Galaxy Nexus web benchmarks outpace iPhone 4S as 'Woz' picks up early copy - Page 2

In all fairness to Galaxy Nexus, Google smartphones aren't designed for (near) console-quality gaming. Apparently, Google App Market doesn't offer any games rivaling Call of Duty, Galaxy on Fire 2 HD, Infinity Blade, Real Racing 2 or any of the other high quality games on the iTunes App Store.

In fact, as far as I can discern from Android proponents, Android is primarily designed for "customization" and "connectivity." Beyond occasionally reading email, I don't see Android users actually using their smartphones. I have heard a few say that customization is outstanding but they became bored with that quickly and many wanted a real smartphone soon after. I find it interesting that anyone needs to connect their Android smartphone to anything with HDMI or USB considering they don't have anything on the smartphone to share with few exceptions. Of course, while they are fumbling with wires, I just connect wirelessly like others living in 2011.

These results are quite intriguing since the primary benefit (to the community) of open source software, which Google claims Android to be, is software quality. Given the issues with Android, the software may well be better off not being "open source." I fail to understand how "open source" software on hardware with 200% the RAM and 150% of the clock speed but marginally better performance can be considered "quality."

???

Are you suggesting the next iPhone will be iPhone 5? I suspect not. As you may know, Apple never released an iPhone 2 but has released an iPhone 3G and iPhone 3GS.

1) Now I know why Android used desserts for their code names. It was lure Woz to their camp.

2) Even with such better specs on paper they can't keep pace with the iPhone 4S. Even look at the Samsung Galaxy S II, a device previously touted as an iPhone killer, which comes with a dual-core Cortex-A9 at 1.2GHz or 1.5GHz is on par with the single-core Cortex-A8 from 2010 in the browser tests. That's just pathetic and give Apple no reason to compete harder.

3) This just awesomwe¡ Ice Cream Sandwich has visual voicemail API, no built-in app



It's not the full review. It took AnandTech weeks to run the iPhone 4S through a battery of tests so give it some time.



dual-core Cortex-A9? I think they are the same design, it's the Soc/PoP that are not the same.

So the moral of the story is that none of you have used the galaxy nexus.

Also did someone say Android multitasking is complex in 4.0??

You push a button. That is constantly on screen. No double clicks

(Just updated by iPad to 5.0.1 and love the gestures :-)

in the US the Nexus is 4G LTE enabled.
http://www.google.com/nexus/#/tech-specs

the downside is that they changed the spec to 16GB from 32GB. That's a problem when the 4S is 32GB at the $299 price point and the Nexus does not have a microSD slot.

I'll probably have to play with the nexus first before making a final decision.

Very good point. I think smartphones have now matured so much that they are just like 'normal' computers: if you only want to use them for the stuff most people do with them it doesn't really matter what you buy anymore. They're all fast enough, and the screen is good enough.

Oh come on... at least make a shred of thinking effort!

v1 = iPhone
v2 = iPhone 3g
v3 = iPhone 3gs
v4 = iPhone 4
v5 = iPhone 4s
v6 = iPhone 5

I wonder on what body parts he is carrying those 10 phones.
They must feel like hot potatoes in his pocket(s), especially when at a distance from the nearest cell tower.

The Galaxy gets owned when it comes to OpenGL performance. The next update to iOS will have the Javascript back in Apple's camp. The lack of performance for GPGPU/OpenGL power is not something a software update will resolve for Google.

I like android and I'm running a GSII currently.

I'm not all that excited about the G-Nexus. It's just okay as far as I am concerned.

I like what I am seeing in Android 4.0, but overall, I think the phone is just blah.

Put it this way, the plan is for the wife and I to get Iphone5's in 2012, and nothing about the G-Nexus is making me change my mind.

Look at the huge difference in geometry crunching. The i4S RAPES it by a massive margin.

When it comes to mating hardware and software, Apple still wins.

The google business model may certainly be flawed.
I quite imagine it has become an unexpected runaway consumer train that has made many corporate enemies.

As some just said, 'phones for the masses don't get you the lasses'.

Too much!!!

Woz may be getting one for research purposes. Know your enemy. Do a little reverse engineering to see how it ticks.

I am surprised to find that nobody is seeing the obvious:

even in synthetic tests, Nexus beets the iPhone with a very narrow margin. It is way too small to be noticed perceptually. But a number of posters here claim that they will get the Nexus over iPhone based on this.

Then the Nexus is slower on other synthetic test, by a factor of 3. This is quite of a difference, everybody will "feel" it.

The right headline of the article would say:
The flagship Android phone 2-3 times slower on OpenGL tasks
(despite having 50%-100% higher clock-speed)

I doubt that. Woz just seems like a guy who likes all sorts of gadgets and Woz doesn't really have anything to do with product development at Apple anymore, even though he still collects some sort of paycheck from Apple for a tiny amount.

I don't know the guy, but he seems like somebody who wouldn't really have many enemies or keep any grudges. He basically seems like the opposite of Steve Jobs when it comes to those kinds of things.

And there's no magic or anything mysterious happening inside any Android phone, Apple has no need to see what makes the competition's phones tick. Apple is walking on it's own path and they know exactly where they are heading towards. It is the competitors who are following in the footsteps of Apple.

It is 10-15% faster while being clocked 50% higher and the iPhone 4S graphics are 2.5x faster. I'd say that the iPhone 4S is the overall faster phone here by quite a significant margin.

It does look like a nice phone despite being quite big:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zfZPO01JKjU

It's bigger than the Galaxy S2, which is already a pretty big phone, here's it next to the Note:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AW2Vl4CVRd4

It's probably time for the iPhone to move up a bit in terms of screen size but not any bigger than 4".

I like that they removed the buttons too as it gives a lot more screen space but I don't think the iPhone should do this, just modify the physical home button into a lozenge-shaped capacitive button but the next one is way too far away to bother thinking about it now.

Jealousy, because designing the Apple, version 1, makes Woz the King of Geeks

The multiple phones are just jewels of the crown

Yet significantly faster on OpenGL than the iPhone4. Is that Apple phone doggy on games? I haven't seen owners complain, so I don't think the Nexus should have any issues with them either.

As for it being the Android flagship phone, that's not what it is designed to be, nor the intent of the phone. It's simply a reference device for the new OS, Ice Cream Sandwich. Motorola, Samsung and HTC already have phones being finalized using ICS that they'll consider their "flagships". The Nexus isn't one of them, thus the lack of cutting-edge hardware.

He does seem like a nice, fun person to hang out with... and build stuff with. You'd wish he'd be young and you could start some kind of company with a fruit logo

Maybe a banana.

Data speeds of 14Mbps (not that AT&T supports that anywhere) are plenty for me, and besides there are very few places getting the faster LTE speeds (certainly no place within 100 miles of me. I need my phone first & foremost to be a phone, I need it to just work & have battery a plenty. I still have 3GS & battery got even better with iOS 5. I'll upgrade when there is significant reason too, for now I can't justify it.

Besides, I've dealt with enough android phones & even the HTCs have their demons. I left bberry's cause I was sick of the quirkiness, so why would I go to something that's even flakier than a bberry.

Uh, you do know apple now has the 4s, which blows everyone else out of the water on 3D performance.

Not shocked to find a java based phone besting the iPhone in web tests, kudos to them for having that leg to stand on. If that is the entirety of your decision on what phone to buy then have fun, personally I don't spend that much time surfing the web through a tiny screen.

Exactly and in the end for those of us who really dont care if there are some faster gadget out the it's about the Eco system, security and the wonderful tie in with Mac, ATV, iPad and iPods and now iCloud. Siri isn't bad either

Another funny. Siri story ... My wife, Jan, is addressed as Jan by Siri correctly. Yesterday though, Siri, doing one of her funny / serious joke replies said ,"Oh January you shouldn't ask me that!." This cracked us both up. Lol

No wonder he needs 10 phones!

I don't speak for all android users. But I don't play games on my phone for a reason. It sucks. If I want to play games on a mobile device I use my PSP. I don't want to play games on a device with no buttons. Its not really that good. You rave about graphics but you have to know their is more to games then just graphics. Controls being a huge part. Playing on a touch screen device means you are covering up the screen as you play, you have to deal with weird touch screen controls. I use a PSP right now if I want to play games on the go. I can play more games then I can on my phone. (mostly PS1 classics) But the difference between my phone and my PSP is night and day. Yeah I know some phones have better specs but in gaming you need controls just as much if not more then you need graphics. AND I will have a Play Station Vita launch day

The i5 is going to be great. So will the iPad3. And the new Notebooks.

Just wait. Just wait! We'll get 'em! He who laughs last laughs best!

considering that Verizon is going to actually sell this thing is a very good indicator that it may very well be starting to happen.

these carriers should be very interested in devices that they do not have to manage. I think the tide is starting to turn.

along time ago, i had a N1 that worked on AT&T and it was without a doubt the nicest android device i ever used. they can only get better.

Of course. Are iPhone 4 owners complaining about 3D performance? I think not, and even this Nexus reference phone is performing three times better than the 4 on a GPU test (FWIW)

To repeat, the Nexus was not designed to be nor is it going to be the king of Android performance. They intentionally designed it with common hardware, letting the software take center stage. As Apple buffs often say, who cares about the specs, it's the total experience that counts. There's not many complaints so far about the big leap Google has taken with Android 4.x, and the "total experience" has been overwhelmingly positive in nearly every review.

'nuff said.

Bullshit. Gaming using touchscreen controls sucks on Android simply becaus Android isn't as responsive. How can you explain the popularity of gaming on iOS according to your theory?

It would seem that the masses disagree with you.

Indeed, as time goes by, more and more people choose Android over iOS. Increasing proportions - more and more - people look at an iPhone, and decide that they would rather get an Android phone.

There are many factors that go into their decision. Increasingly, they see their friends Android phones, like them, and decide to get one. Increasingly, they compare the screens, and despite the iPhone's specs, they choose the big screen over the small one. Increasingly, they consider the advantages of 4G, hear that the iPhone is incapable, and choose Android.

But what of the home interoperability? What about hooking up a Mac with content and AirDrive and Time Capsules and online cloud storage and listening to Lady Gaga no matter where you are on the face of the earth? Very very few people own any Apple anything, except maybe an old iPhone, or maybe an Ipad or the iPod that lies broken in a drawer.

The number of integrated Apple homes is vanishingly small because so few people own Macs. Without a Mac, Android is King. And almost nobody owns a Mac.

. . . HASN"T been as responsive. Too early to say for certain, but nearly every reviewer so far agrees that ICS isn't laggy at all, very responsive. Some go so far as to put it on equal footing with iOS5.

I know the press have to have something to write about (and thus justify their existence) but I am finding this "mine is faster than yours" stuff becoming more and more tiresome. For me (donning flame proof underwear) as long as the devices does what I ask of it, in a reasonable timeframe, then what is there to be unhappy about ? I had a Nexus One but the whole Android/Google experience was not for me. I had no complaints about the hardware/software mix, it just was not what I wanted. iOS and my now oh so out of date iPhone 4 tick all the right boxes and I care not about speed or number of processor cores. Its all about the user experience for me.

Is Woz an enemy of Google? Or is Woz an enemy of Samsung?

Maybe both? Is he really still on our side? Maybe he's a double-agent or a secret spy?

Who else is Woz's enemy? Does he need better security?

If Google is his enemy, he's better watch out, because all his Android stuff constantly tells Google Woz's every move with all of the spyware. Android is spyware. And Google is Pure Evil. They are capable of just about anything.

Is Woz in danger?

Haha, like the 4S should have good battery life. I have one 4S myself and battery life sucks!

Android in itself is not less responsive. However hardware quality and specs differ a lot. Especially if you look back 1,5 year at HTC desire for example. But even new low end Android phones have same digitizer values as iPhone.

Their famed proof reading team are just confussed on what the facts were saying

I find many of the comments here confusing. On one hand, we generally agree that specs and microbenchmarks don't matter to a typical consumer, regardless of platform. On the other hand, some commenters want to say that Android sucks b/c it doesn't perform better on microbenchmarks. Which is it, folks -- do benchmarks matter, or don't they?

As for the browser benchmarks, there are some obvious improvements Google could make. I looked at the Android 4.0.1 source. They're using v8 version 3.2.10, from October 20, 2011 - http://code.google.com/p/v8/source/detail?r=9719. For comparison, the current stable version of Chrome (15.0.874.121) uses v8 version 3.5.10.24 (http://googlechromereleases.blogspot...update_16.html), which has several performance improvements. Further, Android 4.0.1 isn't yet using the NEON-optimized support libraries, such as libjpeg-turbo (http://libjpeg-turbo.virtualgl.org/). These are obvious areas for future improvements.

It's not surprising (and, hence, uninteresting) that the Galaxy Nexus is slower than the iPhone 4S for OpenGL -- the OMAP 4460 has an older, slower GPU than the A5. We knew this before the phone shipped. This benchmark from Anandtech wasn't looking at the entire phone. It wasn't trying to claim that one phone is better than another. It was a preliminary benchmark; a teaser before they put out a much more detailed review in a few weeks.

If you want reviews of the Galaxy Nexus, there are several to choose from. As a whole, they are positive:

T3: "the Nexus is a beautiful handset. The screen is vibrant and one of the best weve seen on any handset to date. With the addition of Ice Cream Sandwich, which marries great performance and slick features to the already an already potent operating system, its one of the best smartphones available at present." - http://www.t3.com/reviews/samsung-galaxy-nexus-review

The Verge: "The Galaxy Nexus is the best Android phone ever made. It's one of the best smartphones ever made, and with a couple of minor tweaks (particularly to the camera), it could be the best smartphone ever produced." - http://www.theverge.com/2011/11/17/2...y-nexus-review

Engadget: "the Galaxy Nexus is shaping up to be an impressive flagship phone and Android 4.0 is a significant step forward for Google." - http://www.engadget.com/2011/11/17/g...essions-video/

Certainly, you can find criticisms in these reviews. No one is claiming that the Galaxy Nexus is perfect. But the early reviews are pretty conclusive -- it's a very nice phone.

In all fairness, Apple had acknowledged that there is a bug affecting battery life for some 4S users and have released one update that has helped a number of people and are rumored to be readying a second one soon. This is different to sacrificing battery life to bump processor speed.

So essentially you're saying next year's Android is as fast as or faster than last year's iPhone? True, but hardly justifys the headline.

I suppose it depends on what you use your phone for. Or perhaps not. The whole article is based on one buyer's speed tests. Really has little to do with how the device actually performs for the owner does it, or do specs suddenly matter more to Apple fans?

Galaxy on Fire 2 THD is available for Android - https://market.android.com/details?i...laxyonFire2THD

Here are some videos showing games on the Galaxy Nexus. Performance seems fine - there is no stuttering or lag.

9mm HD: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ijUWEg1VFM

Asphalt 6 Adrenaline HD: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SpvrcSFaKZk

Need for Speed Shift HD: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IvFKScKrKIA

Samurai II Vengeance HD: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gfL9Pf5-s8I

Shadowgun HD: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2YRYMh3ShzA