Samsung’s Google Nexus Prime Due Wednesday

Google is widely expected to announce its new flagship mobile in Hong Kong on Wednesday. Thelong-anticipated Samsung-manufactured device, known as Nexus Prime, will be the first to run the new version of Google’s Android operating system, Ice Cream Sandwich.

The phone was expected to be announced last week, but the event was postponed as a mark of respect for former Apple Chief Executive Steve Jobs, who died earlier this month. The Nexus Prime will be Google’s third foray into the mobile market, following in the footsteps of the HTC built Nexus One and the Samsung made Nexus S.

Rumours have circulated the internet regarding the phone’s specs and suggest that the Nexus Prime will boast a 4.65” Super AMOLED display and a dual-core 1.5 GHZ processor. In addition, it has been speculated that the phone will not feature any physical buttons and will instead rely solely on touchscreen controls.

Ice Cream Sandwich is version 4.0 of Google’s Android operating system and is the first iteration of Android to be designed to run on both tablets and phones in an effort to convince developers to build apps for Android rather than Apple’s rival iOS. Improved social networking features are likely to be included as part of the update, as is an overhauled interface.

The Nexus Prime could launch in the UK as soon as this month or early November and is likely to coast around £500, a similar price point to Samsung’s Galaxy S II.