Verizon Galaxy Nexus: 2 Ways to Get the Phone Before Release

Let's face it, until Verizon makes an official announcement, there is no real way of knowing when the Galaxy Nexus will arrive in the United States. There has already been four rumored release dates, and all have been a no-show.

There are, however, ways of getting the phone before the official release, albeit at a much higher cost.

The phone has been released across the border in Canada with HSPA+ versions on Mobile Canada and Bell Canada, but an unlocked version that can be operated with any SIM card is also available for CA $649.99. These phones can be used with AT&T and T-mobile SIMS -- because those two companies do not have plans to launch the phone in the United States.

For those looking specifically for a Verizon-branded version of the phone, one unit is available on eBay for $1,200 and will ship sometime between Dec.13 and Dec.15, the Phone Arena reported.

The phone is featured with the Verizon brand and logo, and it comes with the highly anticipated Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich software. The seller has a 100% rating with 30 positive feedbacks and no negatives over the past 12 months. But still, it seems like a big risk to take on a phone with such a high price tag.

The latest in Verizon Galaxy Nexus rumors is that the phone will be released on Dec.15 -- after a failed Dec.9 launch.

Verizon is telling ALL employees, stores, managers, and indirects that December 15 is the new target, announced Droid Life, but many fans are skeptical, tweeting that they won't believe any more rumored dates until Verizon makes an official announcement.

The biggest rumor in the mill is that the phone is delayed due to Verizon's dispute with Google over the Google Wallet feature on the phone.

The Galaxy Nexus may in part be a Google phone, but Verizon has allegedly asked the search-engine giant not to include its highly anticipated Google Wallet feature in its latest product.

The Google Wallet allows shoppers to make purchases and use coupons online with their phones. Upon checkout, all customers need to do is sign on and click the Buy Button. The virtual wallet can also be used in stores that have pay-pass symbols -- and with one simple tap from phone to reader, hundreds of purchases can be made.

It is believed that Verizon doesn't want to feature the wallet as they have already teamed up with AT&T, T-Mobile and Isis in a joint-venture that will supply a digital payment service, similar to that of the Google Wallet.

Isis is first expected to launch in Salt Lake City and Austin, Texas, by the second quarter of 2012, before it starts its nationwide distribution, Gigaom reported. HTC, LG, Motorola Mobility, RIM, Samsung Mobile and Sony Ericsson have all committed to launching the service in their mobile devices.

Verizon has denied such claims and has announced that it is not blocking Google Wallet because of competing interests; instead, the company allegedly claims that it is finding ways to integrate it into new, secure, proprietary hardware in their phones, which again could be a reason for the delay.

Fans of the phone expected it to come out in the United States as early as Thanksgiving after it made its debut in Europe, but to the disappointment of many, it never came. Just two days later, the phone miraculously appeared in a Best Buy ad with a Nov. 27 release date, but that too was a no show.

The phone comes with AMOLED 4.65 inch screen with 720p resolution. Its 8.94mm thinness gives the phone a sleek finish and weighs only 135g. Despite being so slender and light, the phone comes with 16.30 GB or 32GB of storage and 1GB of RAM, giving it twice the memory of the iPhone 4S.

Other features:

5-megapixel camera: LED flash

Front-facing camera: 1.3MP unit

Video: 1080p

Connectivity: Bluetooth 3.0, WLAN, 3G.

Wi-Fi-802.11n

HSDPA speed: 21 Mbps