Google’s Nexus 4 reaches 1M shipments

Alex Allegro


unnamed

After a month of delay, website crashes, and an all-too familiar “Sold Out” sign, the Nexus 4 is back in stock. Oh, and Google has just shipped its millionth unit. Nearly three months after its initial launch on Google Play, a “Senior Member” of the Android hacking community XDA claimed that the millionth unit of the LG/Google phone has just been shipped in Turkey. While this of course isn’t official word from Google or LG, the serial number the poster provided (“ATURBK 302KPSL999998 20130205 TURKEY”) seems to be enough evidence.

About a month ago, the same user, who goes by the name “draugaz”, claimed that he figured out the serial number of what each Nexus 4 meant. His breakdown of what he believes each number to mean is below.

“LGE960 ACAGBK 212KPHG188745 20121206 GLOBAL/GLOBAL N N”

If you break this string apart, you get:
LGE960 = phone model
A = ?
CA = Country where the device was sold. (Others include ‘US’ for the U.S., ‘HK’ for Hong Kong, ‘AU’ for Australia and so on.)
G = Storage (G = 16GB, 8 = 8GB)
BK = Color
2 = ?
12 = Production Month (November)
K = Production Country (Korea)
PHG = ?
188745 = The line or production number, showing that phone was the 188,745th device made.
2012121206 = The production date in YYYYMMDD format”

If his breakdown of the serial number is to be believed, then the Nexus 4 sold in Turkey is the 999,998 Nexus 4 made and not the millionth. While TechCrunch claimed that Google has yet to respond to the report, it’s expected for Google to announce the exact amount sold at I/O in May.

Photo of white Nexus 4 leaks (Updated)

Alex Allegro

CAM00107-jpg

PhoneArena claims to have the first photo of a white Nexus 4. The picture shows just the back of the device, and it is the only proof we have a unicorn version of the phone existing. A white Nexus 4 wouldn’t be a huge surprise, though, as both the Nexus S and Galaxy Nexus launched in black and later in white. It’s unclear at the moment if, like the previous Nexus, the body will be white with a black bezel or if it will follow the footsteps of the iPhone and Galaxy S line and be entirely white. PhoneArena has no rumored launch date for the device, as it could just be quietly added to the Play Store or formally launched at I/O in May.

UPDATE: Vietnamese website Tinhte posted a huge gallery of the white Nexus 4. It looks as though the white covers the back and sides of the phone, but the front bezel is black. Check out just a few of the images below.

T-Mobile Nexus 4 now available at Best Buy

Alex Allegro

Image

If for some reason you had your hopes up high for a Nexus 4 on contract, today is your lucky day. Best Buy has started offering the hot-selling phone on a two-year contract with T-Mobile for $199.99. The device retails unlocked at $299.99 for 8GB or $349.99 for 16GB from the Google Play store, and it comes with HSPA+ 4G (no LTE) just like the T-Mobile version. It’s no surprise that you’ll save tons of money in the long run when buying the device from the Play store outright for $299.99 without a contract. However, if you’d like to save money up front, signing a two-year contract for the device isn’t a bad choice either. The device has a 3- to 5-day wait before it starts shipping, while the Play store has both models of the phone in a “Sold Out” status. If you’re dying to get your hands on this phone, and don’t mind signing a contract, head on over to the source link to get your hands on one.

Update: Wirefly has the same setup for $149. It is still not better than getting one off contract, though.

Source: Best Buy

LG’s 5-inch, 1080p ‘Optimus G Pro’ leaks, as LG announces 1M sales of Optimus G

Jordan Kahn

LG-OptimusG-ProThe image above comes courtesy of Engadget and shows what appears to be some official promo material for the LG’s next Optimus G device, the LG Optimus G Pro. While we don’t get a lot of specs from the image itself, the report passed along rumored specs from BlogofMobile. It claimed the device will sport a 5-inch, 1,920-by-1,080 display, a 3,000-mAh battery, LTE, 32GB of memory, 2GB of RAM, and a 1.7Ghz Snapdragon S4 Pro APQ8064. Other specs mentioned in the report include a 13-megapixel main camera, 2.4-megapixel front-facing camera, and dimensions of 139-by-70-by-10.1mm. It’s a possibility we’ll hear more about the device at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona next month.

In related news, Korean news agency Yonhap reported today (via TNW) that the LG Optimus G sold over 1 million units since its launch in September. We’re guessing that doesn’t include the estimated 375,000 units it sold of the Nexus 4, which is essentially the same device. Read more

Google exec blames Nexus 4 shipping delays on ‘scarce and erratic’ supply from LG

Jake Smith

lg-nexus-4

Google United Kingdom and Ireland Managing Director Dan Cobley wrote on his Google+ page this weekend (via AndroidCentral) to explain the situation with the LG Nexus 4′s long shipping delays many customers have experienced since launch day. According to the exec, supplies from manufacturer LG have been “scarce and erratic,” which has caused shipping times of up to eight weeks in some cases. The Nexus 4 has certainly been a popular device, and one could wonder how it would affect Google’s holiday sales if the company could get it out by the holidays for the majority of customers.

The exec also said that customers who were notified with a “3-5 day” shipping estimate initially should expect their handset soon, as those orders are now in the fulfillment process. The shipping charge will be waved and an email notification will be sent to customers this week with tracking information. Additionally, customers who received pre-Christmas shipping times should see their handset delivered by then, but unavailability still lingers for most customers.

Saturday’s comments are certainly welcomed from the top and give us the first real insight on what is causing delays—other than the company is working to catch up with the high demand. You can find the exec’s full comments below:

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Google will resume sales of Nexus 4 in US at noon PST today

Jordan Kahn

According to AndroidCentral, Google confirmed that it would resume selling its new Nexus 4 smartphone today after weeks of unavailability following the Nov. 13 launch. Both the $299 8 GB and $348 16GB models were listed as sold out just shortly after going up for sale in the United States on the Google Play store. Since then, some shipments have reached customers. However, Google earlier this month notified some pre-orders customers that their device would ship in three weeks due to “overwhelming demand.” We’ll keep you posted if the device actually hits Google Play later today.

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