Nexus 4 Review: Pros and Cons [HD Video and Picture Samples]

I was lucky enough to get my order in for a Nexus 4 during the second round of sales in Canada and it was delivered before Christmas. I was extremely excited to try it out and I've been posting about the various Nexus phones on my blog (& on MobileQuirks) just over a year ago. Now that I've had some time to properly use the device here is my review [HD Video, Photo and Photo Sphere samples below].

My Nexus 4 came in package below. It's a snug fit and as you can see there isn't much in the box other than the phone itself, the charging wire and the adapter. Good things come in small packages. :)

iPhone 5 Video From Aatma Studios

Possible iPhone 5 (From Techradar)

The iPhone 5 in this videos looks exactly like what other sites have been posting about. Aatma shows wireless charging capabilities, fingerprint scanning and "rubberband electronics".

It seems like Aatma Studios is trying to make a name for themselves and you'll have to watch the video to see what I mean. :)

Google Drive Now Available

For those who don't know about applications like Dropbox of Google Drive, you should read this article and consider getting one of the services. They are essentially the same at this point, giving users 5GB of free online storage (you can pay $4/month for an extra 20GB with Google Drive).

Both services allow you to have a regular folder on your computer that automatically syncs with anywhere the service is installed. So if you work on a laptop and a desktop, instead of using a USB key to transfer files and confusing different versions of a file you're working on, all you have to do is install Google Drive on both systems. Folders on both your laptop and desktop will automatically update and to have identical content. Unlike uploading to an FTP, Google Drive allows you to drag and drop files into a folder, which makes it a lot more user friendly than any upload toolbar.

Smartphones: Windows Phone 7 Test Drive On Your Android or iPhone

We know about the crazy growth of Android phones and the latest Galaxy Nexus smartphone that recently launched; we know about iPhone 4$'s Siri and how fun it could be, but we don't hear much about Windows Phone 7. The smart people at Microsoft decided to replicate the WP7's user-experience on other platforms for all to test drive in hopes of winning people over.

Samsung Galaxy Nexus: Pricing (Canada)

So pricing was released today on Bell's website for the Google Galaxy Nexus smartphone. 649 buckeroos. That's a lot of cash for a device that isn't that far off of, according to some benchmarks, the existing Samsung Galaxy S2 that retails for $549-599. In the US (an hour away from Montreal), you can get the SGS2 phone for as low as $499. I know it's not exactly comparing apples to apples but seeing how the Galaxy Nexus is unlocked, picking one up across the border is not unrealistic. The pricing is in same range as the iPhone 4S, but then again Apple consumers are used to paying a premium for the brand regardless of tech specs etc.

Samsung Galaxy Nexus

As I watched the live announcement from Hong Kong, I couldn't help but notice that the presenters were  monotonous. It reminded me of when Mark Zuckerberg presented at a Facebook summit and at the time I didn't know how he looked and was surprised to find out it was him. I can really appreciate the charisma Steve Jobs had and he ranked among the best speakers out there.

XBOX 360 Central, Downtown Montreal

I had the opportunity to be the first customer to walk into the new XBOX 360 Central store at the Eaton Center in Montreal. I was in the area today when it opened and got to try some new Kinect games. The coolest by far was the new Star Wars Kinect game.

Although developers said that they realize that "no one  wants to look like the Star Wars kid", apparently that's exactly how I looked when I played it. I must admit, it might look geeky but lifting your arm to raise a droid and throwing him to the side is super cool.