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Originally Posted by rfkrocktk
The Nexus One was arguably the first game-changing open Android phone. The Nexus S brought us NFC. The Galaxy Nexus brought us a huge 720p display, LTE, etc. What does the Nexus 4 bring us and what's the hype?
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Well, if we must, we can say this: The Nexus 4 brings us 1080p video recording, a quad core processor (first on a Nexus), HSPA+ 42 compatibility, and of course, all the software goodies. There's no hype. It's a top-of-the-line device at an unbelievable price.
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It lacks LTE. It lacks a microSD card. By all means except software (the inclusion of 4.2), it seems to be a step backwards. My Galaxy S3 runs the latest CM10 build, has NFC, LTE, a microSD card slot, a huge gorgeous SuperAMOLED display, decent battery life, and more. Why is the Nexus 4 so much better than that?
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Re: LTE, see HSPA+ 42 compatibility above. If you are anything like the usual smartphone user, you will never notice a difference. LTE is theoretically faster, but in real life, HSPA+ 42 (dual carrier) has been known to beat LTE speeds in some markets. Your mileage may vary, of course.
No Nexus phone has had removable storage. Both because it makes it easier to design on a compact basis and because it allows Google to hit a price point while pushing the cloud. Whether the lack of SD card is a negative or a plus is up to the consumer. I can see the obvious benefits of having an SD card. But (a) I don't need it given the cloud solutions, and (b) say your phone got stolen. You have a screen lock on your phone, but whoever stole it can easily remove your SD card and get access to data you may not want them to have. A phone that doesn't support removable storage eliminates that possibility. So it's not necessarily a negative.
I don't think the question is whether the Nexus 4 is "better" than the GS3. In my view, it is. But "better" in this instance is a subjective judgment rather than an objective conclusion. There is no way I'd buy a GS3 off contract, given the price. And I don't plan on going on contract. From that vantage point, the N4 is basically a steal, given the price.