Johannesburg, 08 Dec 2011
Samsung and Google have announced that the Galaxy Nexus will be available in SA from early next year.
The recommended retail price for the handset is between R6 999 and R7 299.
The Galaxy Nexus was unveiled in October, and is the pilot handset of the latest Android operating system (OS) Ice Cream Sandwich.
The handset has a 4.65-inch HD Super Amoled display at 1 280x720 HD resolution and a 1.2GHz dual core processor. It also features a 5MP rear camera, and a 1.3MP front-facing camera.
Senior VP of mobile for Google, Andy Rubin, says the Galaxy Nexus showcases the power behind Ice Cream Sandwich: “Ice Cream Sandwich demonstrates the Android platform's continued innovation with this release, which works on phones and tablets seamlessly (and everything in between).
“Features like Android Beam and Face Unlock show the innovative work our team is doing,” says Rubin.
Samsung's head of mobile product and business solutions, Paulo Ferreira, says: “We will continue to move forward with the Android platform to provide the most compelling consumer experience in the mobile world.”
Apart from the Face Unlock facial recognition technology and a new “People” app which links all of a user's contacts with all of their social profiles, including Google+, the Galaxy Nexus also features near-field communication (NFC) technology.
According to a statement, Samsung and Google will work with local developers and solution providers to further enhance the application ecosystem locally to leverage the NFC functionality.
iPhone opponent
The release of the Galaxy Nexus followed just a week after the unveiling of the iPhone 4S and Apple's updated OS, iOS 5.
Samsung is Apple's biggest competitor and the biggest seller of Android devices. At the time of the launch, World Wide Worx MD Arthur Goldstuck commented that Ice Cream Sandwich is not so much a game-changer as a “game-mover”.
“Much like the iPhone 4S, it raises the bar, enhances the experience and brings us closer to true converged devices,” said Goldstuck.
“Ice Cream Sandwich will be especially powerful in offering a unified experience across all phones and tablets - previously one of Apple's biggest differentiators. It also brings in a stronger design ethos, which will help persuade those who are swayed by aesthetics.”
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