Samsung Galaxy Nexus a Major Android Smartphone Upgrade

Nov. 20, 2011 — -- Even from the Samsung Galaxy Nexus lock screen, you get a sense that this Google-backed Android smartphone is going to be different from all those that came before it. The reason: You can unlock the screen by quite literally showing your face.

Facial recognition is one of the cool, if still slightly flawed technologies included as part of Android version 4.0, perhaps better known by its yummy moniker Ice Cream Sandwich. Fortunately, you can rely on PINs and other backup plans when your mug fails to unlock the screen, which in dim light and under other circumstances happens more often than you'd like.

Google and its partners haven't spilled the beans yet on just when consumers in the U.S. can get their hands on the Galaxy Nexus or what it will cost. Verizon Wireless will be selling a device at launch that will exploit its speedy 4G LTE network. But my test version, provided by Google just a day ago, relied on a T-Mobile SIM card tapping into an HSPA + network. It's the version, which happens to be compatible with T-Mobile and AT&T networks, that Google says will be sold around the world.

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Because I've only had the phone such a short time, consider this more of a first look at Ice Cream Sandwich rather than a full-fledged review. I didn't test battery life (first reaction, it doesn't seem great) or even make many calls.

Though I want to do a deeper dive, I got a good sense of what Ice Cream Sandwich is all about. And many new features are indeed a welcome treat.

But first, the hardware: Like many of its recent Android predecessors, the phone has a large screen, in this case 4.65-inch so-called Super AMOLED high-definition (1280 x 720) display that looks gargantuan next to the iPhone 4S display. Still the overall phone is quite thin and weighs in about 4.8 ounces, actually a tad lighter than the iPhone.

Inside Galaxy is a fast 1.2 GHz dual-core processor, 1GB of RAM, plus 16GB of internal memory (double that, I'm told, on the LTE version).

There's a 5 megapixel auto-focus rear camera with flash that can capture high definition video (up to 1080p, though the screen itself display 720p). On the front is a 1.3 megapixel front camera you can use for video calls.

NFC, or near-field communication technology, is also included, meaning you could use the phone to make mobile payments, presumably through Google Wallet.

Google says many but not all current Android apps will be backwards compatible with Ice Cream Sandwich.

This major upgrade to Android brings virtual home, back and recent app buttons that are readily available (but so as not to distract you disappear when you're say watching video). You can easily add shortcuts and widgets to any of five home screens.

As with the iOS 5 on the iPhone, you can reveal notifications for such things as new e-mail messages or voicemail by swiping down from the top of the screen—unlike the iPhone you can dispense with the notifications you've read by flicking them to the left or right.

I appreciate new controls inside settings that help you manage data usage. You can consult color charts that reveal how much data you're using via cellular and Wi-Fi connections as well as how much data each application is eating up. You can even set a mobile data limit that will disable your mobile data connection when you've exceeded that limit.

You can also check out which functions and apps are consuming the most battery life—not surprisingly, the screen was sapping the battery the most (40%) in my tests, followed by music (19%) and the idle phone (13%).

I streamed songs via my collection stored in Google Music, including songs I purchased on my computer via the new Google music store that was announced yesterday. The ability to purchase songs on mobile devices such as the Galaxy Nexus is coming in the next day or two; I couldn't test it.

Meanwhile to help customize your listening experience, Google has added an equalizer, bass boost and 3D sound effects. Unfortunately, during a morning commute, streaming music frequently hiccuped while I was on the T-Mobile network; I had a better experience when I switched to Wi-Fi, using with my Verizon Wireless LTE MiFi device.

I liked that you can shoot pictures on the Galaxy Nexus with zero shutter lag, though in my limited tests anyway I found the process of taking pictures a little clumsy. You can adjust white balance and other settings, then easily share what you've shot via Gmail, Google + , or Google Messenger but I didn't see a way to share directly with Facebook. You can also shoot a panorama image by panning to the left or right and having the phone stitch together one big image.

You can shoot time lapse videos, or employ such silly video effects as "squeezing" your subject or giving them a "big nose" or "small eyes."

While browsing the Web, you can have up to 16 "tabs" open at any one time; don't worry about clutter, you can touch a tabs button to summon a visual preview of Web thumbnails.

Contacts are deeply integrated with Google +, as you'd expect, but you can also see within the People app status updates from Twitter and LinkedIn.

I wasn't able to test a new Android Beam feature that promises to let you share a YouTube video, Web page, map, directions and so on with another phone by holding the Galaxy Nexus back to back against another NFC-capable Android device.

Google has made other changes to the keyboard, books app, calendar app and more. My early impression is mostly favorable, but I want to spend a lot more time playing with the phone before reaching a final conclusion.