LG rumored to halt production of Google Nexus 4 in favor of next-gen Nexus

If you thought the LG built Google Nexus 4 was hard to find before, think about how hard it will be to find if the rumor that is making the rounds right now, is true. The speculation is that LG has halted production of the Google Nexus 4 while the Korean manufacturer starts building new Nexus models. At CES, LG Electronics senior vice president James Fisher hinted that the Google Nexus 4 was just the first of a number of Nexus models that LG is working on. This means a new LG built Nexus branded smartphone or tablet could be on the way. Those following LG closely say that a new Nexus device made by LG could be displayed at next month's MWC in Barcelona.

The Google Nexus 4 was sold out in the first 24 minutes that it went up for sale at the Google Play Store in November. Priced at $299 and $349 for the 8GB and 16GB models respectively, the phones were offered unlocked and with no contracts which made the price quite attractive. At T-Mobile, the 16GB model, when in stock, was going for $199.99 with a signed two-year contract or $499.99 unlocked. Despite the fact that the price for the unlocked model on T-Mobile was $150 more than Google was charging for the exact same phone, it was sold out at the carrier for weeks at a time. As it turned out, the shortages were more a function of low supply rather than high demand and some Google Nexus 4 buyers, using the serial numbers on their phones, computed that only about 375,000 units were sold.

One part of the rumor that seems to be at odds with historical precedence is that LG would make the announcement of its next Nexus device at MWC. Typically, Google makes the announcement at a separate event. You might recall that Google was expected to introduce the LG built Google Nexus 4, the Samsung produced Google Nexus 10 and an updated ASUS made Google Nexus 7 before Hurricane Sandy forced the event to be canceled. If past is prologue, the next LG made Google Nexus device would be introduced during the 2013 Google I/O which is being held from May 15th through May 17th this year.

The rumor that LG would put the Google Nexus 4 on hold did not mention when those holding orders for the phone would eventually receive their device. As we told you Monday,  T-Mobile is receiving a limited number of Google Nexus 4 units with one store receiving only 5 units to sell. Currently, the Google Nexus 4 in both 8GB and 16GB variants remains sold out at the Google Play Store.