Nearly a year has passed since Samsung and Google unveiled the Galaxy Nexus (along with Android Ice Cream Sandwich), so it's natural to expect a shiny new Nexus-branded smartphone to be announced this month. But here's the problem: The rumor mill is churning out so many contradicting details that we're ready to cry.
There's no official word about this device, of course, so all we're working with right now is this ridiculous pile of rumors, leaks and speculation.
We don't even know which hardware maker might be behind the next Nexus smartphone. Many assume that Samsung will make the device, but the folks at Android and Me say that their sources claim LG is on board for this one while DroidLife's writers heard whispers about an HTC version.
Potential — though vaguely sourced — leaks have suggested that the next Nexus device may be codenamed GT-I9260 and will be sold as either the Galaxy Nexus Plus, the Galaxy Nexus 2 or the Nexus 5. The first two names suggest that it is likely to be made by Samsung, which owns the Galaxy name. The "Nexus 5" name doesn't suggest any manufacturer in particular — Asus makes the Nexus 7 tablet for Google — but it does intimate that the next Nexus could have a 5-inch screen.
There have been enough minor leaks — mainly camera details and questionable spec sheets — related to the next Nexus device to make even the head of someone accustomed to sifting through Apple rumors spin, especially since every other leak contradicts a prior one.
Perhaps an older report in the Wall Street Journal, suggesting that there will be multiple new Nexus smartphones this year, would explain some of this confusion.
This different than last year, when the Galaxy Nexus was announced. By the time October came around, the cat was mostly out of the bag — right down to detailed spec sheets. The only confusion was over the name: Everybody thought it would be called the "Nexus Prime."
Want more tech news or interesting links? You'll get plenty of both if you keep up with Rosa Golijan, the writer of this post, by following her on Twitter, subscribing to her Facebook posts, or circling her on Google+.
