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There’s something about Nexus phones that other phones don’t quite have. It’s that 9 lives factor, knowing that any given device from the Nexus line probably won’t die as long as there was ever a strong development community behind it. We’ve seen it time and time again, and now the same is ringing true for the Galaxy Nexus.
With Texas Instruments out of the mobile space and the Galaxy Nexus well past end-of-life, you’d probably think it’s crazy to expect to be able to get Android L loaded up onto it. Thankfully that isn’t the case as developer heroes MWisBest and Ziyan’s work with the Galaxy Nexus’ OMAP chipset has ensured that the device won’t be left by the wayside anytime soon.
A recent update for the chipset’s Ducati cores now allows for more stable video encoding and decoding, as well as proper communication with the device’s camera drivers. KitKat was but an ugly duckling of a port before now, but this update makes it just as stable as it is on nearly any phone you’d find, and the same stands to be true for Android L once that finally arrives.
Many have already upgraded to more contemporary devices such as the Nexus 4 and Nexus 5 (and soon to be Nexus 6), but if you’re still clinging to your Galaxy Nexus then you can pop a cork and celebrate a little. Keep your ear to the development scene as we head to the closing moments of the year.
[via XDA]
downloadable zip please! can you just update the GPU’s or is this update only possible by flashing the ROM they have listed? i would like to continue using PA.
Very nice. I still keep my GNex around with its extended battery for a nice little media/Chromecast device. Glad to hear it might have L coming its way.
Same here, I am excited!
Cool. This is probably my least favorite Nexus phone, mostly because I imported the GSM version and soon after it was available on Google Play for muuuch less. And I cracked the screen like month after getting it with a 3ft drop onto tile. #stillbitter
the screen was absolute crap. I’m staring at mine now and seeing all the nicks and scratches. next to my Moto X which sees the same daily abuse with zero glass issues. *sigh*
Hmmm, I had the Verizon variant, and that thing was built like a Sherman tank. I used to throw it on tile daily and dare iPhone users in my store to do the same. Sometimes this happened four or five times a day. Lol
I don’t miss this phone. Not enough RAM made it slow. But it was fun trying out a whole bunch of ROMs back in the day. Now I keep it simple on my Nexus 5 with Xposed + Gravity Box. And more RAM.
low ram and a crappy battery life… I’m almost glad my wife lost hers! LOL
“crappy” in regard to battery life is a serious understatement. You’re being too kind. :)
I didn’t want my message to be censored or moderated… believe me, it truly is an understatement!
I actually just picked up a cheap Galaxy Nexus recently to replace my aging OG Droid Razr. I immediately put Cyanogenmod on it, and I’m excited for L!
My mom still uses my old Gnex that I ditched not but a year ago.
Your mom is lucky. It’s a great phone and you did well to hook her up.
Worse phone I’ve ever owned. While I’m glad to see it’s still getting some love, there’s no way in hell you could ever get me to go back to it and the three spare batteries I always had to carry around just to make it through the day.
I have Verizon, and it’s hard to switch from my area. That being said I bought the GNex because of the hope of having instant updates.
Verizon sucks and it’s rooted for kitkat, which was OK but not the best. This is great news. I will physically break my S4 if this was a reality.
Funny, I used mine for 2.5 years and never had battery issues. Still has the original battery that lasts well over 24 hrs. Try not downloading a bunch of crap on to your phone and maybe you wouldn’t have had those issues. I believe it was a great phone and still performs well.
I don’t “download a bunch of crap” to my phone. The battery life was terrible, even after a complete factory reset. Seems there was a huge difference between the CDMA and GSM versions of the phone, for whatever reason. Everyone that seemed to get a whole day out of that phone had AT&T or T-Mobile.
sweet
Dude
I picked up one of these today as it happens (as a spare device) and it is running cm11 really well (latest m11 build) so this is great news. To be honest I have no doubt it will run L at some point – my Nexus One runs CM11 just fine and that was dropped by both Google and CM past Gingerbread! This just makes things look more likely!
Too bad my ol’ Gnex just bit the dust last week. RIP, Bessie.