The first factor you recognize about Google's new Nexus S is its curved display, gently shaped to fit in a very pocket or against your deal with.

Not just does the manufacturer of this phone make a sequence of handsets which are all essentially the precise same (the Galaxy S line), but numerous other OEMs are cranking absent on hardware for the platform. Pointless to say, the Nexus S can be a decidedly different phone altogether. Picking up exactly where the company's Nexus One left off, the S continues Google's legacy of making standalone, "pure Android" phone experiences, seemingly aimed less at the mainstream and a whole lot considerably far more in direction of builders.

That signifies the Nexus S's most striking features are all those that allow it to be easier to generate use of: American buyers, for instance, can talk towards the gadget rather than navigate infinite fiddly menus. It means, for example, males and women with a music service installed on their phone can say, merely "Listen to Paul McCartney" and within seconds the telephone is taking part in the requested artist. The characteristic is coming to the UK just as quickly as Google can fine tune it for our accents.

Even on the prototype model we tried, Android 2.three Gingerbread was shockingly quick. The consumer interface was zippy and smooth, along with the Web pages we tested loaded quickly and precisely. Regrettably, our check sample did not have Flash put in, however the last phone will play Flash within the browser. Elevated speed is likely to become the largest alter you will observe if you swap to the Nexus S from a phone running Android 2.two Froyo. A couple of tweaks have also been created towards the person interface, although. Amongst them is going to be the presence of significantly a complete lot far more black almost everywhere.

The much-touted "Near subject communication", up to now, is a let down even so. That is simply because few people - within the UK a minimal of - are but utilizing it. But as with so various Google features it could, in due program, be innovative: payments, transport tickets and more could - and genuinely should - all soon be based on this technology. For now, however, it is just a way of taking people to net net sites swiftly.

You have possibly heard the fuss through this, but yes, the display and entrance glass with the device have a minor, concave curve which sits properly when nuzzled towards your deal with. It is not a dramatic distinction, nevertheless it offers the telephone a relatively unique appear. In basic, even so, the design doesn't feel wildly various from other Galaxy S phones -- particularly in terms of supplies. Samsung appears focused on using gentle (and somewhat reduced cost feeling) plastic for its housings, though they deviated on the Captivate, which we felt was an improvement.

Now Google is stating their version is finest: effectively, it's in competition with its on companions. The irritating distinction of Android feeling painfully different on each device will soon be over.

Like tethering, which lets you turn your telephone right into a cellular hotspot, the networks could turn off SIP calling when Gingerbread comes to other phones. But Google wants the Nexus S to present off completely everything that Android can do, so it won't get blocked on this phone, no matter which network you buy it on. SIP calling and NFC are exceptional features to possess, in situation you might be bothered to get them heading. But we think Gingerbread will not be a life-changing update for that common person.

Around the vivid aspect, the Nexus S digicam seems to excel at low-light images, pulling remarkable detail in situations exactly where we anticipated much significantly less. In reality, we cannot say that we've seen a smartphone lately with significantly far better reduced light performance. We're not sure what that is attributable to, but we're undoubtedly happy about it. Sadly for video clip, the Nexus S is nonetheless a slouch -- we're guessing this doesn't have to be the case, but there's no true HD option here.