Google Nexus Four

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Status: Sold (Winter 2013)

I ordered the Nexus Four to replace my Google Nexus One. The main motivation behind that was to be able to program on Android 4, since it was a major update from Android 2 (Android 3 was a tablet-only release, bringing a lot of innovation). The phone had a pleasing build quality, with a back glass and plastic rails. The CPU and RAM was a big upgrade, going from a single-core to a quad-core was already significant, but bumping the ram from 512mb to 2gb was the update the Nexus lineup needed. With these specs, the ROM scene was booming on the device. For me, I kept the stock ROM, but with a custom kernel. Because that was a thing, different kernels! Some were giving better battery life, others more speed, there was a lot of choice in that space alone.

Speaking of kernelsā€¦ There was a good reason for an alternative kernel! The Nexus 4 CPU liked to run hot! A custom kernel would downclock the CPU to ensure better thermals. Since Iā€™m a northern Lion living in Canada, I donā€™t mind waiting for the bus outside at -30 celcius, but I was constantly worried about the contrast of temperature between the CPU and the outside air. ā€œGlass is Glassā€ after all, and there was plenty of reports of owners with broken back. The main theory was thermal shock.

Tanzania

Remember the thermal issue? Yeah Iā€™m not done with that! When I flew to Dar Es Salaam, I had the Nexus 4. I used it to keep contact with my family and friends through Skype calls. For those who donā€™t know, Skype was all about video calling. Live video encoding/decoding is something we take for granted these days, but not so long ago, it was still a challenge for weak CPUs. It was probably a challenge on the Nexus 4, because I had so many thermal shutdown during Skype calls! It was heartbreaking everytime. I was on the hunt for a kernel that would give me longer calls between shutdown. I ended up selling the phone to someone in Tanzania.

Specs