The launch, or lack thereof, of the Galaxy Nexus is frustrating, to say the least. Google and Samsung took the stage just over one month ago and announced the Galaxy Nexus and Ice Cream Sandwich. This was nearly two weeks after the original scheduled announcement date, which was supposed to take place at CTIA. Although their reasons for postponement were noble, it doesn't change the fact that they have, in almost every way possible, botched this launch.
When the rumors of the Galaxy Nexus first picked up, it was believed that Google had bumped up their tentative launch schedule to impede iPhone sales. Had they launched the Galaxy Nexus within a week or two of the iPhone 4S, their plans probably would have met decent success. No Android phone is going to stand in the way of a slew of Apple fanatics snagging the latest generation iPhone on launch day. But at least it could sway some of those fence riders in the other direction.
Instead, Google and Sammy delayed their announcement and thus threw the entire launch of the product off kilter. It has disrupted the entire tech world and apparently thrown Earth off of its rotational axis.
On stage at the announcement, Google nor Samsung gave us a solid date for the Galaxy Nexus. They did, however, reveal that it would arrive at some point in November. Matias Duarte, Director of Android User Experience at Google, later affirmed that general launch window while on camera at On The Verge with Joshua Topolsky.
When we were told to expect the Galaxy Nexus in November, though, we were not told which specific carriers would be receiving the Galaxy Nexus right away. Regardless, we assumed that since rumors pointed to Verizon having an exclusive with the device, that Big Red must be getting the device in November. Never did it occur to me that this could be for the UK version and that we here in the States may not see it this month. In truth, that could still happen; there are still 11 days in November. But time is running out, and "leaked inside info" (that could easily be false, dated or out of context), is hinting at a December release.
Sigh ... Is anyone else getting sharp flashbacks to, say, the ThunderBolt release?
As the title suggests, if this is how things go down, if the Galaxy Nexus does not officially land on Verizon's shelves in the next 11 days, I might cave and buy something else. I made a promise to my mother and grandmother that I would be giving them phones in November: my grandmother will be getting my old iPhone 4 as an early Christmas present and my mother, who kindly allowed me to use her upgrade to get my paws on the iPhone 4S for a while, will be receiving the iPhone 4S once the month is up.
I now know that any mention of the word "November" and misinterpreting the tentative date of November as the definite launch of a US-based Galaxy Nexus probably weren't the best decisions I've ever made. Nevertheless, if the Nexus does not launch this month, I am left with two options. I can either tell them that I was wrong (or blame Google and Samsung for "lying to us"), that the phone will come out in December and it's only a few more days to wait. Or I can give them the phones they were promised, in the time they were promised, and buy whatever phone Verizon currently has that is relatively impressive.
Unfortunately, there isn't anything on Verizon that I really even want at this point. The iPhone 4S is beginning to bore me, so I don't want to go back with iOS. The DROID RAZR, with Motorola Applications Platform and a mediocre display, just seems so ... passe. And the Rezound is yet another HTC product that has moved from mysterious rumored device to official without as much as piquing my interests. Beats audio is a gimmick, Sense UI is played out and buggy and those red capacitive buttons ...
This wouldn't be a problem, had those numerous rumored Ice Cream Sandwich halo devices been real.
I guess you could call me picky, or that my problems are trivial. And, of course, I could just buy something I don't really want at the end of November and exchange it for the Galaxy Nexus later. But the fact of the matter is that not everyone thinks quite like I do. Not everyone wants to play this waiting game and work the system by exchanging devices. In fact, neither do I. Not everyone is tired of the perpetual launching of nearly identical HTC phones, and not everyone thinks the iPhone is boring or the RAZR is already dated. It's these people that will not wait until December to buy their phone. Black Friday is under a week away and there are going to be countless deals on phones. If someone has been holding out or didn't cave on the iPhone 4S already in hopes of something bigger or better, they're probably going to be snatching up those Black Friday offerings and totally forgetting what that Nexus "Droid" thing is.
Of everyone I know, I'm probably the most excited for the Galaxy Nexus. Despite people complaining about the PenTile display (really, I think this is negligible at 720p and 315ppi), lack of a microSD slot or the hit or miss camera, I'm still deeply enthralled by the Nexus. I'm determined to get one. However, the fact that I'm even considering buying something else and just giving up on the Nexus for now (and likely waiting it out for a T-Mobile version, which is what I wanted to begin with) makes me question how much longer other people are going to wait for this phone.
Will you wait it out, no matter what? Or is there a time that you will quit waiting on the Galaxy Nexus (T-Mobile, AT&T and Sprint users included) and buy something comparable? Feel free to vent and rant about how you wish Samsung and Google could finally get it together in the comments below!
Image via Mashable
