Google Rising: Nexus 4

It’s a big day. Google has just unveiled the Nexus 4. Their latest flagship phone, developed by LG, will arrive on November 13th at a mind-blowing price of $299 for the 8GB model, and the barely higher rate of $349 for the 16GB mind. The 4.7″ phone features a resolution of 1280 x 768 at 320 PPI (as opposed to Apple’s 326).

It’s powered by 2GB of RAM and a 1.5GHz quad-core processor, the Snapdragon S4, supposed the fastest in the market right now. It’s also armed with a 8 mega-pixel rear camera and a 1.5 mega-pixel front. Google has listened to some of the complaints about the camera in the Galaxy Nexus and has made moves to improve the camera, specially in low-light conditions. We really wish we had an actual Nexus 4 for a more hands-on review but alas we’ll have to wait until a few weeks for that.

The new LG phone isn’t the only thing being touted at the moment, though. Nexus 10 also made its way to the Google Store with a ‘coming soon’ label, at an awesome price of $399. Both these devices are paving the way for the latest update to the Android OS, version 4.2. The latest iteration has a lot of improvements.

There’s the Photo Sphere camera which lets you take 360 degree panorama photographs. Here are some examples. Another key update is a new keyboard, which is gesture based, similar to how Swype works – an awesome addition for those who feel hindered by the traditional tap typing.

Multiple users can now use one tablet in a more streamlined manner – you can have individual profiles, personalized for each person with their own backgrounds, widgets, apps and games. With the powerful processes that the Nexus tablets come with, users should be able to snap between profiles easily.

Another awesome feature of 4.2 is that you can share what you’re watching on a device to your HDTV – you’ll need to connect a wireless display adapter to a HDMI-enabled TV to duplicate what’s on your screen. Other new features include Daydream – a screensaver like thing that shows your photo albums or Google news while your device isn’t in use or you have it docked. Notifications now allow for more actions than just popping open the app.

4.2 also improves on Google Now and attempted to make searching easier, allowing  you to use your voice to get answers on the fly. And Android 4.2 is supposed to have improved on their “Project Butter” initiative pushing smoothness further, making transitions between apps and general use even more effortless.

It seems like Google is working hard to push the bar with their OS, and once the new devices start shipping on 13th November, we’ll find out just how awesome the devices are with Android 4.2. At $299 for the Nexus 4, and $399 for the Nexus 10, very awesome, we think.