Best phone for ICS and beyond - Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]

I want ICS, I can't afford a Galaxy Nexus, I'm willing to root/flash, and I want to replace my Nexus one. What phone should I buy?
The Nexus S is the obvious choice but are there any other contenders?
Thanks

Vibrant. Phone is real cheap too. Vibrant also have miui and cm7 so yeaaA
Sent from my SGH-T989 using Tapatalk

One thing, Nexus One will have a ics custom rom.
However if you want to change then yeah go for the Nexus S! I'm using it. I used to have the htc desire which is almost the same as the nexus one and the speed boost you get from the nexus s is very noticable. Get the Nexus S! Good luck.

If i'm willing to root and/or run CM9, is there any difference in terms of support between the Nexus S and Galaxy S I or II? Will it take longer for stable ICS builds to reach the GSII? Seems like the GSII can be had a for a bit more but is quite a bit more powerful (and therefore futureproof).

I think the SGS2 is a no-brainer for most people, if you don't mind the larger screen.
It will get official as well as Custom support for ICS.

Related

Worth to change my Optimus 7 to Nexus S?

Since I owned a HTC Hero and a Google Nexus One I wanted something new. So I changed to a Windows phone. The LG Optimus 7 is a great phone, really easy in use, great build quality,... I just have 1 problem, I miss Android to much So, because the Nexus S is so low in price I was wondering if it's still a good choice? I know the hardware is a bit outdated, but it seems that it's still is a great phone with a lot of ROM developement.
What do you guys think?
ZeppeMan said:
Since I owned a HTC Hero and a Google Nexus One I wanted something new. So I changed to a Windows phone. The LG Optimus 7 is a great phone, really easy in use, great build quality,... I just have 1 problem, I miss Android to much So, because the Nexus S is so low in price I was wondering if it's still a good choice? I know the hardware is a bit outdated, but it seems that it's still is a great phone with a lot of ROM developement.
What do you guys think?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Wait for the nexus prime imho
Sent from my Nexus S 4G powered by Matr1x/CO2 using Tapatalk
Ow, forgot to tell about that. I don't like phones with such big screens. The nexus S has imo perfect screensize. If the Nexus prime had smaller screensize I would have waited.
And the low price of the Nexus S is nice too.
Then why wait?
Because I wanted to hear some other opinions
Is it still worth it? If you look at the price imo then yes.
I just sold my evo 3d and got a nexus. IMO the nexus is a better device. I don't even want to root it, yet.
Sent from my Nexus S 4G using Tapatalk
I am also concerned about the size of the new Nexus ... time will tell. In the meantime I swapped my Evo for an NS4g. With Oxygen and Franco's latest kernel ... I could be happy with this phone for a long time.
ZeppeMan said:
Since I owned a HTC Hero and a Google Nexus One I wanted something new. So I changed to a Windows phone. The LG Optimus 7 is a great phone, really easy in use, great build quality,... I just have 1 problem, I miss Android to much So, because the Nexus S is so low in price I was wondering if it's still a good choice? I know the hardware is a bit outdated, but it seems that it's still is a great phone with a lot of ROM developement.
What do you guys think?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have an LG Optimus 7 and switched to the Nexus S. Mainly for the same reasons you are looking at. I think the LG is a fantastic phone, but I have a bit of a love/hate relationship with WP7 and wanted to get back to Android. I chose not to wait for the Prime for the same reason as you. I don't like the big screen. The 4.0" on the Nexus S is perfect for me. Its specs aren't that far behind. Here in North America there aren't a lot of phones with front facing camera, which the Nexux S has. It has NFC which I think is going to take off this year. It is going to get an official ICS upgrade if you don't want to root to get it.
The flexibility of Android is fantastic compared to the locked down Windows Phone....I'm so glad to be back with Android, and the Nexus S.
Dave
well sinc the galaxy nexus doesnt have a bezel it doesnt make the phone that much larger
Ok thx guys
I think I will put my Optimus 7 for sale then and go for the Nexus S.
I'd get it still... I have a nexus a 4g and had an epic 4g before that...stock Android has so much going for it that I could only recommend another stock phone like the prime... But as you said, it's not what you are looking for right now.
The build quality on the nexus a is great and it feels like a very solid phone. I would recommend it to anyone and everyone looking at Android in general. Much better than the other non nexus phones I've used
Sent from my Nexus S 4G using Tapatalk
I luv reading these types of threads. Reminds me how great these phones are
I just picked up a Nexus S today and for the few hours I have played with it I am loving it. I don't like big phones either and was a little intimidated by the size but I think it is perfect for me even with tiny hands.
There were no surprises for me either, it is the pure android experience and so easy to use. I recommend the Nexus S to most Android users and would recommend the Galaxy Nexus to those who want the bigger screen.

[Q] Samsung Galaxy S or Nexus S?

Which phone does everyone prefer? i know the nexus s will be getting ics and the galaxy s will not. But that doesn't necessarily mean the nexus is superior to the galaxy. Please respond
Nexus S with CM7 would get my vote.
Of course a Nexus One would be better!
Galaxy S has microSD expansion slot, thus Nexus should get that option for my vote
do either of you know which of the two is more stable or are they about the same? cause both of them have pros and cons that make them about even.
I would definitely take the Nexus.
-Sent from my Droid 2-
Galaxy s2 hercules or Galaxy nexus?
I have a Nexus S and run the CM9 alpha. It's quite stable, though it's missing a lot of the features CM7 has and a lot of the features CM9 is supposed to have when official nightlies start dropping.
One thing I am really loving about the alpha CM9 (using netarchy's kernel) is that deep idle finally works without issue. In CM7, no matter what kernel I used, deep idle would give me sleeps of death.
the galaxy s i9000 or the just the original nexus s
Nexus all the way! only because it is independent of all the bloatware that comes loaded on almost all the U.S. variants of Galaxy S
it appears that i will be going with the nexus s. thanks to all, the posts were very helpful. Im very excited to get rid of my motorola milestone
I preferred a galaxy to a Nexus S, because it has external SD and why there are fantastic ROM available.
There is a porting of ICS too.
Great phone.
Not only because I have one, but i'll say Nexus S!
Nexus
Sent from my XT862 using XDA App

[Q] Is the Galaxy Nexus Upgrade worth is to Nexus S owners?

If I have a GSM Unlocked Nexus S running 4.0.3 Ice Cream Sandwich, is the upgrade to the Galaxy Nexus worth it? What do you guys think? Let me know your opinions in a comment below. Thanks
monoloco1 said:
If I have a GSM Unlocked Nexus S running 4.0.3 Ice Cream Sandwich, is the upgrade to the Galaxy Nexus worth it? What do you guys think? Let me know your opinions in a comment below. Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This topic has been asked and answered several times. It's really a personal decision/opinion and everyone is different. Search is your friend. I'll get you started with one of the more recent discussions ...
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1494600&highlight=galaxy+nexus
If you really care about having the latest phone, massive screen etc. then go for it.
If you dont then I would just stick with the nexus s. I know I prefer the smaller overall size, more compact etc as well as the fact that the NS is pretty fast, receiving ICS updates etc... wouldnt want to carry one of these big beefy phones that keep being released, what happened to having a compact phone that fits in your pocket??
Does everything I want it to.
Helllll yessss
Sent from my Nexus S using xda premium
To be honest, if I had the money, I would buy the Galaxy Nexus. Overall, it's a great device. Even so, Nexus S is still a good phone, mostly if you like to flash custom ROMs
At the end, it would be a personal decision, but if you asked me....I would buy it without hesitation.
It depends. It's definitely better than the Nexus S, but I didn't buy one because it was a downgrade from the SII. I refuse to ever buy any phone that isn't the best phone at the time of it's release. I know that phones become outdated all the time, but they should never be outdated on release.
Solarian said:
It depends. It's definitely better than the Nexus S, but I didn't buy one because it was a downgrade from the SII. I refuse to ever buy any phone that isn't the best phone at the time of it's release. I know that phones become outdated all the time, but they should never be outdated on release.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The Nexus phones have never been the most powerful phones at the time of their release. Even the Nexus S wasn't. However, because Google develops the software using the Nexus phones, they always perform near the top of the class or at the top when it comes to performance.
Somehow I prefer galaxy note over galaxy nexus….
Sent from my Nexus S using XDA Premium App
I'm satisfied til now with my nexus s. But maybe before year ends i'll replace this with galaxy nexus, just waiting for the price to drop a little.
Sent from my Nexus S using Tapatalk
Once the GSM version of the Galaxy Nexus is available here in the States, I'll probably grab one on contract if I can. I'm not going to pay the import prices for a GSM Galaxy Nexus. It's a very nice phone, but it's not nice enough to justify those kind of prices; plus, I refuse to switch my phone service to Verizon. I have a data plan with them for my Xoom and that alone makes me feel like a dirty whore. I'm a VERY satisfied T-Mobile customer.
If you're enjoying your phone why not just wait till the next nexus
Sent from my Nexus S 4G using Tapatalk
BrianDigital said:
If you're enjoying your phone why not just wait till the next nexus
Sent from my Nexus S 4G using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Do you have a clue when the next nexus will be released?
I am happy with my nexus s atm, but I think I will wait to the next nexus or maybe another phone
Sent from my Nexus S using Tapatalk
tjackbjorn said:
Do you have a clue when the next nexus will be released?
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Click to collapse
Most likely when Jelly Bean is released later this year.
bozzykid said:
The Nexus phones have never been the most powerful phones at the time of their release. Even the Nexus S wasn't. However, because Google develops the software using the Nexus phones, they always perform near the top of the class or at the top when it comes to performance.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So what was the better phone then? I may have missed it, but I looked pretty thoroughly for a phone around the Nexus S' launch time, and as far as I could tell, it was the best.
Galaxy S. Same RAM/CPU/GPU, but has 720p recording, FM Radio and it was released around 5 months earlier.
This is kind of offset with some gps problems, touchwiz and no camera flash.
..
I would consider only S2 if I am in the market for an upgrade from nexus s.just my 2 cents.
Cant find any difference between them except 3d game

Phones with Comparable specs to SGS2

Hello, my name is Ishmum, and this is my first post on the forum.
I have just sold my iPhone 4S because I was just too bored and tired of Apple's strict restrictions, and decided that I should switch to Android
Now, I am looking for a Samsung Galaxy S2, but I'd like to know about any other phones that have very little less, equal or better specs than the SGS2's specs that are within the SGS2's price.
Thanks!
HTC Sensation XE.
Sent from my Epic Touch (Blazer ROM) using XDA
I would suggest HTC One S.. it's new, has a decent processor, and good build quality..
About the S2, it's outdated already.. It's not produced anymore but the demands are high, you're going to have a hard time finding one..
Swyped from my GT-i9100
Samsung Galaxy Nexus, just for the reason that it will have Jelly Bean
If you want fast updates and not getting worried if you phone is gonna get 'em, go for a Galaxy nexus.
if you want better build quality and more speed than the gnexus go for the htc one S.
there is also the droid razr, but it is from motorola and i dont like that much.
Personally i would go for the Gnexus just because it is Pure Android experience, i mean no skins like touchwiz, sense and so on...and it has jellybean roms already!!
Phlemos96 said:
If you want fast updates and not getting worried if you phone is gonna get 'em, go for a Galaxy nexus.
if you want better build quality and more speed than the gnexus go for the htc one S.
there is also the droid razr, but it is from motorola and i dont like that much.
Personally i would go for the Gnexus just because it is Pure Android experience, i mean no skins like touchwiz, sense and so on...and it has jellybean roms already!!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah, I completely agree.
I got an i9100 few days ago, actually posting from it XD
I saw and tried the other phones you were talking about, but NONE of them had the quality and the "precious feel" like the SGS2. So I got this one. I also dont care about FW updates as I am more than happy with Gingerbread.
Sent from my GT-I9100M
Great phone SGS II
Sent from my GT-I9100 using xda premium
HTC amaze
-------------------------------------
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Which phone would you choose in this position?

Hello, I am new to this forum but I do already have a android phone which is the samsung vibrant, and I am thinking that it is time to switch, after Samsung left me and the other vibrant owners behind I decided to get a new phone, I have done some studying on this so far and found the Galaxy Nexus from the Google Play Store for $350, this is a really good price for what I want to pay, but also there is another phone called the HTC One S and I am able to get the HTC One S in the same price range, I am not sure which cellphone I should choose between these two, I would like to know which phone that you would choose in my position. The Galaxy Nexus HSPA+ or the HTC One S, and also if there are any other android phones that are even than these two I have listed with good specifications It would be very much appreciated if you could share it too.
Thank You.
A lot of it depends on preference. The nexus is stock android and will get updates faster than any other phone. And it's great if your going to be installing custom roms. The HTC has sense on top of android which some people like and some people don't. The Samsung galaxy s3 is also available with their touchwiz software and that has solid specs as well.
Sent from my SCH-I535 using Tapatalk 2
Between those two I'd definitely get the Nexus. Far easier to customize and definitely not a phone that will be getting left behind on updates.
If you are fan of HTC 's sense then go for one s.
Sent from my HTC Desire using xda app-developers app
The one s is a good phone, so is the nexus and one s. The g note seems good too, but not everyone has abandoned the vibrant, I have one running on jellybean because of the awesome dev community. Anyway good luck.
Sent from Mount Olympus via Hermes
I love my gnex and I chose it over the SIII because of google support ! I will only buy nexus devices from now on; I've always had Samsung devices, but didn't like touchwiz, and the fact that I had to wait 8 months to get ics on my tablet, and even now the ui is still laggy in some situation.
That made loose faith in manifacturers, but I've never owned a HTC device to be honest.
I like android and I like it pure, but that's just my opinion anyway.
It really depends on what you plan to do with the device. If you plan to install ROM's, there is plenty of dev work going on around the One S. While it isn't as much as the Nexus, it is still impressive. The camera on the One S is surely better. If you want to stick the the OS that comes pre-loaded, it depends on what your preference is. Do you like the stock Android feel or prefer Sense ? Answer those questions and you will know which cell to buy. :good:
As somebody else advised me, the only selling point of the nexus is the fact that they recieve updates faster. And with xda updates are never a problem. The htc one s is renowned for it s build quality. I would advise you to get that one.
Nexus has bigger screen with more pixels, one x space is taken by permanent hardware buttons. I love soft-buttons for their moddability, though this depends on your tastes of course.
Nexus likely has more deving in general, as a rule.
Normally I would suggest waiting for new stuff, as it seems we're on the cusp, but you want this price point so.
Thank You all for responding, I am leaning more towards the nexus because I really do like to receive updates right away I like to keep my phone on stock but have never tried a ROM, I would probably try a ROM later but the one s has a sleek and nice slim design which really interests me, I am not sure about HTC Sense because I have never used it, but maybe it will be sort of the same as touchwiz as I am used to that. I also might just wait till November since I hear a new galaxy nexus is coming out, maybe even some more phones in that time, Thanks again for the help!
Nexus in my opinion mostly because I prefer the look and feel of the device but the updates will come pretty quick from google and the developers for the nexus phones are great.
have always been a fan of HTC phones until they released the EVO LTE on sprint with a non-removable battery. Not sure if the One S has a removable battery or not, but for me that is a deal breaker. Have also heard really good things about the Nexus. Also like others have said, you will get updates and more customization on the nexus.
I would choose Galaxy nexus becouse it has 4.3 inch display.
Well the nexus has that stock android feel and the one s has the sense ui its all up to preference
Sent from my SCH-I535 using xda premium

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