Google Launches Nexus S Phone With 'Gingerbread'

Google, Samsung and Best Buy on Monday announced the Nexus S, Google's new flagship Android phone and the first device to run Android 2.3, codenamed "Gingerbread".The new phone is a slab-style, 1-GHz smartphone like Samsung's popular Galaxy S line. But it has many subtle new hardware and software features which make it "a 'pure Google' experience [with] unlocked, unfiltered access to the best Google mobile services," according to a Google blog post announcing the phone.

The phone has a very subtle curve to the screen which cradles your face, Samsung says. Otherwise, specs are quite similar to the Galaxy S: a Hummingbird processor, 5-megapixel rear-facing and VGA front-facing cameras, 16 GB of storage, HD video playback and 720-by-480 video capture. There's a gyroscope sensor; that's new. The phone has Wi-Fi 802.11n, and supports Wi-Fi hotspot mode. As a "pure Google" phone, it doesn't have Samsung's TouchWiz UI overlay. It works on T-Mobile's 3G network, although not at the carrier's maximum HSPA+ speeds. It will also work, unlocked, on AT&T's 2G EDGE network.

Google tends to use Nexus phones to push the Android ecosystem in certain directions. Here, Google seems to have put manufacturers who don't quickly upgrade their Android phones to new versions on notice. While Android 2.2 has now been out for months, many users of even high-end Android phones such as the Galaxy S line are stuck on earlier versions because the manufacturers haven't released prompt updates.

"With this device, users will also be the first to receive software upgrades and new Google mobile apps as soon as they become available," Google's product page says.

Tasty Gingerbread

 
The Nexus S spotlights key features in Google's Gingerbread OS, including support for near-field communications (NFC), built-in voice-over-IP calling, faster speed, better power management, more sensors and front-facing cameras.

NFC has gotten a lot of buzz recently since several wireless carriers said they would investigate using the technology in a mobile payments trial, called ISIS. In theory, with the right software, it could let your phone act as a credit card or transit pass, paying your fare or fee with a tap. Right now, at least in the U.S., it's just potential.

Speed and power management improvements include better video support, faster response to screen touches, automatic termination of power-hogging apps and an integrated task manager. Hopefully, this will help the battery life concerns many users have with Android 2.2.

The new OS supports a wider range of sensors, too, including gyroscope, rotation vector, linear acceleration, gravity, and a barometer(!).

Don't get too excited about the voice-over-IP support. Google now integrates the industry standard SIP platform, but they won't give you a SIP account, and the company implies that they'll remove the SIP support from individual devices if manufacturers or carriers complain.

There's a hint of better tablet support, too. "The platform now supports extra large screen sizes, such as those that might be found on tablet devices," Google's developer page says. But there's no information about a tablet channel in the Android Market, or any Android Market support for tablet devices that don't include phones. That may have to wait for the next release, codenamed "Honeycomb".

Gingerbread will also be available on other devices, and Google said it will roll out to Nexus One phones "in the coming weeks." It may be months until other users see Gingerbread, though, as most upgrades get filtered through manufacturers and carriers.

The Nexus S will be available at Best Buy stores and BestBuy.com on December 16, either unlocked or with a T-Mobile service plan. The phone will cost $529 unlocked, or $199 with a two-year T-Mobile contract.

We'll have a full hands-on with the new phone later this week.