More thoughts on Google's new Nexus line up

Morning all.

It's Monday and I'm tired. I'm so tired in fact that I'm thinking of quitting my job just so I don't have to go in today. I'll likely regret it a few hours later but it's a risk I'm willing to take. Meh.

Anyway, on to more interesting fare. Despite Sandy's best efforts Google still managed to showcase it's latest Nexus line up yesterday and I'm sure if you look anywhere on the net you'll find heaps of information concerning the newly revealed Nexus 4 and Nexus 10. Naturally, being a phone groupie and all, I approached near completion (eww) upon seeing video footage of the devices, especially the Nexus 10 tablet, which at $100 cheaper than the iPad 4 in the US (Likely to be somewhat similarly competitively priced here in the UK) will 100% be my tablet of choice going forward.

I was also all fired up to purchase the Nexus 4 as well but since yesterday I've had a little time to let my excitement temper itself. This is a classic example of a device I want but don't need. Let me just state now that this has nothing to do with the phones lack of and LTE radio. While this may be a major blow for some people I live in the UK where LTE has literally just rolled out and doesn't look set to see widespread availability any time soon (For more on why the Nexus 4 lacks an LTE radio you guys should read an article called Slow Lane by The Verge's Dieter Bohn and Nilay Patel which offers incredible insight into the situation.)

The Nexus 4 is undoubtedly a beauteous, marvel of a phone but I currently rock a GSM Galaxy Nexus and let me tell you, she isn't don't with me yet. My nexus is indeed rooted, running only a stock ROM. It is however boasting the revered Franco Kernal that coupled with Jelly Bean's Project Butter means that the thing absolutely flies. Also while I know the screen is no longer head of the pack it's far from as antiquated as many tech enthusiasts would have you believe.

What I'm trying to say is while I'm certain that the Nexus 4 is an improvement over my current daily driver in every way conceivable, for somebody like me who doesn't exactly have cash to burn it's an update I can happily afford to miss. Especially considering that with my current Nexus I'll still be able to enjoy all the goodies Android 4.2 has to offer when it arrives. Now if you don't currently have a Nexus phone and you're due for an upgrade then I'd advise you consider the Nexus 4. There are a plethora of great devices currently available and on the horizon so the choice is yours but this would be my recommendation to you. What Google is doing at the moment is just more exciting than it's rivals and something you would not regret being a part of. I don't want to devalue the strides Microsoft are currently making but I think they need to find they're feet first in today's mobile space before we see something truly special emerge from Windows Phone 8 or Windows RT.

Anyway that's enough for today. I'm off to quit my job. Until next time.

I just can't do it Captain; I don't have the power!

Personally, I've always been astonished at how battery life on a mobile device has never seemed to be a priority with manufacturers. What's the use in giving us all this super fast processing power, hi-def screens, system intensive apps and the like if we're only able to squeeze roughly 8 hours of use from the device and in many cases much, much less!?

In my opinion battery life should be at the forefront of manufacturer's concerns, ahead of how many cores the thing has, the size of the screens and yes, even the size zero thinness we've all come to know and expect from our smartphones. That's why it was great to see Motorola release a dedicated battery powerhouse device in the Razr Maxx. 3000+ mAh batteries should be the standard. Despite a great performance in Europe even the Galaxy Note's hefty 2000+ mAh battery suffered when the device was introduced to the US and adopted the awesome but power-hungry LTE technology.

It should be simple enough really. Nokia have made a step in the right direction it seems by announcing the 1600.2487.8107.12070 ROM update which is said to triple to battery life of it's flagship Lumia 800 series of phones. Now while I think this may be a slight overestimation of the ability of this update (although I'll be happy to be proved wrong) it will no doubt come as great news to those who own what otherwise is an absolutely fantastic device. However considering that this is a single core phone with a relatively small screen it begs the question, 'Isn't this a problem that could have quite easily been avoided?' I mean, I know that the Lumia 800's unique hardware approach may have played a hand in the undermining it battery potential but surely not so significantly.

Anyway. That's enough of that. As you all know we're expecting iPad 3 news very soon so check back for my entirely meaningless opinions on Apple's latest offering.