Google Nexus 4: Quad-Core, 4.7-inch HD Screen, But No LTE

Google today announced its long rumored Nexus 4 smartphone and it is a bit of a mixed bag. All of the rumors we had previously seen were confirmed, ranging from the phone's design to the quad-core processor proved true. But one thing we didn't get was a device that offers 4G LTE capabilities.

The LG-developed Nexus 4 sports a 4.7-inch 1280 x 768 IPS display with a pixel density of 320 pixels per inch. That's almost as sharp as the iPhone 5's 326 pixels per inch display. Inside, the Nexus 4 features a 1.5-GHz Snapdragon S4 Pro processor, 2GB of RAM and your choice of either 8GB or 16GB of onboard storage.  Around back is an 8-megapixel rear-facing shooter, while the front features a 1.3-megapixel front-facing camera. An NFC chip is also included in the Nexus 4 to facilitate the use of Google's Google Wallet mobile payment system and, interestingly, wireless charging.

As expected, Google has installed installed the latest version of its mobile operating system, Android Jelly Bean 4.2 on the Nexus 4. The new OS provides a traceable keyboard, new panorama camera features and improvements to Google Now.

Perhaps the biggest news about the announcement is, however, that the Nexus 4 is, so far, only available for T-Mobile, the smallest of the U.S.'s Big Four carriers. That means the Nexus 4 will not sport a 4G LTE connection, as many had expected. Instead, users will have to rely on T-Mobile's slower HSPA+42 network.

There's nothing that says the Nexus 4 won't be coming to other carriers, however. And we would expect Google, which touts its Nexus branded devices as the best of what Android has to offer, to make that happen in the coming weeks or months.

Users will be able to pick up a 16GB version of the Nexus 4 for $199 with a two-year T-Mobile contract on Nov. 14. Surprisingly, you will also be able to snatch an unlocked version of the Nexus 4, again without an LTE radio, for an unheard of $299 for the 8GB model and $329 for the 16GB model.

Stay tuned for our full review of the Nexus 4 when we get our hands on it..