We’re hearing whispers that the Nexus S will be next in line to receive an official helping of Ice Cream Sandwich, although the source of the whispers has come from Engadget, so unfortunately no official confirmation from Samsung yet. According to the site, Ice Cream Sandwich will be arriving on the Nexus S in a matter of ‘weeks’, but then again that isn’t really want you wanted to hear is it? The pleasing aspect to note though is that they have taken this for granted as happening, and have not labelled this as a rumor, so that’s something to get optimistic about at least.

For those of you that aren’t aware, there is an unofficial version of Ice Cream Sandwich waiting to be downloaded if you have a rooted AWS version of the Nexus S. We’ve dug up the old forum listing at the XDA Developers Forum from November 2011, so click here to go directly to that site where you’ll find a full list of download links and instructions on how to get Ice Cream Sandwich running unofficially.

Broken promises: Do you think that Samsung will actually deliver on this in a few weeks? There is obviously a great deal of frustration amongst Nexus S owners after seeing the likes of the Galaxy S II receive an update, when your handset was once the cream of the crop with Android Gingerbread before anyone else.

More About: Ice Cream Sandwich, Nexus S

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Yesterday the rollout for the Nexus S was suspended, and according to Electronista Google has said it was holding back the Android update. The reason given for the delay was so the company could “monitor feedback”, after reports have come in from users reporting unusually high battery drain.

This is believed to have been caused by a higher use of the handsets processor, and wasn’t enough to originally stop updates around the world. Now the software update will not return until Google is satisfied there is not an issue with the operating system upgrade.

Owners of the Galaxy Nexus have been taking to forums and complaining of similar battery drain problems, and is thought to be down to the kernel artificially keeping the handset awake even if the screen is off. This would obviously cause the battery to drain quicker than usual.

Currently Google hasn’t commented on the Galaxy Nexus issue, but it has yet to push out the Android 4.0.3 to the smartphone. Have you experienced any issues with your Nexus S since the Android update?

More About: Android Ice Cream Sandwich, Galaxy Nexus, Nexus S

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Earlier this month we told you that testing had begun with the new Android operating system on the Nexus S, and according to Recombu the update is becoming available to Nexus S handsets around the world. Google have advised that if your handset has not received the Android update yet to be patient.

But you can try and apply the update to your handset manually by searching and downloading the Ice Cream Sandwich install package yourself. Obviously only do this at your own risk and you can then copy the data to your Nexus S and rebooting it.

Some of the improvements that Nexus S users can look forward to include the new lock screens, new Face Unlock feature, notifications can now be dismissed by swiping, and an easy screenshot option. If you don’t fancy updating your Nexus S manually Google have said the update will be rolling out over the next month.

This news comes after Google announced the Android 4.0.3 update that will be available in the coming weeks, which is set to fix a number of issues. These include new camera capabilities and improvements in spell-checking, Bluetooth and more.

Has your Nexus S received the Android update yet?

More About: Android Ice Cream Sandwich, google, Nexus S

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You won’t be surprised to hear that the port has once again surfaced from the realms of the XDA-Developers Forums, as the clever bunch have now put the Nexus S Ice Cream Sandwich ROM up for download, as reported from Droid-Life.

As always, you’ll need to take care when installing any unofficial Android build and if your Nexus S isn’t rooted yet, you will need to perform this task first if you want to install Ice Cream Sandwich on the device.

Also, although feedback suggests that this is a stable build, it isn’t the latest build of Ice Cream Sandwich as demoed by Google in Hong Kong, so don’t expect features like Face Unlock and Android Beam to be working – for the moment anyway.

However, everything else from Ice Cream Sandwich is there, and it looks very pretty indeed. We’re talking about new menu interfaces, the new phone and music apps – the lot. Droid-Life has already got the build up and running on their device and have posted some screenshots showing the Nexus S running Ice Cream Sandwich.

It is well worth giving this a try if you have installed custom builds on your device before – especially since we have no idea when Google plans to release Ice Cream Sandwich officially on the device. There are a few bugs already noted with the build though, but these only include features like NFC, some data issues and a few camera problems – nothing which will brick your device anyway.

If you fancy giving this a try, you’ll find the download links and instructions over at XDA-Developers here. If you have already installed ICS on your Nexus S, give us your initial feedback on how your device is performing – everything okay?

More About: Nexus S, samsung

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It is going to be great news when Nexus S owners find out about this, as we can tell you that the now seemingly ancient handset will also get an upgrade to Ice Cream Sandwich in the future, thanks to its close ties with Google and being a direct developers device of course along with the Xoom tablet.

Google’s Gabe Cohen confirmed the news direct at the recent event in Hong Kong and even dropped a huge bombshell that ALL Android handsets running Gingerbread may be due for the Ice Cream Sandwich upgrade as well. Obviously not all of them will be and it may take some time for this to become a reality, but it is refreshing to see such optimism early on nevertheless.

Here is an apparent statement from Cohen, as noted by Engadget: “Currently in the process for releasing Ice Cream Sandwich for Nexus S. Theoretically should work for any 2.3 device.”

Theoretically is obviously the key word here, and although it is far from convincing, Cohen could have easily chose to be more covert about his choice of words when talking about future ICS updates. It now means that owners of handsets such as the Desire HD, Galaxy S II, Droid Bionic and HTC Sensation all have reason to believe that their handset will get an update sometime next year, which is great.

The Motorola Droid RAZR will be one of the first devices to get the update, and we’re guessing the Motorola Xoom will be getting it around the same time as well. As always, we’ll update you if we hear about any other handsets that are getting the update but for now, give us your reaction to Google’s statement.

Would it be a huge surprise if your Gingerbread handset received an upgrade to Ice Cream Sandwich?

More About: google, ice cream sandwich 4.0, Nexus S

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What we love about this handset is how you do not have to wait for the update, as it is an OTA and comes direct from Google. The reason for this is due to the fact that it is a stock device, so does not require a third-party UI, which is the biggest reason for OS update delays – hence the reason for the delay of the HTC ThunderBolt. The update was made available to Nexus S customers yesterday

ZDNET states that there is a not a huge deal of difference between 2.3.6 and 2.3.4, apart from the tethering issue the update also fixes a bug that was found in voice-search – something that has been a constant issue for the iPhone since it was first introduced into a later version of iOS. We just hope that Apple improve on this feature massively, as it is small things like this that allow Android to keep on beating them in terms of features and sales.

We expect this to be the last update for Gingerbread, as Ice Cream Sandwich is not that long away, release is said to be either October or November, which should coincide with the release of the Nexus Prime. What makes the new version of Google Android so important is how it will finally bring both smartphones and tablets together.

It will be interesting to see if this second attempt of Android 2.3.6 will fare better than the previous try. Have you downloaded the new update, if so please let us know your thoughts?

More About: Android, google, Nexus S

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The deal is a win win for Samsung, as they make both devices, so the likes of HTC and Motorola will have to sit around and admit defeat for today. The offer of a free Nexus S runs from 11.00PM CT yesterday to 11.59PM CT today. Just do not go into any other store by mistake, as you will look pretty stupid. You should not think too hard about this offer, due to the fact that there is not much time.

The Nexus S or Google Phone as some people call it is not going to blow you away with the hardware, but what you can be sure of is it being the first one to get future Android updates before most other handsets running the OS. Android 2.3 Gingerbread comes installed, but once Ice Cream Sandwich is released chances are you will have it before the S II, Droid Bionic and the ill-fated HTC ThunderBolt. However, we can tell you that the Nexus S does come with NFC, something that the iPhone 5 might no even get, depending who you listen to that is?

To benefit from this one-day offer you have to either be ready for an upgrade or if you sign up to a new two-year contract. This means that those of you who still have time left on your contract will not be able to take advantage of this offer. No doubt this will upset some customers who have only just signed up to a new contract?

Finding the deal on the Best Buy website is very easy, as it is shown right at the top of the normal or mobile store website. Now that you have saved money on this limited offer the retailer must be hoping that you purchase some accessories at the same time. We can see that they have nine accessories available, these range from cases, extra battery, car charger and a screen cover.

Will you be getting the free Nexus S, or would you rather wait for the Galaxy S II

More About: Galaxy S II, Nexus S, samsung

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The inclusion of NFC is by far the best new feature in this upcoming update, one that will see the implementation of Google Wallet. No longer will you have to carry your credit/debit card around with you – well not unless a store does not accept the latest form of payment. So what other updates can we expect from GRJ90?

The first is the already mentioned Near Field Communication, the second is 4G settings widgets, third is TTY support, fourth NI push support, fifth improvements to Wi-Fi, audio quality and 4G throughput, and finally Tuned signal strength indicators. You can see that this is not a huge update, but it is one with significance.

As we mentioned above the update will begin on July 11, but Sprintfeed does say that it will be pushed out gradually over a four-day period. So just hold tight if your Nexus S 4G does not get the upgrade after a day or two. However, for those who are too eager to wait then you can always try to push for a manual download instead.

Once NFC has been enabled on this device, then we can see that there will be a little bit more life injected into it. What we will find amazing is how an aging Android smartphone will be able to offer something that the upcoming iPhone 5 will not, as Apple has already suggested that they will not support this technology in their next iPhone –which is a bit of a shock.

It does seem as though Apple will never been backed into a corner and add a new feature if the market is not fully ready for it. This is something that they have always done, and seems to be working for them so far.

This update could be the final stepping-stone to Ice Cream Sandwich, which is expected to be the next update – although that will be the major one, unlike GRJ90. Are you happy with the feature updates, or could there have been more?

More About: Nexus S, NFC, samsung

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Without further ado, take a look at the picture over at Redmond Pie, the picture originates from TechHog. According to them, one of their sources has a ‘friend’ who is working on the device in the Google Android developer labs. Aside from the supposed first picture of the device, they also claim that HTC and LG are the main candidates to manufacture the device – wow, LG is certainly a surprise contender in our opinion.

If it’s true that LG are part of the Nexus 3 project, it’s fair to say that the popular LG Optimus 2X, or G2X on T-Mobile was a strong factor in Google’s decision. Another thing on our minds right now, is what about Samsung? They built the Nexus S of course, and the article over at Redmond Pie suggests that HTC, the company that built the original Nexus One will be the company chosen to build the Nexus 3, based on the picture.

As for the design – the one striking thing is the fact that there’s no buttons. And we love it. Motorola showed how slick a device can look without any buttons on their Xoom, and the prospect of a Nexus 3 with touch screen buttons is pretty mouthwatering. Check out the picture for yourself and let us know your thoughts on the Nexus 3. Do you like the design or not?

UPDATE: If you click the link to the original source of the picture, you’ll see that TechHog has been asked to remove their article with the picture. Is that a strong indication from Google that the picture is legitimate? It sure looks like it from where we’re standing. Give us your thoughts on this.

More About: google, google nexus 3, Nexus S

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They have learned that Apple is to adopt this new design; although not certain how well this will be received with current iPhone users? It seems that Apple may have purchased 200-300 new glass-cutting machines; maybe there is a little truth into this, as they could have used their current machines if they were to stick with the current iPhone 4 design with the fifth-generation model.

Whether the iPhone 5 will look like the Nexus S is anyone’s guess, but it is good to give us a basics idea of the next design. However, they could decide to adopt the design that they had with the iPod Nano, which as we know curved from left to right. Not certain if I would want an overgrown iPod Nano as my iPhone.

There is a possibility that this could be to do with the much-rumored iPhone Nano. Now this would make sense; they would not want it looking like the mainstream iPhone so what better way to change it than make it like one of their other devices?

The jury is out on this one at the moment; do you think that this possible design for the iPhone 5 is plausible?

More About: apple, iPhone 5, Nexus S

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