Anyone using a Google Nexus 4 Phone?

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I was interested in feedback from anyone using one of the new(ish) Google Nexus 4's. I've read some really good reviews about them, and even though I'm only about 6 months or so into my new iPhone 5 I'm just staggeringly bored with it. :shrug:

If it is as good as the reviews make out, I was thinking I might jump in and try one.

Anyone have one and care to comment?
 
If you are going to try an Android phone then you will not go wrong with a Nexus, it is the king of android phones

Quite simply the dogs dangly bits of the smart phone world
 
If i5 is working well, why break it? You could jaibreak it of course which will let you do more with it. It is one of the best phones out there right now, with full LTE (the day is close) and a durable shell.

On the nexus 4 you will have no LTE but will gain android and a glass back, which apparently can shatter very easily. A case is a must. I just bought one and I am ******** my pants over it

The screen is very nice and sharp, but not oversaturated. Touchscreen is slightly less sensitive, so forget about using with a glove or capacitative stylus. Fingers work fine. Underneath there is stock android 4.2, and there is nothing that exciting about it either. It is just asking to be rooted. Further down there is a rather unimpressive 3G connection, and a rather unimpressive wifi. Both work with strong healthy signal, but don't expect great service when the connection is "on the verge". Sadly the network coverage in UK doesn't shine in coverage and speed departments...
Of course you get proper google maps and other apps that don't look so great on iOS, there are some nice extra tools, but other apps are missing some features, and some aren't even on play store. It's a tie between the two.

At the end of the day it £600 vs £250 phone, so I am not sure they can go head to head. Maybe Samsung SIII LTE is closer?

I think the point is if you have around £300 to spend and you want a great smart phone off-contract this is the one you get. With £600 in hand and custom roms about there are more options.
 
daugirdas said:
If i5 is working well, why break it? You could jaibreak it of course which will let you do more with it. It is one of the best phones out there right now, with full LTE (the day is close) and a durable shell.

On the nexus 4 you will have no LTE but will gain android and a glass back, which apparently can shatter very easily. A case is a must. I just bought one and I am ******** my pants over it

The screen is very nice and sharp, but not oversaturated. Touchscreen is slightly less sensitive, so forget about using with a glove or capacitative stylus. Fingers work fine. Underneath there is stock android 4.2, and there is nothing that exciting about it either. It is just asking to be rooted. Further down there is a rather unimpressive 3G connection, and a rather unimpressive wifi. Both work with strong healthy signal, but don't expect great service when the connection is "on the verge". Sadly the network coverage in UK doesn't shine in coverage and speed departments...
Of course you get proper google maps and other apps that don't look so great on iOS, there are some nice extra tools, but other apps are missing some features, and some aren't even on play store. It's a tie between the two.

At the end of the day it £600 vs £250 phone, so I am not sure they can go head to head. Maybe Samsung SIII LTE is closer?

I think the point is if you have around £300 to spend and you want a great smart phone off-contract this is the one you get. With £600 in hand and custom roms about there are more options.
Click to expand...

My experience of the Nexus 4 is not really anything like yours and with all the things you think are weak/wrong with it I do have to ask why you bought it ?

No LTE. Well in a country without a 4G network and that fails miserably to even have good 3G coverage in many places I don't see that as a drawback.

Yes that glass back shatters if you look at it the wrong way, well not really. I've managed to not break mine in the 2 months I've had it and that includes dropping it a few times. Funnily enough I heard the same scare stories about the glass back on the iPhone 4.

Weak 3G and Wi-Fi. Nope haven't noticed that either, just the standard rubbish Vodafone data signal in Edinburgh and that is the same regardless of the phone or OS in my experience.

The whole point of the Nexus phones is that you get the stock Android build, that way you don't get all the rubbish that various companies shove on top making it potentially slow and clunky. It might not be exciting but it's clean and it's very easy to add apps and widgets if you want the look of something like Samsung's SIII.

The other advantage of the Nexus devices is that you get the latest Android version first and can look forward to the 'excitement' of Android 5 in a few months.

The screen as you say is not over-saturated and in comparison to other phones including the SIII is in my opinion more natural looking.

The choice and quality of apps is one of those Canon/Nikon arguments and is very much dependant I think on what apps you want and use. I'm sure there are some in both App stores that aren't in the other and some that are better on one OS than the other.

I've used plenty of SIIIs and in my opinion they are no better than the N4 and certainly not worth the extra money.

As for whether the OP should swap from his iPhone, well that's really down to whether you want to spending all that money.
 
scorpius said:
My experience of the Nexus 4 is not really anything like yours and with all the things you think are weak/wrong with it I do have to ask why you bought it ?

A stop-gap once I realised that htc desire for some reason became a little unreliable, and the fact I need ££££ for other things. It's a shame because I planned to wait till the end of the year and buy LTE.

No LTE. Well in a country without a 4G network and that fails miserably to even have good 3G coverage in many places I don't see that as a drawback.

This is TODAY. 4G auction is taking place in March and by the end of the year there should be coverage. I take it as a clear sign that 3G won't be expanded any further so 4G is the only chance for the countryside connectivity

Yes that glass back shatters if you look at it the wrong way, well not really. I've managed to not break mine in the 2 months I've had it and that includes dropping it a few times. Funnily enough I heard the same scare stories about the glass back on the iPhone 4.

Yes both 4's are more similar than different. You can count yourself lucky. xda developers and youtube videos reveal a lot of sad stories.

Weak 3G and Wi-Fi. Nope haven't noticed that either, just the standard rubbish Vodafone data signal in Edinburgh and that is the same regardless of the phone or OS in my experience.

the signal is rubbish, which is where strong antennae can be a life saver (literally). I am not aware which phones are the best, but in my experience my every upgrade was worse and worse in terms of being able to make phone calls from the countryside or my bed (not a well connected place)! In SK and Japan they have no idea what bad signal means and therefore don't care.

It also doesn't help to have wifi downstairs either. At -70db mac mini and MBP connect just fine, but n4 and ipad only see -80db and really struggle :puke:

The whole point of the Nexus phones is that you get the stock Android build, that way you don't get all the rubbish that various companies shove on top making it potentially slow and clunky. It might not be exciting but it's clean and it's very easy to add apps and widgets if you want the look of something like Samsung's SIII.

It is entirely true, which is why I bought it. But let's not forget custom ROMs, and the fact android asks to be rooted to get rid of adds (/etc/hosts) and at least access DSP manager

The other advantage of the Nexus devices is that you get the latest Android version first and can look forward to the 'excitement' of Android 5 in a few months.

The screen as you say is not over-saturated and in comparison to other phones including the SIII is in my opinion more natural looking.

I've never said this was bad. I am yet to compare it to ipad and my monitor for color accuracy. SIII looks fake, but they also make it easy to "tone it down"

The choice and quality of apps is one of those Canon/Nikon arguments and is very much dependant I think on what apps you want and use. I'm sure there are some in both App stores that aren't in the other and some that are better on one OS than the other.

I've used plenty of SIIIs and in my opinion they are no better than the N4 and certainly not worth the extra money.

LTE (if you get the right one) and no glass back are the main advantages

As for whether the OP should swap from his iPhone, well that's really down to whether you want to spending all that money.
Click to expand...
 
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Well as the OP asked for experience of using the N4 I gave mine, the fact that I don't see lack of LTE as a problem and the glass back as not being major concern for me or the other N4 owners I know is my experience and opinion .

Regarding the screen comments, that was bad wording on my part, I didn't intend to imply that you suggested it was a failing. I was actually trying to agree with your statement that it wasn't over saturated.

As for 4G I don't believe that the same phone companies who've failed miserably to deliver decent 3G will make any better job of delivering 4G any time in the next few years. Why should they, it's not as if any new competitors are going to spoil their party.
 
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I love mine N4.
Dropped it few times, hit a metal door frame with it and still in one piece:)
Had a case for it-still have but am not using it.it just takes away whole experience of this mobile.
Screen is great not over saturated as on some mobiles.
No problems with touch sensitivity.
No problems with 3g or WiFi strength - might be operators signal problem not mobile.
Battery is great -average 3h screen on time.
Never got to root it as it works just fine - I had all previous android devices rooted including galaxy nexus.
 
Love mine. Do yourself a favour though and use a launcher such as apex.
Improves the experience no end.
 
I have just changed from a S3, I think it's a lot easier to use than the S3.. far better without any samsung rubbish added to it..
 
Thanks guys, still very interested to hear all comments.

I've read and watched a couple of reviews which are very pro-Nexus (y)
 
My wife has one. It took the Google store ages to get them in stock. She also has the nexus pad thingymajig.

She absolutely loves her phone (and pad). I prefer Apple myself but I'm not getting into that argument!

The screen is lovely and big (bigger than her HTC Sensation)

Anyting in particular you want to know? Pictures etc? Just ask.
 
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Oh, I believe she paid £239 for a brand new UK phone,delivered and UNLOCKED! I thought that was decent price considering what Samsung's, HTC's, iPhone's etc go for.
 
daugirdas said:
has anyone got 4.2.2 yet?
Click to expand...

Yes, I installed it on Friday morning.

It's a 51MB download it tells you the update is available on 3G but tells you that you need to be connected to WiFi to install it. It was a quick and painless install.

As stated on various sites no big changes mainly stability and speed fixes, but turning the Wifi and Bluetooth buttons in the settings panel into actual toggles is handy.
 
I've had one for a week or two and think it is brilliant. Better than a S3, and easily comparable to my old iPhone 4. For the price, it's a steal. Get one!!
 
One of my colleagues also got his update on Friday. His didn't indicate an update was available, but as soon as he connected to WiFi it downloaded it.

Maybe the distribution is based on something as silly as build date of the phone? We both got our handsets in December
 
Just turned on my wifes nexus 4 tonight for the first time, downloaded 4.2.2 straight away.. mines 4.2.1 and says up to date..
 
Jesus Quintana said:
Oh, I believe she paid £239 for a brand new UK phone,delivered and UNLOCKED! I thought that was decent price considering what Samsung's, HTC's, iPhone's etc go for.
Click to expand...
Did she get that from Google direct?
 
arad85 said:
Did she get that from Google direct?
Click to expand...

Sorry about the delay... I forgot to subscribe to this thread.

Yes she did, from the Play (??) Store. The price was £248 delivered

She was checking the store almost every day for stock!!
 
Jesus Quintana said:
Sorry about the delay... I forgot to subscribe to this thread.

Yes she did, from the Play (??) Store. The price was £248 delivered

She was checking the store almost every day for stock!!
Click to expand...
thanks. Have to say I'm considering one. They had stock last night (when I posted the question I was in Japan so could only see the Japanese play store...). Now do I get a Nexus 10 too....
 
arad85 said:
thanks. Have to say I'm considering one. They had stock last night (when I posted the question I was in Japan so could only see the Japanese play store...). Now do I get a Nexus 10 too....
Click to expand...

You will soon be able to install ubuntu on 10. So that would probably translate to a 'yes' if you have a need (as opposed to want) for a tablet
 
daugirdas said:
You will soon be able to install ubuntu on 10. So that would probably translate to a 'yes' if you have a need (as opposed to want) for a tablet
Click to expand...
Ubuntu on a tablet doesn't really interest me - at least for the moment :|

The only "need" is to have a portable media device for display on TVs at hotels or on planes.... (the "need" is pushed by the fact it's bonus time and I don't have my eye on anything camera related :D)
 
I just found 2 more annoying issues.

1. Audio out (music) signal is very weak when connected to external speakers. I turned the volume to max on a few different speakers I had and everything is about half as loud as iPad or mac mini. I think Desire was better there as well.
This effectively rules out using it as my in-car music system, but may just be enough with headphones if I take the risk of parting with another £200-300 for a pair of Senheisser.
This is all over XDA and elsewhere

2. There is faint buzzing and hissing coming from the earpiece even when the phone is not in use and the screen is off. It is minor, but it is there and now that I noticed it and it will annoy me for good.
Widely reported http://www.uswitch.com/mobiles/news/2012/11/lg_nexus_4_buzzing_noise_reported/

Anyone else noticed the above or something else off?

I am just thinking if I should just sit it out till Iphone 5S or contact google for replacement (however it is likely that won't change anything)
 
daugirdas said:
I just found 2 more annoying issues.

1. Audio out (music) signal is very weak when connected to external speakers. I turned the volume to max on a few different speakers I had and everything is about half as loud as iPad or mac mini. I think Desire was better there as well.
This effectively rules out using it as my in-car music system, but may just be enough with headphones if I take the risk of parting with another £200-300 for a pair of Senheisser.
This is all over XDA and elsewhere

2. There is faint buzzing and hissing coming from the earpiece even when the phone is not in use and the screen is off. It is minor, but it is there and now that I noticed it and it will annoy me for good.
Widely reported http://www.uswitch.com/mobiles/news/2012/11/lg_nexus_4_buzzing_noise_reported/

Anyone else noticed the above or something else off?

I am just thinking if I should just sit it out till Iphone 5S or contact google for replacement (however it is likely that won't change anything)
Click to expand...

Certainly haven't had 2. mine makes no noise at all, whether on or off

I hadn't tried playing music on my N4 but having just put some music on it I could quite easily deafen myself using earphones and the ones I use are only £30 SoundMagic's.

If I can find a cable I'll try it in my docking station, I've got a few just no idea where, and see how loud it is. Next time I use the car I'll try it there and see how loud it is. In instances in comparison to my iPod Classic.

To be honest it sounds like yours is faulty
 
scorpius said:
Certainly haven't had 2. mine makes no noise at all, whether on or off

I hadn't tried playing music on my N4 but having just put some music on it I could quite easily deafen myself using earphones and the ones I use are only £30 SoundMagic's.

If I can find a cable I'll try it in my docking station, I've got a few just no idea where, and see how loud it is. Next time I use the car I'll try it there and see how loud it is. In instances in comparison to my iPod Classic.

To be honest it sounds like yours is faulty
Click to expand...

It is very low noise, so you have to really put the earpiece right to your ear when it's quiet. That's why I only found out now.

I wonder if I get much out of contacting Google or LG when so many of them are faulty with such low stock. I am also scared of ever having to deal with TNT . I don't know what to do really. I should have bought from Apple store for the peace of mind :bonk:
 
Mine has exactly the same issues with Audio out connected to external speakers.
 
I was lucky to get my N4 late November from the early batch.

Absolutely love it. Complete no-brainer for the money.

The main criticisms it seems to get is the fragility and lack of LTE.

Yes, it has a glass back and front and if you drop it without protection then there is a good chance it will break. If you have slippery fingers get a decent case.

As for no LTE, well price and availability of LTE in UK at the minute make this a complete non issue at the minute in my opinion. By the time the LTE network has sufficiently developed the next Nexus will be along and you can review things then. After all, you aren't tied into a 2 year contract.

This is my third Nexus, Nexus S & Galaxs Nexus previously, and easily the best regardless of price. Once you get used to stock Android there is no going back.
 
I've ordered one.. Can't wait!
 
Had my Nexus 4 for 3 weeks now, absolutely love it, tried out the paranoid android ROM to use the pie launcher and am blown away by the customization.

Of course if you're not into custom Roms then it is still fantastic in standard form. Blows away the completion in my opinion.

I'm a HTC desire and iPhone 4s ex-owner, iOS just didn't cut it for me!
 
Looking at a N4 to replace my ageing iPhone 3GS. Feedback seems to suggest that it will be good value.
 
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