(Credit:Samsung)If you’re a loyal Sprint subscriber and a fan of pureAndroid 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich (ICS), today is your lucky day.

As promised, the carrier has added Google’s flagship Android ICS phone, the Samsung Galaxy Nexus, to its lineup.

That version was lauded with a 4.5 star rating and a CNET Editors’ Choice award.

However, the Sprint version will have at least two big differences — one negative (initially), and one positive (at least potentially).4G LTEThe Sprint version of the Galaxy Nexus will be one of three announced phones to be compatible with Sprint’s 4G LTE network.

But Tyler did say that Sprint has committed to releasing 10 Wallet compatible phones before the end of the year.

(The LG Viper, also releasing today, is another, as is the HTC Evo 4G LTE, due to hit stores later in the spring.) The problem.

Sprint is in the middle of transitioning 4G network technologies — from WiMax to LTE.

Complicating things is the fact that the new LTE phones are not backwards compatible with WiMax.

Bottom line: prospective owners of those new phones (including the Galaxy Nexus) should know that they won’t be able to get 4G data speeds until at least June — and then only if they live in one of the markets getting the new 4G service from Sprint.

Think of it as basically buying a 3G phone that’s future proofed for Sprint’s upcoming 4G network.

But Verizon disabled the phones NFC chip and thus the wave and pay Google Wallet feature cant be used.

In fact, customers who sign up for Google’s mobile payment service within a week of activating their phone will receive a $10 credit.

CNET will have a full review of the Sprint version of the Samsung Galaxy Nexus for Sprint later this week.

But the Bigger issue for the Nexus may be that it’s a 2011 phone, which is downright ancient in Android time.

Sprint customers will probably want to hold out at least a few more weeks, when we’ll be able to compare the Nexus to the aforementioned HTC Evo 4G LTE.

Christiane Ruston is a business journalist based in Barcelona, Spain. Christiane has a passion for financial markets and breaking news stories and loves writing about business news, stock market, and economic opinions that matters most to its audience. Christiane spends a lot of time discovering and researching latest financial markets and industry news stories in order to make sure the latest and greatest stories are brought to you first on BigBoardNews.com.