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Verizon Wireless Galaxy Nexus now three OS versions behind

Categories: Android, Verizon
By: , IntoMobile
Friday, November 30th, 2012 at 4:17 AM
Verizon Galaxy Nexus

Verizon may be ranked among the best wireless carriers in the US, but the company has a shoddy track record when it comes to updating its Android phones . As pointed out by Droid Life, the prime example of this lackluster performance is the Galaxy Nexus. The Galaxy Nexus was the first Nexus device to land on Verizon’s CDMA network and it will likely be the last unless something changes.

The Galaxy Nexus launched on Verizon in late 2011 and was Google’s flagship device for Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich. While GSM versions of the Galaxy Nexus handset have been updated to Android 4.2.1, the Verizon version still sits at Android 4.1.1. It never received the 4.1.2 update, and will likely never receive the 4.2 update nor the 4.2.1 update that was recently released. Rather than continue to support the now one-year-old phone, Verizon will likely push customers to the DROID DNA or the RAZR MAXX HD.

The hang-up is likely Verizon’s carrier approval process which is painstakingly slow. Google will send an update to Verizon for testing and the company will take up to several months to test a build. If it’s approved, Google can send it out. If it’s rejected, then the process starts all over again. This tedious testing step affects other handsets as well, but it is most apparent in a Nexus device which receives updates directly from Google. With the non-carrier version of the Nexus, Google approves the software and rolls it out immediately.  And because it is a Nexus device, the handset gets the latest versions of Android first.

With the way the Verizon Galaxy Nexus is lagging so far behind in updates, it’s no wonder Google didn’t release a CDMA version of the Nexus 4. Speaking from personal experience, I know that I will never buy a Nexus device from Verizon again. Because it was a Nexus device, I expected the handset to be on the cutting edge of updates, and the fact that the handset is now three versions behind other Galaxy Nexus phones leaves me thoroughly disappointed with both the phone and Verizon.

[Via Droid Life]

About The Author

Kelly Hodgkins

Kelly spent the last four years covering mobile technology at places like BGR, Gizmodo and The Unofficial Apple Weblog. Before writing, she spent a few years working with and teaching others how to use Adobe Flash and Macromedia Director. Even earlier than that, she spent several years as a Ph.D student in Microbiology. When she's not writing, she can be found fishing the lakes and hiking the mountains of Western Maine with her husband and tribe of children. You can follow her on Twitter @kellyhodgkins.

  • Anonymous

    Shame on Verizon…

  • http://twitter.com/ssantinelli Steven Santinelli

    Yeah, I just pull the latest developer created ROM, although not going through the Verizon process or having the latest CDMA binaries, there certainly are plenty of 4.2.1 roms out there for the Verizon Nexus….

  • Trey

    Couldn’t agree more! I’m seriously considering dropping “big red” and going GSM just to get to a real Nexus phone.

  • Charlie

    If Google made it’s own cellular network I should immediately. I probably wouldn’t even care to pay them a modest amount more than AT&T or Verizon.

  • Charlie

    *If Google made it’s own cellular network I would switch immediately. I probably wouldn’t even care to pay them a modest amount more than AT&T or Verizon.

  • RH

    I never rely on OTA’s, so I’ve been on 4.2.1 since about 2 hours post-release anyways. Oh well. Kind of the point in having a ‘Developer’s phone’ isn’t it?

  • aaron

    I thought this was all common knowledge in the cell industry…if the device is branded…you’re at the mercy of the brand.