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Google Announces Motorola-Made Nexus 6 and HTC-Made Nexus 9
An anonymous reader writes In addition to Android 5.0 Lollipop, Google today also announced the first devices running the new version of its mobile operating system: the Nexus 6 and the Nexus 9. The former is a phablet built by Motorola, and the latter is a tablet built by HTC. The Nexus 6 is going up for pre-order on October 29, starting at $649. The Nexus 9 meanwhile is going up for pre-order this Friday (October 17), and you'll also be able to get it in stores on November 3.
I think the amazing part of this whole story is Motorola is still in business.
Wake me up when there's a small one for $350 again.
Cool... I sure with the US wireless spectrum wasn't so fragmented that I can't use this on any carrier other than AT&T and Tmobile.
I though Tyrell made the Nexus 6?
My Note 2 is at the edge of discomfort already. I'm not going to buy a Fanny pack. Hrm.. maybe JNCO can stage a come-back with Phablet pocket bags.
If you were me, you'd be good lookin'. - six string samurai
Because there has been no farfare to the contrary, I assume that these still come with cell modems that are not only closed source, but whose drivers require that they share memory with the main system, opening everyone's data right up to attackers. Thank for caring about our privacy, Google!
The phone looks massively overpiced. Tablet doesn't seem too unreasonable but I don't see any compelling reason to switch from my Nexus 10.
Based on the images, it looks to have no SD card slot and a non-removable battery. I like the keyboard on the tablet though. Google should take a hint from the Jolla phone and provide an accessory port so we can buy a keyboard if we want one.
Please oh please may that term die a quick painless death.
At first, the Nexus line was aimed at developers and hobbyists. Then they changed the Nexus to appeal to people who were too stupid to use a microSD card.
The Nexus phone was then said to be an affordable device for those who hated long carrier contracts.
What's next? A Nexus phone with carrier bloat and slow updates?
And it is powered by an Intel chip. Interesting that Google decided to go with Intel 64-bit SoC instead of ARM. This is a big win for Intel
I just wanted a new 3rd gen Nexus 7 with a spec bump. Cheap but durable. For in-home (bed) use; wifi-only is fine. $199. Sold.
Maybe next year. Or maybe not.
I don't need nor want a big tablet. I can't replace the 7" tablet with a 6" phone (no upside). The 9" I'm sure is a nice size and all, but it's going to be at least twice the price. No go.
Belief is the currency of delusion.
Can you pre-order the Darryl Hannah model? Or do I have to get Rutger Hauer?
I decided to give the Nexus 5 Google Play Edition a chance. It was a (relatively) decent price, decent kit, and a nice screen. It didn't have as many features as the latest Galaxy but it was still quite good. And I was digging the latest Android screenshots so I got it shortly after release.
It had a major Microphone bug.
It didn't matter where I held it, but the mic would sometimes die out and nobody could hear me. At all. I eventually left myself a voicemail at work and could BARELY hear myself.
I wasn't the only one with the issue.
So... was NOT a fan LG after that. And I don't know how much faith I'm willing to put in a Nexus phone if it released with that big of a bug.
This is almost 100% a Gen 2 Moto X.
So what is the difference between the Moto X Gen 2 and the Nexus 6.
I see it supports more LTE bands. The Moto X is already the most minimal of all Android flavors, so not really much advantage software wise.
Anything else apart from the increased cost?
I have the 4, the 7 (2nd gen) and the 10. The Nexus 10 is the best smart anything I ever bought. Good speakers and nice sized screen. I can go a couple weeks between recharges. That should have been their flagship product.
I thought the 7, despite all the stellar reviews was garbage. Crummy battery life makes it unusable. I might get a day or two on this. The random reboots don't help either.
I have pretty much the exact same software on both, except that I confine my video watching to the 10. I'm lucky if I can even check my twitter feed on the 7, without having to plug it in everyday.
I don't see the point of the 9. A 7 is about the best you can comfortably manage with one hand. If you have to use two anyway, then they should have just moved up to an 11 or a 12.
....or are you just happy to see me? ;)
This may be the only time android users can experience a 69! Well, outside a LUG, that is.
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Stay away from the Nexus 6 -- its a killer.
Did I miss-read the specs? I don't see wireless charging on the Nexus 6. It was one of the best features of the Nexus 4 and 5. Well I guess I will save money by skipping this one.
So what's the phone to own for people without Chewbacca sized hands and an orbital defense laser to obliterate incoming debris attracted by this thing's gravitational pull?
I just want a well rounded device without much bloat (or hardware deficiencies) that's going to last me ~two years. (And the OnePlus One can piss off because I don't have friends in high places)
HTC made some great stuff. Many times in the last weeks I have been asked how I like my new iPhone. I have a two-year old HTC One (m7).
But my old phone still has higher resolution than the brand new 6, higher DPI, more RAM, and working NFC. I assume the HTC One m8 is even better now, with a new version coming out soon.
I hope the 9 is great and gets HTC running full steam again.
oh crap, I posted this in the wrong forum...I have too many tabs of slashdot open. My bad!
Thank you very much, I'll keep my Nexus 5.
According to what I read at BBC News, engineering chief, Hiroshi Lockheimer said, "We've made a concerted effort around focusing on the enterprise-use case. If you think about it most people only carry one device. The one device that they carry [should] work for various scenarios in their life -obviously for personal use, but also if they want to use it for corporate purposes." That must be why they named it Lollipop...
Garry Knight
I admit I was getting scared while reading it, since the work "feminism" is everywhere on the internet (c)
Google decided to compete with Apple for the stupid people it seems.
I just got a OPO and this Nexus 6 does look awesome. No idea how I'll get it in EU though, so there's that.
But better hardware, probably a better camera (does the OPO have OIS?), Android L. Mm.
Also, less buggy touchscreen (looking at you Cyanogenmod/HW manufacturer)
I was eagerly anticipating the Nexus 9. However, when I read the Google product page I was very disappointed.
For $400, I expected it to have 3+ GB of RAM and more than 16 GB of storage. What kind of specs are those? Is this 2012? Hell, I would have been willing to pay even *more* for a Nexus 9 if it only had decent specs, but alas, that's not an option.
Guess I will have to wait for a viable 64-bit Android tablet. Maybe next year.
This would be fucking stupid even if you posted it in the thread you had intended.
I have an aging Nexus 4. I was waiting for months for the Nexus 6, but there's no way I'm paying 650 dollars for a phone. What's my best option that has:
- World phone (need to use it in China, Hong Kong, and USA)
- Unlocked bootloader and will be supported by Cyanogenmod for at least two years (and can be rooted easily, preferably as easy as Nexus devices)
- Good specs, and especially good battery life
- Good design and durability (doesn't look cheap or break easily)
- Under $500, and needs to be purchased without a contract because of the traveling
Should I get the Nexus 5? Or is there something else you can recommend that might fit better?
The problem with Android Lollipop [for developers] is [still] the "android fragmentation" problem, which Google is trying to address with its Android One program. Lollipop has 5000 new API's, but developers have to program to the lowest common denominator, which is probably pre-4.0.
This is in contrast to Apple. Most devices get upgraded to the latest iOS in short order [3-6 mos]. IIRC, an author writing an iOS developers' book stripped all pre-iOS8 from it, because he felt that iOS8 was just so much better. Whether he's right or wrong doesn't matter as much as the fact that he can do it because of the iOS upgrade cycle. This makes iOS development much easier than Android development.
The latest Linux runs quite well on older devices. So should Android. This is just like a PC game that, during install, speed tests the machine and backs off on things like resolution, anti-aliasing, etc. to make it run smoothly.
Android One needs even more teeth:
- Vendors _must_ upgrade old devices [even at a loss] unless they can prove [to Google] that it won't run due to memory, etc.
- Vendors shouldn't force people to upgrade their device just to get the latest Android, just because the vendor wants to force this by refusing to upgrade Android on "last year's device".
I have a Galaxy S3 and Samsung has upgraded it every six months. I really like the fact that they're not forcing me to upgrade the device just to get the latest/best Android OS. As as result, they've got my loyalty. When I do [eventually] upgrade my device [at a time of my choosing], Samsung's firmware upgrade policy will be a major factor in my staying with them.
If Google can't get vendors to cooperate [even better] on this, it should offer backports of Lollipop [API's] to older versions via Google Play. This helps consumers with older devices, Android developers, Google, and even the [recalcitrant] vendors [even though they might vehemently disagree].
Like a good neighbor, fsck is there
Why couldn't they have hit the sweet spot - 5", 1080p, and focused on camera quality & battery life?
Google doesn't understand hardware.
Hi Scott,
This is somewhat tongue-in-cheek, but I just did a mental inventory of newly released phones meeting for your specs and am wondering whom, from all of the companies making cell phones, do you think understand hardware?
It's amazing how companies can manage to survive when they are owned by Google
Having been owned by huge giants does not automatically guarantees one's survival, and even if one still survives, it doesn't guarantee to have any future either
Take a look at Nokia if you do not believe me
Nokia is owned by the tech giant Microsoft, it is still surviving, but does it has any future??
I might have missed it.
I am going to get the Galaxy Note 4 because it has almost as big a screen, but is significantly smaller in every dimension, especially thickness. Who still makes a phone that's over a centimeter thick?
If it's a question of cost, they should just throw out the effort to make it affordable and make a true flagship model than can compete with the likes of HTC and Samsung.
I sure would like Android 5.0 on my Galaxy Note 4 I'm getting tomorrow, but hey, I can wait.