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Android 4.1 Jelly Bean: faster, smoother, more delightful (ars technica)Android 4.1 Jelly Bean: faster, smoother, more delightful (ars technica)Posted Jun 28, 2012 18:09 UTC (Thu) by b7j0c (subscriber, #27559)In reply to: Android 4.1 Jelly Bean: faster, smoother, more delightful (ars technica) by bpeebles Parent article: Android 4.1 Jelly Bean: faster, smoother, more delightful (ars technica)
i'm still waiting for at&t to upgrade the galaxy s2 to ICS. i'm starting to think it will never happen
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Android 4.1 Jelly Bean: faster, smoother, more delightful (ars technica) Posted Jun 29, 2012 4:48 UTC (Fri) by mastro (subscriber, #72665) [Link]
Never EVER buy a phone from a carrier. They have a financial incentive to *not* update your devices and instead force you to buy a new one (and a new contract!) after two years or what not.
I apologize if the following sounds like FUD (and I admit I don't have proof) but I would also suggest to avoid buying a Galaxy Nexus from sources other than Google, since I've heard rumors that there are small hardware variations and some get their updates sooner than others.
Buying it directly from Google offers some hope for timely updates:
You can also find the (small) tablet, Nexus 7, at: https://www.google.com/nexus
Android 4.1 Jelly Bean: faster, smoother, more delightful (ars technica) Posted Jun 29, 2012 11:08 UTC (Fri) by cesarb (subscriber, #6266) [Link]
> I've heard rumors that there are small hardware variations and some get their updates sooner than others.
Other than the GSM (maguro) versus CDMA (toro), I did not hear anything about hardware variations, only software. The Google software variant for GSM (yakju) is the one which updates quickest; the others (yakju followed by two letters) update slower, and some of them did not update from 4.0.2 to 4.0.4 yet (for instance, the yakjuvs which is the variant sold here in Brazil).
But as long as you have the GSM hardware (maguro), you can unlock the bootloader (a simple command from Linux, erases all data on the device for privacy reasons) and flash the standard "yakju" variant. It is not officially supported, but I have seen forum posts from several people who did it with zero problems.
> Buying it directly from Google offers some hope for timely updates
Buying a Galaxy Nexus directly from Google only shows an "unavailable on your country" page, it is much easier to buy from a local carrier. The Galaxy Nexus has no carrier customizations, AFAIK all local carriers are using the same yakjuvs build.
Android 4.1 Jelly Bean: faster, smoother, more delightful (ars technica) Posted Jul 2, 2012 16:51 UTC (Mon) by mathstuf (subscriber, #69389) [Link]
> The Galaxy Nexus has no carrier customizations, AFAIK all local carriers are using the same yakjuvs build.
Mine came with MyVerizon (which I would have installed anyways, but the latest update removing the widget and something about the login requiring a second app that doesn't work on ICS makes me wary of whether it will continue being useful at all; still haven't upgraded) and Wallet can't be updated from the store (I got the APK from the XDA forums though).
Android 4.1 Jelly Bean: faster, smoother, more delightful (ars technica) Posted Jul 1, 2012 5:28 UTC (Sun) by aryonoco (subscriber, #55563) [Link]
You can buy any GSM Galaxy Nexus from anywhere and there are no hardware variations between them. Software, yes. The ones straight from Google have a codename called 'yakju' and they get their updates straight from Google. Others will get the update from Samsung/carrier and so that's slower. But any GSM Galaxy Nexus can be flashed to a 'yakju' build and then it is exactly the same as one bought straight from Google. I have done this on a Telstra Galaxy Nexus I bought here in Australia, and it works flawlessly.
To the OP: In Android-land, if you want to get the maximum lifespan out of your device and know that your device is going to get official updates for a long time to come, only buy from Google's Nexus line.
Android 4.1 Jelly Bean: faster, smoother, more delightful (ars technica) Posted Jul 3, 2012 8:28 UTC (Tue) by rich0 (guest, #55509) [Link]
Perhaps, but timing is an issue. I'm considering getting a phone but I'd never buy a Galaxy Nexus now. That phone is almost 9 months old already - halfway though its likely supported lifetime (I've yet to see Google release a Nexus update more than 18 months from original release - and they sell their phones for a fairly long time - you could have bought an ADP and never gotten an update).
The other big issue with the Nexus line is lack of subsidy (varies by carrier). $400 is a lot to pay for a phone if you don't get a break on your monthly rate. The only carrier I'm aware of that will give you a break on the rate is T-Mobile, and for 4 lines you're looking at a savings of $900 every 18 months which is hardly the value of four free phones (two smart and two dumb).
The math probably works better for individual plans.
Android 4.1 Jelly Bean: faster, smoother, more delightful (ars technica) Posted Jul 3, 2012 23:20 UTC (Tue) by jimparis (subscriber, #38647) [Link]
> Perhaps, but timing is an issue. I'm considering getting a phone but I'd never buy a Galaxy Nexus now. That phone is almost 9 months old already - halfway though its likely supported lifetime
It's also half the original price by now, so that still seems like a reasonable purchase.
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