It’s only a matter of time before the successor to the Galaxy Nexus is announced and hits the Play Store by the end of this year. There are plenty of rumors floating around, so let’s take a look at everything you need to know about the Next Nexus.

Operating System

Expect the next Nexus to launch with a version of Android 4.1.X Jellybean. This could be 4.1.1 or even 4.1.2, but I wouldn’t expect any large version number updates, as we just saw 4.1 released less than 3 months ago.

Battery

The current Galaxy Nexus rocks an 1800 mAh battery with the option to pick up a 2100mAh extended battery if you find you need more juice. Google has heard the complaints and it’s pretty safe to assume the next Nexus will launch with at least a 2100mAh battery to begin with, if not larger. The video mentions 2200-2400 is possible, but don’t expect it to touch the likes of the RAZR Maxx or Note 2 without a major form factor change.

Form factor and Screen Size

Considering the trend towards larger phone display sizes, we could expect an even larger display on the next Nexus. 4.7″ or 4.8″ are very likely, while the changes of anything larger drops off quickly. 4.85″ realistically seems like the absolutely max.

Camera

The camera is likely the weakest point on the current Nexus. A 5MP camera seems like a corner cut to reduce the price, but consider the success of the Galaxy SIII, Google has to have eyes on an updated sensor for the next in the Nexus lineup. Megapixel count isn’t everything, but expect at least an 8MP camera.

Expandable Storage

This one’s a tossup. Google has recently moved away from expandable storage with the last two Nexus devices (Galaxy Nexus and Nexus 7), yet consumers have voiced their desire for a removable battery and back cover to add MicroSD cards. My gut feeling is that expandable storage is gone for good from the Nexus line, but this isn’t something anyone can predict just yet.

Manufacturer(s)

Rumors of a multiple-carrier launch of a Nexus from different manufacturers are spreading like wildfire. While we haven’t seen anything from Google indicating this possibility, (or a history of anything like ever attempted) I wouldn’t rule this out. Could Google extend its AOSP experiment and work with Sony, LG, HTC, Samsung and others on a simultaneous Nexii launch? Absolutely… But I wouldn’t bet on it.

Launch Date

The next Nexus will absolutely be released by January 1st, 2013 and available shortly thereafter in the United States. A pre-holiday season launch and sale would be much more beneficial for Google, but obviously United States availability was a huge issue last year when Verizon dropped the ball. My official guess is December 3rd.

So what do you think? What do you want to see in the next Nexus? What will it even be called? The comments section is wide open below!