Verizon’s not picking up the Samsung Galaxy S II but it looks like there will be something even better in the pipeline — the Nexus/Droid Prime, slated to launch this October with Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich.
There is still some confusion among the rumor mills regarding what in the world the device is actually called. The devices position as a flagship for Android 4.0 seems to make it very likely that it will be part of the Nexus device, but a trusted source told BGR recently that it will actually be a part of the Droid line, and branded as such. Of course, it’s also possible that these two names represent two different models. In this case it’s likely that the devices will be the same physically, with the Droid version receiving a slightly different UI.
The Specs
The Nexus/Droid Prime is rumored to have the following specifications.
- 1.5GHz dual-core processor
- 1GB (or more) of dual-channel RAM
- 32GB (or more) of internal storage
- 4G LTE
- 4.5-inch Super AMOLED Plus touchscreen
- HD 720p display resolution
The incredibly high resolution Super AMOLED display would be the first of it’s kind in the mobile phone world, besting even the iPhone 4′s qHD (960×540) display. But enough about hardware.
New Version, More Features
Ice Cream Sandwich, the combination tablet/phone version of Google’s mobile operating system, is rumored to contain a whole slew of new features. Among these are a new Open Accessory API, face tracking and recognition, and NFC (near field communication) support. Of course, as with any new software release, the required system specs have surely gone up, but I have a feeling the Nexus/Droid prime will be able to handle it.
Google also hopes that Android 4.0 will start to solve the fragmentation problem that has plagued the Android development community for so long now. TechCrunch recently asked Google’s Design Lead, Matias Duarte about this very point, and he repsonded in the following way:
Ice Cream Sandwich will continue the very challenging job of trying to create an embeddable platform that has the flexibility of the web. We’re trying to make one size fits all, and there are different products for different needs. That said, we know it is hard to design in that environment. Ice Cream Sandwich gives you a lot of tools to help you build one app that works more seamlessly across a variety of screen sizes and different form factors. And before that, we’re rolling out tools that help developers focus and optimize. We recently launched features that let you have multiple APKs and specific device targeting. We’re looking to make that transition easier and create really good-looking stuff on Android.
Well there you have it folks. It looks like good things are in store for aspiring developers with Android 4.0.