phone that I had a hard time taking back. I wanted to keep it, but the little small issues I have about Android, really start to eat on me after a while. I want a phone that works smooth and works good when I need it to, at the highest percentage of the time. Android fits the bill for most people, but for me, I am stuck on the iPhone. A phone that in my opinion is the best hardware, paired up with software, available to purchase on the market.

Samsung announced just a couple of days ago that it would not be updating it’s older Galaxy S and Tab products for the lack of the bigger OS Ice Cream Sandwich and Touch Wiz. After they announced this, the well informed tech world was quite upset. Samsung said the devices have limited storage for the new operating system update and to incorporate Touch Wiz on these devices would be pushing it.

After the backlash, Samsung has not completely confirmed, but they did say that they will re-evaluate their options on getting Ice Cream Sandwich on the devices. They could possibly go the Vanilla route to save on some space leaving out Touch Wiz. As far as we are concerned, they could leave the Touch Wiz garbage off of every Android phone they make, and just keep it to stock Ice Cream Sandwich.

(via Android Community)

Eric Schmidt told an Italian Newspaper that, in the next 6 months they are planning on releasing a tablet of the highest quality, that will be competing against the iPad. Google has been putting out pure devices with the Nexus branding on their phones and maybe, now is the time to start with the tablets.

The Motorola Xoom’s have been the flagship tablets from Google up to now, and that possibly might not change with Google now owning Motorola Mobility. Only time will tell what Google comes out with but whatever it is, they better get ready, if your going to compete with the iPad right now you have an uphill battle ahead.

(via Android Community)

Well it is finally here, for everyone who has been waiting on the long drama of the Verizon Samsung Galaxy Nexus release. Verizon, officially announced the phone will be available tomorrow morning in stores, and online sales will start at 1AM EST. So stay up late, or hit up a local Verizon first thing in the morning to grab one.

Galaxy Nexus will be $299 with a 2 year contract, and full retail comes in at a whopping $649. This will start the first phone with Ice Cream Sandwich in the states and hopefully there will be updates coming soon. Let us know what you think if you pick one up tomorrow.

Press Release

GALAXY™ NEXUS™ BY SAMSUNG NOW AVAILABLE ON THE VERIZON WIRELESS 4G LTE NETWORK

First Smartphone to Combine Android™ 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich and the Power of America’s Fastest, Most Reliable 4G Network

BASKING RIDGE, N.J. – Verizon Wireless, Samsung Telecommunications America (Samsung Mobile) and Google™ announced Galaxy™ Nexus™ is available starting today in Verizon Wireless Communications Stores and online at www.verizonwireless.com for $299.99 with a new two-year customer agreement.

Customers can browse the Web, stream music and more at blazing speeds using the Verizon Wireless 4G LTE network. Galaxy Nexus customers can enjoy access to the 4G LTE network in 190 markets covering over 200 million people across the United States, and fly through the Web with fast download speeds of 5 to 12 megabits per second (Mbps) and upload speeds of 2 to 5 Mbps within the 4G LTE Mobile Broadband coverage area.

Galaxy Nexus runs Android™ 4.0, Ice Cream Sandwich, which brings an entirely new look and feel to Android. Galaxy Nexus offers customers a redesigned user experience with improved multi-tasking, notifications, Near Field Communications (NFC) sharing with Android Beam™ and a full Web-browsing experience. The lock screen, home screen, phone app and everything in between have been rethought and redesigned to make Android simple, beautiful and useful. Galaxy Nexus also features an ultra-thin 9.47mm design with a 4.65-inch HD Super AMOLED™ Contour Display to watch movies, view pictures and play games that come to life in 720p (1280×720) resolution.

Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich) features:

Redesigned user interface – software navigation buttons, a first for Android smartphones, and a dedicated recent apps button to make multi-tasking easy
Face Unlock – use state-of-the-art facial recognition to unlock Galaxy Nexus
Android Beam™ – quickly share Web pages, apps, contacts and YouTube™ videos with friends by simply tapping two compatible phones together
Redesigned Camera – introduces panorama mode, 1080p video capture, zero-shutter lag for instant photo capturing, and effects such as silly faces and background replacement
People Application – browse friends, family and coworkers, see their photos in high-resolution and check their latest status updates from Google+ and other social networks
Cloud Services – keep email, contacts, photos, music, browser bookmarks and other data synced to the cloud, available across multiple devices so customers never lose important data
Google Music – upload up to 20,000 songs to the cloud, discover and buy new music from Android Market™, and stream it instantly on Galaxy Nexus and from the Web for free
Google+ – Create a Google+ account right from the phone and check status updates, manage circles, quickly share updates and photos, video chat with up to ten friends with Mobile Hangouts, and chat with groups of friends with Google+ Messenger
Support for Google Mobile™ Services – Gmail™, Google Maps™ with 3D maps and free turn-by-turn navigation, Google Earth™, Movie Studio, YouTube, syncing with Google Calendar™, a redesigned Google+ app and access to more than 300,000 apps, millions of eBooks, thousands of movies to rent, and millions of songs available to download from Android Market
Additional features:

Dual-core 1.2 GHz application processor and HTML5 Web browser – optimized dual-core processing with Android 4.0 combined with lightning fast 4G LTE connectivity for fast downloading of graphics, applications processing and Web browsing
Mobile Hotspot capability – share 4G LTE or 3G connection with up to 10 Wi-Fi-enabled devices
5-megapixel rear-facing camera with zero-shutter lag for instant photo capturing, autofocus and LED flash with full 1080p recording
Front-facing 1.3-megapixel camera for video chat
Textured soft-touch back cover – enhances the ergonomic feel and makes the phone slip-resistant
Bluetooth® 3.0 technology – support for headset, hands-free, stereo, phonebook access, human interface device (HID) and object push for vCard and vCalendar
1 GB RAM and 32 GB on-board memory (actual formatted capacity will be less)
Pricing and data packages:
Galaxy Nexus is available now in Verizon Wireless Communications Stores and online at www.verizonwireless.com for $299.99 with a new two-year customer agreement.
Customers that purchase a Galaxy Nexus by Samsung will need to subscribe to a Verizon Wireless Nationwide Talk plan beginning at $39.99 monthly access and a smartphone data package starting at $30 monthly access for 2 GB of data.
Customers can visit www.verizonwireless.com/galaxynexus for more information on the Galaxy Nexus. For additional information on Verizon Wireless products and services, visit a Verizon Wireless Communications Store, call 1-800-2 JOIN IN or go to www.verizonwireless.com.

Today Twitter released a big update for their Android app and the iOS app (not so much the iPad though). The updates provide a new UI for both apps that are very similar in nature. They have changed Mentions to being called Connect now, combining an Interactions tab along with your Mentions.

Also included now is a Discover tab/hub, that allows you to to search hashtags or keywords, see what is trending, and also view your suggested friends. It is really nice that both Twitter and Facebook are trying to get on the same page with their apps on both platforms. Go ahead and update your apps or download them to try out the new updates, and tell us what you think?

Google Maps is a killer application on Android and it was updated today to version 6.0.0. In this version, they have added indoor maps that will allow you to see layouts of selected available airports, malls, and more.

This addition will be really cool if you are on vacation or traveling to different airports. Finding your way through places and getting to your favorite restaurants will be easier than ever. You can download the app in the Android Market or if you have Maps on your phone, just go in the Market and update it.

(via Droid-Life)

One of T-Mobile’s best phones right now is the Galaxy S II, and just announced was the white version that will be available in the next coming weeks. Samsung says that it will be available just in time for the holidays. So if you are thinking about picking one up and don’t really want the black one, hold of for the white version, Santa just might leave it under the tree.

(via Samsung Mobile)

Google and Motorola agreed on a 12.5 billion dollar merger just a couple of months ago, which was a huge deal. Everyone knew that was only the first step to Google owning Motorola. Now, we are one step closer because the shareholders for Motorola have approved the merger.

There were 74% of the shareholders available to vote, and it was an overwhelming 99% vote for yes. Google still has other regulatory issues to get past first, but from what it looks like now the acquisition will be taking place in the first half of 2012.

(via Android Community)

Google had it’s Google Music event today and everything happened that was expected and more. Google announced that, the new Google Music App will now allow purchases of music. Along with that it made mention of several partners that will have their music available for purchase in the Market.

Universal, Sony Music Entertainment, and EMI, were some of bigger partners and several others that are in also. 13 million tracks are said to be available soon, and 8 million are live today. Google is also working with several artist, like Coldplay, Busta Rhymes, Pearl Jam and more, to offer exclusive content for their music Market.

Along with the new Google Music additions, they integrated Google+ into the service. You will be able to share purchases and songs straight into your Google+ feed. The really cool thing is, if a friend shares a song you will be able to listen to the whole song and not just 90 second previews. This gives the incentive to share more and could push a lot more purchasing of music. It is good to see Google finally get over a hurdle they have had for a while.

Google Music