Google Nexus S

A great phone that's going to grow with you as you fully discover its tweaks, tricks and new apps.

Is Android 2.3 and a curved screen enough of an upgrade? 

Pros

► Snappy operating system * Stunning AMOLED screen

► Improved battery life

Cons

► Underpowered user interface

► Not enough screen widgets

► Slight freezing at times 




The Google Nexus S wasn't supposed to happen, but the phone we weren't expecting perfectly demonstrates how the latest tech can be used. The second you pick it up you realise it's leaning very heavily on the design aesthetic of Samsung's Galaxy S. Only a shade heavier at 129g, it feels light and lacks the premium feel the iPhone 4 and HTC Desire HD boast.

The curved nature of the frame is nice, though: it helps the Nexus S sit well in the palm (with the small lip at the bottom helping it fit correctly, like the Galaxy S) and the screen on the front is also curved.

One thing that's immediately disappointing is the lack cf external microSD expansion. Yes, 16GB of internal storage is okay, but we want to transfer stuff across without using a PC connection.



Looks familiar

The Google Nexus S is designed to showcase the power of Android 2.3 and comes without the constraints of network upgrade delays. But it's pretty much just a hopped-up Galaxy S. Sure, t's got the fancy screen and NFC chip, but once the Samsung model gets beefed up to Android 2.3, there won't be a huge amount to choose between the two (as long as the terrible lag is fixed).

Operation is virtually judder-free, the GPU under the hood pushes the animations along at a wicked rate, and Market makes the Google Nexus Svery well-specified indeed.

The lack of a comma on the keyboard might sound like a little issue, but it could quickly get annoying. You can download another keyboard to solve it, or tinker with the settings, but you shouldn't have to in order to make this phone a decent proposition.

The stuff Android gets right is all here: widgets, an easy-to-access notifications bar and some user-friendly applications.

But it's not all good news: the jumpiness and lag are disappointing. The sub-par media player needs updating badly, and the lack of a microSD slot is bound to irk.

On the plus side, you'll be the first to receive the updates to the next Android version - no more kicking your heels and waiting for your network to service your needs.