Google’s future now: LG Nexus 4, Samsung Nexus 10, and Android 4.2 – The Verge

Nexus 4 wireless charging orb finally selling through Google Play for $59.99

2013-02-11T13:47:27-05:00

via puu.sh

The elusive Nexus 4 wireless charging orb - one of the most striking features of Google's Android flagship - is finally on sale through Google Play, a few months after the phone's launch. It's currently selling for $59.99 in the US, with shipping times quoted as around a week; we're not yet sure of overall international availability. The Nexus 4 itself has only recently come back in stock on the Play Store, after Google apparently massively underestimated initial demand, so this is fairly good timing. We've also seen longer delays on some other Google accessories, like the Nexus 7's dock. The Nexus 4 orb recalls the now-discontinued Palm Tou …

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Android 4.2 for Galaxy Nexus and Nexus 7 available to download now (update)

2012-11-13T04:05:21-05:00

Galaxy Nexus Jelly Bean

Today's the day the Nexus 4 goes on sale, but if you're a Galaxy Nexus owner not quite ready to upgrade to Google's latest flagship phone, don't worry - there's still something to look forward to. We're seeing evidence and tips of an over-the-air rollout of Android 4.2 for the Galaxy Nexus, although it appears to be limited to certain users of a certain variant: the unlocked HSPA+ model that was made available through the Google Play Store earlier this year.

However, Phandroid points out that if you're comfortable with flashing a ROM yourself, you can download the necessary files from Google right now. We've contacted Google for comment on …

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Free scan and match coming to Google Music November 13th in Europe, ‘soon after’ for US (update)

2012-10-29T12:57:41-04:00

Google Music stock 1024

Offering a viable music locker in the cloud is tough when you require users to manually upload every file in their library, but thankfully that won't be the case for Google Music much longer. As part of its Google Play announcements today, the company revealed that it will finally bring scan and match functionality - already available from both Apple and Amazon - to its service starting November 13th. Matching will debut alongside Google Music in Europe for those in the U.K, France, Germany, Italy and Spain. The rollout will extend to the US "soon after" according to Google.

Google's solution works virtually identically to those offered by …

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Slow lane: why Google’s new Nexus 4 doesn’t have LTE

2012-10-29T12:38:38-04:00

Nexus 4 back

By Dieter Bohn and Nilay Patel

The Nexus 4 is an impressive smartphone that ticks off every modern spec checkbox you could ask for, save one: LTE. Instead, the Nexus 4 will only come unlocked with HSPA+ radios. It is a disappointing omission, driven by both Google's complex philosophical desire to build open devices as well as the fairly simple economics of building a halo product for a small niche of early adopters.

For Google, Nexus is a flagship brand that represents the best of Android, with Google leading by example to show other hardware manufacturers what Android can be. And though partners build the hardware, Google wants direct co …

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Inside Android’s next wave: Building the Nexus 4, Nexus 10, and Android 4.2

2012-10-29T12:16:38-04:00

google nexus lead

Google's campus in Mountain View is a weird place - a sprawling, flat expanse dotted with angular, gray buildings. And lots of colorful bikes. It feels like an island, a place with its own set of rules, and it's easy to feel out of joint if you don't know the handshake. In some ways it's like a corporate realization of Hakim Bey's Temporary Autonomous Zones… save for, you know, the corporation. It's the kind of place where the uniquely Silicon Valley meshing of childish whimsy and a fervent, quasi-religious work ethic is in full swing. A place where coding ideas and how-tos for relaxation are printed and hung in the men's bathrooms above the …

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Android 4.2 adds gesture typing, wireless TV display, multiple user support on tablets, and more

2012-10-29T12:14:58-04:00

android 4.2 google now

The new Nexus 4 and Nexus 10 aren't just new Android devices - they're showcases for a new version of Android. Google's calling Android 4.2 "a new flavor of Jelly Bean" to reflect its essential similarity to Android 4.1, but there are some major new features in the mix.

The highlight is support for Miracast, an industry-standard Wi-Fi display sharing protocol that allows new devices like the Nexus 4 to stream audio and video to TVs. (Think AirPlay with broad industry support.) Miracast boxes for existing TVs are expected to go on sale from a variety of companies soon, and Google expects them to cost well under $99. And Miracast will soon be …

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Google’s Wireless Charging Orb for Nexus 4 takes inspiration from Palm’s Touchstone

2012-10-29T12:14:21-04:00

Gallery Photo: Wireless Charging Dock for Nexus 4 photos

One of the big features of the new Google Nexus 4 smartphone is support for wireless charging, and so alongside the phone Google is releasing the aptly-named Wireless Charging Orb. Shaped like a sphere sliced crosswise, it bears more than a passing resemblance to Palm's Touchstone. The face of the dock is set at an angle so you can easily see the phone, and it's finished with a soft-touch plastic that should ensure that it won't mar the glass back of the Nexus 4. Google tells us that it's using the Qi wireless charging standard, so charging pads designed for Nokia's Lumia phones should also work on the Nexus 4.

Google's Wireless Charging Or …

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Google Now: behind the predictive future of search

2012-10-29T12:13:02-04:00

google now lead

For decades, visions of the future have played with the magical possibilities of computers: they'll know where you are, what you want, and can access all the world's information with a simple voice prompt. That vision hasn't come to pass, yet, but features like Apple's Siri and Google Now offer a keyhole peek into a near future reality where your phone is more "Personal Assistant" than "Bar bet settler." The difference is that the former actually understands what you need while the latter is a blunt search instrument.

Google Now is one more baby step in that direction. Introduced this past June with Android 4.1 "Jelly Bean," it's designed t …

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Nexus 10 available November 13th starting at $399; hands-on photos and video

2012-10-29T12:12:37-04:00

Gallery Photo: Google Nexus 10 hands-on photos

Google has officially unveiled the new Nexus 10 tablet running Android 4.2. Built by Samsung but clearly designed by Google, the tablet features a very impressive 10-inch screen at 2560 x 1600 resolution, clocking in at 300ppi. Google calls it "True RGB Real Stripe PLS," and in our short time with the tablet we found it to be on par with the iPad's Retina display, with sharp text, excellent color fidelity, and great viewing angles.

It will come in 16GB or 32GB variants and will be Wi-Fi only. The processor behind the tablet is a powerful dual-core ARM Cortex-A15 chip paired with 2GB of RAM, likely of the Samsung Exynos variety, with a quad- …

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Google announces Nexus 7 (32GB + Mobile) tablet, available November 13th for $299 unlocked (update)

2012-10-29T12:10:50-04:00

Nexus 7 box

Alongside the Nexus 4 and Nexus 10, Google has also announced a small update to the 7-inch Nexus 7 tablet. Called "Nexus 7 (32GB + Mobile)," it simply adds a pentaband HSPA+ radio and comes in a 32GB configuration for $299, ~~a $50 premium over the 16GB model~~. It's available unlocked, but Google will be selling it with either a T-Mobile or AT&T SIM card pre-installed. It will be up to users to take the device to a carrier to get service - presumably using something like AT&T's Mobile Share plan. Just like the Nexus 4, the Nexus 7 + Mobile doesn't come with an option for LTE, no doubt a function of Google's strong desire to issue software update …

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