Google and Samsung Announce the First Ice Cream Sandwich Android Device

Today during a press event in Hong Kong (and across the web via webcast at YouTube.com/Android), Samsung and Google announced the Galaxy Nexus, the first Ice Cream Sandwich Android device.

Here are the highlights:

Galaxy Nexus Highlights

• There will be LTE and HSPA+ versions of the Galaxy Nexus
• Will run Android Ice Cream Sandwich (Android 4.0)
• 1.2 Ghz Dual Core Processor
• Super HD AMOLED 4.65 inch Display (100,000:1 contrast ratio)
• 1280×720 resolution (Android 4.0 supports this resolution natively)
• Curved back like the Nexus S, but curved slightly more
• 8.94mm thick (HSPA+ version)
• 4.29mm Bezel around the screen (to keep the phone size down while having such a large screen)
• Hyperskin backing, to make it slip resistant
• 5.0MP Camera w/ 1080P Video
• Super fast shutter for faster image capture
• NFC enabled
• November Release for US, Europe and Asia (Japan and China included)

Ice Cream Sandwich Highlights

• Only been 6 months since completing Honeycomb
• Surveyed users to find out how to make people “love” Android instead of just like it.
• New Roboto font type (“semi-circular curves give it a cheerful demeanor”)
• Thought about magazines for inspiration for the layout.
• New lock screen
• No buttons, back, home, and multitasking buttons on screen now. Button are able to hide when they are unnecessary and even hide whenever watching a video to allow you to use the entire screen for viewing.
• Apps and widget tabs now located in the apps drawer.
• Widgets are now resizable, drag to make them larger or smaller on the homescreen.
• Drag and drop apps on top of one another to create a folder.
• Drag and drop any apps to the favorite bar at the bottom of the screen.
• Screen capture natively supported by holding down two buttons.
• Flick to remove notifications from the notification bar
• You can pull down your notification bar from the lock screen.
• Copy and paste allows you to drag and drop text after it has been selected.
• Instant voice to text
• Face Unlock – Your phone recognizes your face using the front facing camera to unlock the device.
• Multitasking card view, flick to close any open apps in that view
• In the browser, you can click request desktop site to view the desktop version instead of mobile site.
• Bookmarks are automatically synced with your Chrome desktop browser using your Google account.
• Select multiple messages
• Swipe to jump between messages in Gmail.
• Email addresses are now “chips” in Gmail, so turns them into a name and picture.
• Offline search has been added to Gmail.
• Pinch to zoom in or zoom out to see the calendar events more easily
• Data usage counters/warnings/limits have been added to settings.
• Launch camera from the lockscreen by swiping the lock logo to the left instead of right.
• Super quick shutter speed (take pictures faster)
• Edit photos directly in the native gallery.
• Sort through the gallery, by geotags, people you’ve tagged, etc.
• Panorama pictures (scroll with the camera to took wide pictures) built in to the native camera app.
• Time lapse video in the camera app
• New people app with new look and better organization.
• Pulls all of your contacts’ updates from social networks into their contact card.
• Visual voicemail directly in the call log.
• Change the speed of voicemails to make them go by faster.
• By swiping up when someone calls you, you can send a quick text message response instead of ignoring them completely.
• Android Beam – NFC sharing of apps, maps, browser, youtube, people, etc. between any Android devices by just touching the two devices together.

Nice little preview, eh? Who wants one? This guy!

UPDATE: Here is Samsung’s official press release on the device:

Samsung and Google introduce GALAXY Nexus

World’s First Smartphone to feature Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich and a HD Super AMOLED display

Hong Kong – October 19, 2011 – Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd, a leading mobile device provider, and Google, today announced GALAXY Nexus™, the world’s first smartphone running Android™ 4.0, Ice Cream Sandwich, the latest release of the Android platform. GALAXY Nexus features a 4.65” HD Super AMOLED display technology at 720p resolution and a 1.2GHz dual core processor.

“Samsung and Google have closely collaborated to push the mobile experience forward. We are pleased to deliver the best Android smartphone experience for customers with GALAXY Nexus. We will continue to move forward with Android to provide the compelling consumer experience in mobile world,” said JK Shin, President and Head of Samsung’s Mobile Communications Business.

“Ice Cream Sandwich demonstrates the Android platform’s continued innovation with one release that works on phones and tablets and everything in between. Features like Android Beam and Face Unlock show the innovative work our team is doing, and GALAXY Nexus showcases the power behind Ice Cream Sandwich,” said Andy Rubin, Senior Vice President of Mobile for Google.

The first smartphone to feature Android 4.0, Ice Cream Sandwich

Ice Cream Sandwich brings an entirely new look and feel to Android. It has a redesigned user interface with improved multi-tasking, notifications, Wi-Fi hotspot, NFC support and a full web browsing experience. GALAXY Nexus features software navigation buttons, a first for Android smartphones. The lock screen, home screen, phone app, and everything in between has been rethought and redesigned to make Android simple, beautiful, and useful.

Ice Cream Sandwich also features a new People app, which lets you, browse friends, family, and coworkers, see their photos in high-resolution, and check their latest status updates from Google+ and other social networks. GALAXY Nexus features a redesigned camera which introduces panorama mode, 1080p video capture, zero-shutter lag, and effects like silly faces and background replacement.

GALAXY Nexus is also connected to the cloud, keeping your email, contacts, and all other data synced across your devices. You have access to more than 300,000 apps and games from Android Market™, or, in certain countries, you can buy and read books, or rent movies and stream them instantly from your phone. In the U.S., you can also upload your music to the cloud with Music Beta by Google and listen anywhere, even when offline.

Ice Cream Sandwich introduces innovations such as Face Unlock which uses facial recognition to unlock your phone. Using NFC technology, Android Beam allows you toquickly share web pages, apps, and YouTube™ videos with your friends by simply tapping your phones together. You can even use fun effects while shooting video or video chatting with Google Talk™.

Google Experience

GALAXY Nexus is designed to provide a “pure Google,” experience, and with it, you will be the first to receive software upgrades and new applications as they become available. It also features a number of Google Mobile services, including: Android Market, Gmail™, Google Maps™ 5.0 with 3D maps and turn-by-turn navigation, Google Earth™, Movie Studio, YouTube™, syncing with Google Calendar™, and a redesigned Google+ app.

Best-in-class hardware meets the most advanced software

GALAXY Nexus is the first smartphone to feature a 4.65’’ display with a market-leading resolution of 720p (1280×720), ensuring you can enjoy GALAXY Nexus’ immersive entertainment capabilities and fast web browsing in superior clarity.

Succeeding the original Contour Display of Nexus S, GALAXY Nexus comes with a rounded shape that fits perfectly within your palm or to your face for phone calling. Hyper-skin backing on the battery cover improves the ergonomic feel of the device and makes the phone slip-resistant. At just 8.94mm thick, with a minimal 4.29mm bezel, GALAXY Nexus provides superb portability alongside an expansive screen.

GALAXY Nexus also features an ultra-fast 1.2GHz dual core processor, providing superior power and speed, ensuring you can take full advantage of GALAXY Nexus’ enhanced multitasking capabilities with ease, or enjoy the large, vivid display to its full capacity with high-definition gaming or video streaming. LTE or HSPA+ connectivity combined with a dual core processor delivers high-speed web browsing which ensures you always have the web at your fingertips, wherever you are.

GALAXY Nexus will be available in the U.S., Europe, and Asia beginning in November and gradually rolled out to other global markets.

For multimedia content and more detailed information, please visit www.samsungmobilepress.com/.

Note to Editors:

GALAXY Nexus Product Specifications

Network	HSPA+ 21Mbps/HSUPA 5.76Mbps   850/900/1900/1700/2100  EDGE/GPRS                850/900/1800/1900 *LTE version will be available depending on the region.
Processor	1.2 GHz Dual Core Processor
Display	4.65” 1280X720 HD Super AMOLED
OS	Android 4.0, Ice Cream Sandwich
Camera	Main(Rear) : 5 MP AF with LED Flash with zero shutter lag and fast shot2shot  Sub (Front) : 1.3MP for Video Call
Video	Codec : MPEG4/H.263/H.264  Playback : 1080p@30fps Recording : 1080p Full HD Video@30fps
Audio	Codec : MP3/AAC/AAC+/eAAC+  3.5mm Ear Jack
GoogleTM  Mobile Services	Android Market™, Gmail™, Google Earth™, YouTube™, Movie Studio  Google Maps™ 5.0 with 3D maps and turn-by-turn navigation Syncing with Google Calendar™, Google+ app
Connectivity	Bluetooth® technology v 3.0  USB 2.0 Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n (2.4GHz/ 5GHz) NFC
Sensor	Accelerometer, Compass, Gyro, Light, Proximity, Barometer
Memory	1GB(RAM) + 16GB/ 32GB Internal memory
Size	135.5 x 67.94 x 8.94mm, 135g
Battery	Standard battery, Li-on 1,750 mAh

* Specifications above may differ on the LTE version.

* All functionality, features, specifications and other product information provided in this document including, but not limited to, the benefits, design, pricing, components, performance, availability, and capabilities of the product are subject to change without notice or obligation.