14 DAY TRIAL // Even if what was expected to be the official launch event for the next Google Phone was postponed, the handset is still on its way to the market.
Supposedly set to arrive on shelves as the Nexus Prime, the phone has just received the necessary approvals from the FCC.
The handset that passed through the approval process at the Federal Communications Commission came from Samsung and featured the model number GT-i9250.
This is the same device model that has previously passed through the certification process at the WiFi Alliance, and which also received the Bluetooth SIG approvals.
The smartphone was spotted at the FCC with support for dual-band Wi-Fi on both 2.4GHz and 5GHz frequencies.
Moreover, the handset came with support for tri-band frequencies for the US, namely 850 / 1700 / 1900MHz, but with no LTE capabilities on board. No 900/2100MHz support was spotted at the moment.
Of course, there is also the possibility that the FCC did not cover the all the frequencies the new device supports, and that it would actually arrive with penta-band capabilities.
At the same time, chances are that Samsung and Google will make available for purchase a different device for the Europen and Asian markets.
For the time being, these are only suppositions, and Google and Samsung might end-up announcing a totally different device in the end.
Until that happens, however, we should note that the shape of the handset that arrived at the FCC seems to fit perfectly with the handset that emerged yesterday in a leaked photo.
Nexus Prime is expected to be released with the next flavor of Android on board, namely Ice Cream Sandwich, and should become the new Google Phone.
There have been various rumors around that the new device will be released in the United States exclusively at Verizon Wireless, but nothing was officially confirmed on the matter for the time being.