Google Nexus S
US Android users have received an early Christmas present from Google with the release Android 2.3, codenamed Gingerbread, today.
The updated OS will be first made available on Samsung’s Nexus S smartphone and by partnering with Samung Google worked to combat some of the strongest criticisms of the Android platform, mainly that variations in the hardware have undermined the quality of the OS.
Indeed, according to Google, less than two years after the release of the first Android device the OS is now shipped on over 100 different devices.
This marriage looks to have paid off, the Nexus S is one of the strongest iPhone competitors on the market with a 1GHz processor, front and rear-facing cameras, a respectable 16GB memory and state-of-the-art, Near Field Communication (NFC) technology. Have a look at NFC in action in this video.
NFC is a version of short-range radio technology that allows a greater number of devices to communicate with mobile devices. The technology will allow the phone to automatically communicate with inanimate objects, so walking past a film poster could trigger the download of the trailer, or restaurants could automatically upload their menu onto your phone.
Full Nexus S spec
Hardware
Battery
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If this phone and the iPhone came to Verizon I would have a hard time choosing between the two. What are the main upgrades in Gingerbread though? Will I get a lot of additional features on my current Motorola Droid?
@JennaLanger I am wondering that myself, from what I can see a lot of the upgrades are tied to the hardware - the two cameras, NFC technology. I am hoping that it will at least give 2.2 users a better battery life. NFC would be a big draw for me but it might be a few years before that takes off.
@JennaLanger As @pdscott mentioned, one of the major new features is the support for near-field communication, NFC. Also, VOIP abilities have been added that integrate directly into Contacts. After that I think it's mainly just UI improvements, like the improved keyboard, one-touch word selection, a download manager, and of course much needed improvements to power-management.