Samsung Galaxy Nexus launches just in time for Christmas

The Australian debut of Google's latest smartphone, the Samsung Galaxy Nexus, is mere days away. Telstra is the first to offer the phone to customers, today announcing its availability from tomorrow, Wednesday 14th December, with Vodafone and Optus two days behind for Friday 16 December, on a range of pricing plans.

However, Telstra will only be selling the handset from two of its stores tomorrow. Melbourne and Sydney city customers will be able to purchase the Galaxy Nexus on Wednesday along with online shoppers, while enthusiasts in other regions will have to wait until Thursday 15th.

Optus and Vodafone have promised pre-Christmas delivery for customers who order the Samsung Galaxy Nexus online before 16 December. Telstra told CRN customers ordering online could expect shipment within two to five business days.

Vodafone

Vodafone, who was first out the door with the announcement yesterday, will sell the Galaxy Nexus on a variety of 12 and 24 month contracts, starting with a $29 cap over 12 months (plus $35 monthly handset repayments). Other plans include a $65 Infinite plan over 24 months (plus $10 monthly handset repayments) and a $59 cap over 24 months (plus $5 monthly handset repayments).

For a full list of Samsung Galaxy Nexus plans, visit the Vodafone website.

Optus

Optus also announced its pricing plans for the Samsung Galaxy Nexus yesterday. The phone will be available on $29, $49, $59 and $79 cap plans over a 24 month contract (plus monthly handset repayments of $16, $8, $5 and zero, respectively.)

For a full list of Samsung Galaxy Nexus plans, visit the Optus web site.

Telstra

Telstra came out with this morning with its own announcement and will have the handset available two days earlier than its rivals. It is offering the phone on $59 (plus $10 handset repayment), $79, $99 and $129 24 month contracts.

For a full list of Samsung Galaxy Nexus plans, visit the Telstra website.

Buy outright

If you're not a big telco customer or aren't looking to renew your contract, the Samsung Galaxy Nexus can also be purchased outright from Kogan and Mobicity. The online specialists are asking $789 and $769 for the device, respectively.

The Galaxy Nexus (not to be confused with the companies' previous Google Nexus S) is a 4.65in smartphone that comes with the latest Android operating system; 4.0 (AKA Ice Cream Sandwich).

It boasts a Super AMOLED Plus display (1280x720 pixels), a 5-megapixel rear-facing camera and a 1.2GHz dual-core processor. Other highlights include NFC, Full HD video capture, a 100,000:1 contrast ratio, 1GB of RAM and between 16- and 32GB of inbuilt storage.

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