We’re well into 2011 by now and most of you US-based Galaxy S owners still have yet to see Froyo. (Officially, anyway.) What the heck is going on with that? Samsung’s Twitter account tweeted that they wanted users to have a simple and reliable upgrade – the type of hesitation you’d expect from Samsung considering past upgrades didn’t go too smoothly for a lot of users of their other phones.
The second line of the tweet states that they “[are] running tests due to complexity [and] unique functionality.” Translation: “Getting around TouchWiz is tougher than we thought it’d be.” That’s not really fair to say, though: European variants have had the upgrade for quite some time. Most will tell you that the carriers are to blame, and a lot of that blame does fall on them. Even Sony Ericsson admitted to as much when they hadn’t committed to a date for the Xperia X10′s Eclair upgrade. It’s entirely possible that Samsung is being treated the same way by all four major carriers.
So they still can’t commit to a date, but I think it’s about time we cut them some slack – at least direct some of your anger toward the carriers.
In lighter news, though, the Nexus S could soon be headed to Europe as a device being named the GT-I90003 has recently been approved by the Global Certification Forum. The Unwired’s Arne Hesse has it from a trusted source of his that this device – unlike the Nexus S released here in the states – would be coming with a Super-LCD display as opposed to a Super AMOLED. Doesn’t sound too farfetch’d considering the Russian version is said to be getting the same treatment. The only thing we’re still waiting for is a release date and pricing, but I’m sure that isn’t long off.
The Nexus S running at 1GHz is soooo 2010. The new year is all about a Hummingbird processor runing at 1.2GHz, and that is exactly what the guys and gals of xda-developers haven given us. Member Morfic has pieced together a new kernel that will let the latest Google phone run at the higher clip.
Some kinks still need to be worked out — such as the inability to use Bluetooth while running the kernel — but you know if you are the type that craves these sorts of mods you will want to head over to xda and check it out.
XDA-Developers member morfic has managed to get the Nexus S running at a clock speed of 1.2GHz. He has developed a custom kernel with the Bionix NS1 ROM that gets new speed out of this new device. There’s still some work to be done, especially with Bluetooth, but it’s coming along well. The most recent version brings the following changes:
Tweaked voltages, should work for more people.
Further build tweaks, mostly removal of more “forced on” debug options
Bootlogo added
Download the file at the source link, boot into recovery, and flash the update. Let us know in the comments if you try it.
While I was browsing through the Google Nexus One XDA development section today looking for the latest Gingerbread ROMs to see what was available, the latest release from MicroMod777 caught my eye, the reason being the frequency at which he is releasing updates. It’s all very well having ROMs built on the latest and greatest Android OS release, but if it doesn’t get supported and worked on, it can get frustrating. This is even more true when we’re talking about cutting edge early releases such as Gingerbread or Android 2.3. There are other Gingerbread ROMs available so be sure to go and check out all the forums for your phones and make sure you read the threads thoroughly before flashing these early release ROMs. Cyanogen’s CM7 will be the next one for me to test.
MicroMod777 has been making updates and posting new releases almost on a daily basis, and from what I’ve seen, it seems to work very well. It appears that this ROM is based on the Gingerbread AOSP compiled by Chris Soyars with parts from the CyanogenMOD source.
This is by no means a full review of the ROM, but I hope it gives you a quick look at Gingerbread and a fully working version of Gingerbread for the Google Nexus One while we wait for the official OTA update to hit.
Are you running Gingerbread yet? What do you think?
It appears that not everyone in the world is jumping on the bandwagon when it comes to Google’s latest and greatest. And even though K Telecom, just this past June, began selling Google’s first super phone, the Nexus One, they’re whistling a different tune with the Nexus S. Lee In-won, a spokesman for KT, stated earlier this week to the Korea Times “Currently, we have no plans to introduce Google’s latest Android handset“.
Apparently, KT is not the only carrier to echo the same notion. A larger mobile carrier, SK Telcom feels the same way. Both company’s have expressed their lack of an ability to market and customize the device to their own liking. For instance, both carriers had little success in attempting to implement their own navigation application, “T-Map” onto the device. Google insists on not allowing overseas carriers to mar the “pure Android” experience by overlaying their own proprietary services and applications, further burying the OS and rendering it an unproductive device. As Kim Yoo-chul states in the Korea Times article: Read More…
Apparently South Korean carriers plan to avoid the Nexus S like the plague. The reason? Google wont let them fudge the phone with carrier crapware. Apparently bogging devices down with absolute garbage isn’t just an American tradition; and with Google’s desire to keep their baby pure, South Korean carriers across the board are butt hurt. With any luck Google will stick to their guns and allow the user to decide which applications are loaded on to their device, and I know they will.
Who would have thought that the launching of a device would be put on hold because the consumer is going to miss out on the latest demo of Diner Dash.
The folks over at BGR are reporting that Best Buy’s ability to activate T-Mobile lines for the Nexus S is down, and has been for nearly a week. Now because of this little snafu, some customers have been complaining that Best Buy’s only answer is to make the customers purchase the phone for the full retail price unlocked.
This story has not been fully confirmed yet, and until a formal statement or some additional evidence becomes available, we’re placing this one in the rumor column. If any of you have run into this problem, please leave us a comment below and share your story. Stay tuned.
What deems a phone a success? Some would says specs, carriers and price; others would say units moved. But you know you’ve made it big when Cyanogen and Co. give their blessing and start working on a device.
It should really come as no shocker that CM would be available, sooner or later, for the Nexus S. It is, after all, the latest Google Developer Phone.
If you haven’t already snagged ROM Manager from the Market, do so below. Give CM7 a whirl and let us know what you think. Just remember that “Alpha” means not to expect a 100% ROM.
Hey Nexus S owners! You’re favorite Mod for Android has just put out the alpha build of Cyanogen Mod 7! Announced over Twitter by @clockworkmod, you’ll be able to get this alpha build via ROM Manager for your Samsung Nexus S.
As usual, be cautious when installing custom ROMs, even though Cyanogen Mod is awesome, be careful and backup your data. If you experience any issues with stuff not working after the flash, let us know in the comments below!
The Nexus One was cool. The Nexus S was hot. What’s an 42″ Nexus S like? Simply awesome. To promote the Nexus S, Google has made a huge working model for one Best Buy store to promote their new flagship device. And we’d be lying if we said it wasn’t pretty looking. The magic behind it reveals it actually is just a Nexus S with video-out powering a 42″ touchscreen. No worries, it stays cool. If it is a hit, and it is, Google will make more of them.
Jason Kincaid scored a hands-on with this huge baby and says it’s beautiful. Check out how “unresponsive” the phone is as he demonstrates it below!
So you thought your 4.3 inch Android phone was big, or maybe you got yourself an even bigger tablet recently… well guess what? It Doesn’t Matter How Big Your Toy Is, because there’s a Best Buy in San Carlos California that takes the crown for having the largest Android phone – a Google Nexus S, and amazingly, it’s fully functional.
Yep, this bad boy has a working 42 inch touchscreen, a working camera, working apps, and even an internet connection. How did they do it? Easy, it’s actually powered by a real Nexus S with special video out and other special connections. You won’t have any problems reading websites on this bad-boy. Then again, it won’t fit in your pocket either.
Google has stated that this giant Nexus S is just a test run demo for now, and if people don’t break it, they will place more of these displays in other Best Buys. Can’t get enough ginormous Nexus S? Then hit the jump to see a video of it in action at the store.
A Best Buy down in San Carlos, California is hosting the worlds largest Nexus S. While it’s really a big screen hooked up to a normal Nexus S, the touchscreen is fully functional, albeit a little terrible. Don’t expect to be able to carry this one around in your pocket, or in hand for that matter; the screen is a whopping 42 inches, diagonally.
Tech Crunch went on a road trip to record some video of it in action. Paper Toss, Google Maps, the Market and jury-rigged front facing Camera are demonstrated.
I know, I know, you’re thinking to yourself, “didn’t this phone just come out?” Hey, and all we’re saying is, don’t look a gift horse in the mouth. It’s only been six days and Google has already begun pushing out the first OTA update to hit the Nexus S since its release date on the 16th, bringing the system to GRH78 from GRH55. The update is supposed to address a number of bug issues and bring the maps application up to the most current version.
Don’t want to wait for the update? We didn’t think so. Hit the break for instructions on how to manually push this update to your device, at our own risk of course. Read More…
Well that didn’t take long, did it? Less than a week after launch the Nexus S has received its first OTA update. The XDA forums are abuzz trying to figure out just what was updated or fixed.
As soon as we can discern what is going on, we’ll let you know!
According to a tweet from the official @googlenexus account, The Nexus one should be getting its version of Gingerbread very soon. To quote the tweet:
The Gingerbread OTA for Nexus One will happen in the coming weeks. Just hang tight!
Exciting news here, for sure. While there are builds running on the phone through mods and hacks, it’s always nice to see the official development we’ve come to expect from Google. The guys say that, although the AOSP version was released for the Nexus S, it takes time to port these things over. Take the time to do it right, Google, but don’t make us wait too long!
Make sure to leave your thoughts in the comments below!
Let me tell you something I bet you never thought would happen, not in this lifetime: The Nexus One is getting itself some official Gingerbread cookies “in the coming weeks”.
This shocking revelation was twitted a fews hours back by @googlenexus. The Nexus One has received a few bits of Gingerbread already, and XDA yields two different ROMs ready for day-to-day usage on page one of the Nexus One forums. Now the only question is, who will release a full fledged (ie nothing ‘not working’) Gingerbread ROM for the Nexus One first? Google, or the modding community? Set. Go!
If you live in the UK and are interested in picking up a SIM free Nexus S, Carphone Warehouse has lowered the price of the phone from £549.99 £429.99. This is a pretty significant drop in price, and with the Nexus S dropping tomorrow in the UK, future owners have something more to smile about.
If you want to check out all the details, hit up the Carphone Warehouse page here.
Since the hardware configurations of the Galaxy S and the Nexus S were so similar, it was only a matter of time before the famed Android 2.3 Gingerbread OS was ported to the Samsung Galaxy S. Well, the wait is no longer necessary. XDA forums member supercuriogot the first semi- port version working less then 48 hours after the push of Gingerbread to AOSP.
While there are still bugs to iron out, like the absence of Wi-Fi and GPS, this is good news for Galaxy S owners. Check the videos after the break.
We have some more good news for all Galaxy S owners out there, thanks to XDA member supercurio. The Google Nexus S kernel and system image has been ported to the Samsung Galaxy S I9000 to make a booting Gingerbread ROM.
The port runs on an Ext4 file system, which the Nexus S kernel supports. This early preview still has a few issues to be resolved, so not everything is working yet.
Here is a quick list of what we know is and is not working:
Not Working: GPS / Voice / Wifi / some Buttons / camera
Working: everything else like sound, GL acceleration etc
Supercurio has made a few videos showing the port running, check them out below:
Intro Video:
Factory Reset Video:
Power Down Video:
The port isn’t ready for everyday use but if you are interested in testing it, head over to the this discussion thread on XDA.
Always remember that with any early port like this, there are risks, and we recommend you read through the entire thread to see what problems other users have experienced. Install it at your own risk.
From the above Twitter post Cyanogen has managed to get Gingerbread running on his G2. Night and day, from what was to be expected from the modding community at the beginning, regarding this device. Hopefully the public will get a taste within the coming days.
And the least surprising of all the Gingerbread updated phones, the Nexus One. Team Douche member Chris Soyars has 2.3 up on his Nexus. The difference between the Nexus build and the G2 build? The Nexus build is available for those brave souls ready to flash. You know the speech: Not my fault etc.
We all knew the Galaxy S was super similar to the Nexus S. In fact they were similar enough that porting the Gingerbread ROM from the Nexus S to the Galaxy S took less than 48 hours.
XDA member supercurio got the first semi working version of Gingerbread up and running. While the port isn’t 100% perfect, WiFi and GPS are nowhere to be found, this is a great news for you Galaxy S and variant owners; because we all know how much Samsung loves to support their hardware. Cheap shot.
Today the Samsung Nexus S becomes available at Best Buy for $520, or $199 with a 2 year contract. The unlocked phone boasts a 1GHz Hummingbird CPU, 512MB of RAM, a 4-inch, 800 x 480 curved Super AMOLED display (dubbed the Contour Display), 16GB of storage, a 5 megapixel rear and VGA front-facing camera, and near field communication capabilities.
Pros:
First phone with Android 2.3 “Gingerbread” OS. Elegant design. Fast UI. Only U.S. phone with Near Field Communication (NFC) technology.
Cons:
Mediocre voice performance. Multimedia performance behind class leaders. No HSPA+. Not many NFC applications.
Bottom Line:
The Google Nexus S for T-Mobile promises frequent Android updates, but average consumers can find even-better high-end smartphones.
Engadget also has a review. The one major new hardware feature here is NFC (Near Field Communication technology), which lets the phone interact with physical tags and could eventually let you use your phone as a wallet.
Four street murals — two in Los Angeles and two in New York — are based on various artists’ interpretations of new 24 oz. Lipton Brisk cans. Each mural contains a scannable Stickybits barcode, which, when scanned with the Stickybits app, serves up a time-lapse video of the mural’s creation. After that, users are prompted to scan a Lipton Brisk can to enter to win an Xbox 360.
For those with a teardown fetish, iFixit has your fix once again. The innards of the Nexus S have been laid out right before your lustful eyes. If the curves of the phone’s screen had you going gaga, though, you may want to look away. The rest of the components are on your standard flat motherboards, and all are pretty standard (especially if you have seen the Galaxy S torn down). Full teardown at the source link below.
Who doesn’t love some fist throwin’, nunchuck flyin’, ass kickin’ ninja action? Combine it with the new Nexus S, and you’ve got yourself a winner. That’s right, the Nexus Ninjas, who did the unboxing of the original Nexus One, are back with a vengeance. And this time, no measly flash video player can contain them. You’ll see them flying all over your browser with some awesome action. Because of this no-holds-barred style, we can’t embed the video, but be sure to hit the source link to check it out, and let us know what you think in the comments!
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