Samsung Galaxy Nexus –Why All the Fuss?

As we approach the release date of the Galaxy Nexus, talk of this ‘game-changing’ new phone is increasing in amplitude - as it always does of course. Google ‘Galaxy Nexus’ and you’ll find it crops up almost twice as often as ‘Motorola RAZR’ - which wouldn’t have anything to do with the search engine giants collaborating on the former by any chance would it? It would be safe to say that the Nexus is one of the most hotly-anticipated phones of the year.

But why all the excitement? Surely the blogosphere should still be dominated by the swathes of Apple fanboys not quite done fussing over their brand new iPhone 4S handsets? One factor may be that Nexus phones are tailor-made by Google to suit the needs of their Android operating system. If any phone is going to guarantee that your apps don’t lag, it’s a Nexus. It’s easy to see this in the spec: a processor on par with that of the Samsung Galaxy S2 and twice the memory of an iPhone 4S means Google certainly aren’t underestimating Android’s requirements.

The phone’s high-end technical specification might be enough to do it for some, but most of us are more excited about the operating system. Given Android’s increasing popularity with smartphone users, it’s no surprise that the first phone to use Android 4.0 is creating such a buzz. Succeeding Honeycomb as the latest confectionary-based OS (don’t ask - no really, just don’t), Ice Cream Sandwich promises a major overhaul of the OS, one which Android fans - let’s call them fandroids - can’t wait to get their hands on.

We shan’t bore you with a list of all of the improvements featured in ICS – they’re out there elsewhere on the web if you really want to see – but it can be summarised as a fusion of phone and tablet technology. The new OS is designed to be used without requiring any physical buttons, so handsets can shed the excess bulk and maximise screen-size at the same time. The new tabbed web browser means users can have up to sixteen tabs open at once – so that’s one for work, and fifteen for Lolcats. The OS also implements a built-in photo-editor, drag-and-drop style folders and facial recognition software. The Nexus is going to be the closest smartphone yet to a pocket-sized computer.

And finally, for the real fandroids out there, the Galaxy Nexus is going to be easy for users to modify themselves, known as ‘rooting’. Unlike HTC and Motorola, Samsung haven’t taken action to block users from rooting Nexus phones, meaning that users can edit the user interface of their Android phone - not just altering it aesthetically, but also functionally.

So, to return to the original question – why all the fuss? Well, c’mon. Who wouldn’t be excited over a top-spec phone with a brand new operating system that’s fully customisable to each user? Google’s mantra to give power to the user is what will revolutionise the way we use web-based technology. The Galaxy Nexus is a bold new step in the right direction.