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In some “extra” Galaxy Nexus news (you guys ready for Friday!?) I wanted to make sure our readers were well of a few things before they jump the gun and rush to online retailers for accessories, specifically — batteries. As it turns out, NFC and the stock Galaxy Nexus battery go hand-in-hand. You can’t have one, without the other. This is due to the antenna for the NFC chip being integrated into the battery meaning if you go with a 3rd party option, don’t plan on using any of the NFC features like Google Wall- er, Android Beam at least not unless retailers specifically mention something about their product being NFC compatible. Of course, there’s always the option of hitting up Samsung’s site where they will have all the accessories you need for your shiny new Galaxy Nexus — just expect to pay a little premium for their official batteries to keep NFC up and running.
The second bit of information we have for you guys is there will be an OTA update hitting devices as soon as they power on. This is most likely the final Android 4.1.0 OTA we told you guys about last week so be expecting that when you pick yours up. Honestly, I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t jealous.
[Via Reddit | Droid-Life | AndroidCentral]
Stupid google stupid why put the NFC in the battery? why not the cover? many people carry back up batteries for emergencies are you telling me now i’ll have to pay no less than $50 for a replacement battery?
A lot of nexus s users broke the back….just buy the extended battery
mines starting to crack but in no way is it broken and the nfc chip is far away from the cracks
uhhh samsung?
This phone needs to come to Sprint asap.
It doesn’t say only Samsung made batteries are compatible with NFC, it says that only batteries specifically designed for the Nexus are compatible with NFC, INCLUDING the one the phone comes with. It warns that not all batteries are compatible. Again, not saying only the official Samsung one is; rather, that some, likely generic ones that happen to fit, will not work with NFC.
The article should warn people that their 3rd party battery might not be compatible, not tell them that absolutely all 3rd party batteries are incompatible. Before this information starts spreading like wildfire.
“at least not unless retailers specifically mention something about their product being NFC compatible”
Makes me wonder about the accessory king website’s batteries now cause I was eyeing this one http://www.theaccessoryking.com/samsung-accessories/desktop-chargers/etc-cpk008g/galaxy-nexus-battery-charging-stand-w1750-mah-battery-travel-charger.html.
That one should be alright. It’s a Samsung made specifically or the Galaxy Nexus. :)
I admittedly glazed over that, though it could still stand to be emphasized a little more, considering the title blatantly says 3rd party batteries are not compatible.
A new phone AND an update all on the same day?! I love it.
was it really necessary to integrate NFC into the battery or are they just asshoels? Now the cost of a spare battery just went up by about $30 probably
Yeah, but why the heck did they do that? Now every battery you buy (samsung or generic) will need to have that stupid chip adding to the cost. It would be like a car manufacturer attaching your headlights right to the car battery so that when you need to replace your car battery, you have to replace your headlights too.
the desktop charger comes with a battery for only $39 from Verizon which is a great deal.
Are you a phone engineer? Do you really think you know more about designing phones than they do?
Here’s what I imagine is the case with this:
The NFC antenna is probably large. They don’t want to slap it on the internal circuit board because they need room for all the other components.
So since the battery already has electrical contacts on it, and its otherwise a big flat surface, just shove the antenna on there and add a couple more electrical contacts.
Unless you know what the design constraints were, or at least know something about whats involved, its silly for you to call what they did stupid.
as taylor^cubed said, i would think twice about screaming bloody murder when it comes to something like this, and the car analogy is a really horrible one at that too… car manufacturers have been designing their internal structure to specifically require it to be brought to the dealer for more moneys for quite a while now, and this is relatively known – ask any independent mechanic. on the flipside, its not like your phone needs an oil change every 3000 miles, etc… so super bad analogy there
the real reason for this is simple: NFC requires two-dimensional surface area, of which on a phone of this size isnt really in question. However, this is complicated by the many other wireless interfaces available on pretty much every smartphone today (wifi, bluetooth, multiple cellular radios, etc) and each of these needs to play nice with each other and/or be separated enough to function collectively.
the battery door in the gnex is designed to be an extremely low cost replacement part, and may be changed more often due to it being an external protective surface. the battery is going to be changed quite a bit less often than the battery door. Furthermore, as already detailed, the battery door when coupled to the NFC antenna led to a higher breakdown of contact on the NFC system, thereby increasing the cost of the door itself as well as the replacement cost to the consumers…
it may be the crappiest place to put the NFC antenna, but it might just be better for you in the long run. Also think of how the kirfers might be slightly less motivated to make counterfeit batteries for your beloved new device ;)
I have a T-Mobile Samsung Galaxy S2 which has the same thing – the antenna for the NFC is in the battery. I can’t use third party batteries at all, not just because they don’t have the antenna, but because the size is different from the battery in the world SGS2. The only other SGS2 that has the same battery is the AT&T Skyrocket, whose battery is interchangeable with the T-Mobile SGS2. I finally bought a “real Samsung” battery for my SGS2 on eBay for $25 including shipping.
Y’all might want to check out the battery for the T-Mobile SGS2 or the AT&T Skyrocket. It wouldn’t surprise me to find that the Nexus battery is the same. If so, you have an alternative “make and model” to search on.
10 articles on or about the gnex in one frigging day? Find some real news your starting to look like a phangnex site…
I wonder how much more chunky the extended battery will make it feel. I have an extended in my Incredible, and it actually made the phone feel more solid, but this device is already big enough…
Glad I am not on Verizon. The Nexus has lost its luster
You were never going to buy one anyway.
Ya I was hoping for a Tmobile announcement.
I decided now though to wait on the amaze to drop in price or tmobiles first ICS phone aside from if they get the GN.
Who are you to say that? You’re too poor to even buy one.
Good thing I don’t care about NFC if they’re going to block Google Wallet on my VZW Nexus anyway…
true but does this mean that when ISIS gets going that the GN can work with it using a simply battery change?
I’M ready for Friday! Already set up an appointment at my local vzn store to pick up two :) bye bye Moto Droid.
What Galaxy Nexus? The phone doesn’t exist. Why does everyone keep writing about it? Verizon doesn’t acknowledge it, all release dates are guesses, and final naming of the phone could still be “Galaxy Nexus Prime” (which sounds better anyway). There is supposedly no SDcard slot, and a sub-par camera (in terms of pixels). Surely, Samsung wouldn’t allow a sub-par camera to be installed in a flagship device, nor would they allow such an anticipated device to be shipped without an SDcard. How absurd of anyone to think such a device exists.
Thumbs down on proprietory…. predator battery.
Does this mean SEIDIO batteries won’t be compatible? I love their extended batteries and replacement battery covers. I’m rocking it on my N1.
I would say top name manufactures, like Seido, will be compatible. It’s those cheap $5 Ebay jobs you’ll need to worry about.
I wonder if the NFG (No-Fng-Good) chip can be cut out of an old battery and glued to the new one?
Not surprising, the wireless handsets we use at work have software on the battery that syncs up to the phones during boot up, it’s a slick way of forcing you to purchase batteries from them only.
YAY FOR THE CHOICE OF NOT BEING ABLE TO USE A 3RD PARTY BATTERY.
I LOVE YOU CHOICE. I BELIEVE IN CHOICE SO MUCH THAT WHEN OTHER PEOPLE CHOOSE TO USE ANOTHER PLATFORM THAT I DON’T LIKE, I THINK THEYRE FUCKING STUPID. AND THEN I TELL THEM THEIR CHOICE IS WACK AND THEY ARE DUMB AS FUCK. LOL