Google Nexus One: The Good,The Bad and The Ugly
The Nexus One is dead. Gone. As of today, Google’s experiment in self-branding an Android smartphone is over–with a meteoric rise and fall that holds some valuable lessons for competing platforms and future Android smartphones.
In the days leading up to the unveiling of the Nexus One, the media was filled with the usual speculation that accompanies such events. The rumor that Google would sell the Android smartphone directly fueled expectations that the Nexus One could herald the end of device-carrier exclusivity, and introduce a new era of wireless freedom.
Unfortunately, the actual launch event failed to live up to the hype. Yes, Google introduced a direct sales model where the Nexus One was only available directly from the Google online store. However, the device was still tied more or less to a provider–and it was the weakest of the four major wireless carriers in the United States, T-Mobile.
With the Nexus One, Google introduced a new release of its OS–Android 2.1. The new features and capabilities of the OS were actually the primary focus of the Nexus One launch event, and were arguably the best thing about the Nexus One. Unfortunately for Google and the Nexus One, Android is available on a variety of smartphones so the Android 2.1 OS was not a compelling reason to purchase the Nexus One per se.
The Nexus One hardware–engineered to Google’s exacting specifications by HTC–was only a modest step up from existing Android smartphones like the Motorola Droid. Due to the open nature of Android, the mediocre Nexus One was quickly left in the dust by other Android smartphones–including competing Android smartphones also developed by HTC, such as the HTC Incredible and the EVO 4G.
One of the most perplexing aspects of the Nexus One experiment was the alliance with T-Mobile. It is somewhat understandable that Google wouldn’t team up with AT&T given that AT&T is the sole provider of Android’s main competition–the Apple iPhone, and that AT&T did not offer any Android devices at all at the time of the Nexus One launch.
T-Mobile makes sense on some level, perhaps out of a sense of loyalty. T-Mobile was the first major carrier to provide Android handsets, and it had the largest selection of Android devices, so maybe Google felt it apropos to launch Nexus One with it.
However, Verizon had just invested millions in successfully branding and promoting its first foray into the world of Android with the Motorola Droid. As the largest wireless provider in the United States, Verizon offered a much larger potential pool of customers for the Nexus One. The fate of the Nexus One might not be what it is had Google not gone with T-Mobile.
Aside from trying to sell the incremental improvements offered by the Nexus One as some sort of watershed moment in the history of mobile communications–dubbing it, and other next-generation devices as “superphones” rather than smartphones, the other main focus of the Nexus One launch event was on the “revolutionary” sales model.
Google would only sell the phone directly via its online store. The concept had potential if Google would have developed some sort of cross-platform device capable of working with all four major wireless providers–that would be a real “superphone”, or if it would have negotiated a no-contract service option similar to what Apple arranged with AT&T for the iPad.
One serious problem with the Google approach was that the combination of a device sold by Google, built by HTC, and serviced by T-Mobile led to confusion and finger-pointing when users looked for support. Google–used to providing support for Web-based services–was unprepared and ill-equipped to address user complaints within a reasonable timeframe.
Alas, the Nexus One never lived up to its promise and the expectations set for it. Great software that can also be found on other Android smartphones, combined with weak hardware, a marginal wireless provider, and a weird Web-only sales model doomed the device to failure.
Category: Phones
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"doomed the device to failure"? Maybe from a pure sales perspective, but from this owner's perspective, the phone is a success. I'm entirely satisfied with every aspect of it, particularly since upgrading it to FroYo. In fact I'm tethering my iPad to it at this moment to file this comment.
“doomed the device to failure”? Maybe from a pure sales perspective, but from this owner’s perspective, the phone is a success. I’m entirely satisfied with every aspect of it, particularly since upgrading it to FroYo. In fact I’m tethering my iPad to it at this moment to file this comment.
This article is written entirely from the point of view of view of the US market. What the Google store gave the rest of us was the chance to buy a top of the range phone, not tied to any carrier and for a fraction of the cost of buying through local stores.
Many people who did buy their Nexus from a carrier are still waiting for Froyo, an update that has made this phone one of the fastest on the market six months after its release.
It's all been good for me.
I have to disagree with this article. The nexus one was made to be an Iphone killer, it was made to send a message to other manufacturers to upgrade their product designs and specs. The Nexus is a great phone, I've played with everything out there and in still holding mine
. Show some respect. Because of the nexus, you got the evo, Droid x, galaxy s, should I continue? Long live the phone that didn't but could!
Meant to say "wasn't made to be an iPhone killer". Sorry! X!
This article is written entirely from the point of view of view of the US market. What the Google store gave the rest of us was the chance to buy a top of the range phone, not tied to any carrier and for a fraction of the cost of buying through local stores.
Many people who did buy their Nexus from a carrier are still waiting for Froyo, an update that has made this phone one of the fastest on the market six months after its release.
It’s all been good for me.
I have to disagree with this article. The nexus one was made to be an Iphone killer, it was made to send a message to other manufacturers to upgrade their product designs and specs. The Nexus is a great phone, I’ve played with everything out there and in still holding mine
. Show some respect. Because of the nexus, you got the evo, Droid x, galaxy s, should I continue? Long live the phone that didn’t but could!
Meant to say “wasn’t made to be an iPhone killer”. Sorry! X!
"mediocre Nexus One"? It's screen is bigger or equal to other phones of the same size. Processor? same.
Second mike? Yes.
Multi-colour trackball? It's the only one! (I assign different colours to people's SMS messages with Handcent. Very useful).
Everything else is either equal or better than the rest.
And **the** killer reason: latest stock Android. It was the main reason I bought it.
“mediocre Nexus One”? It’s screen is bigger or equal to other phones of the same size. Processor? same.
Second mike? Yes.
Multi-colour trackball? It’s the only one! (I assign different colours to people’s SMS messages with Handcent. Very useful).
Everything else is either equal or better than the rest.
And **the** killer reason: latest stock Android. It was the main reason I bought it.
I'm in total agreement with jfive74 here, the Nexus One was built to show what Android should be like, it was to improve the Android platform for all future phones regardless of who that phone comes from (except maybe Apple). It was never meant to be a competitor to HTC's or anyone elses range. Google didn't intend to become the next major phone manufacturer, it was upping the quality of the Android platform to encourage wider adoption and thus rake in the bagillions from future phone advertising renenue.
I bought my Nexus One even though phones with better hardware were available because of the OS and am more than happy to be running my (apparantly now dead) Nexus One on Froyo while new Super Phones are being released already out of date. I'll be saddened the day I have to retire it and move over to a skinned OS covered in crap by the manufacturer.
Tilt your cap to the Nexus One, it's the very-cool dad of Android and it's done exactly what it was meant to.
I’m in total agreement with jfive74 here, the Nexus One was built to show what Android should be like, it was to improve the Android platform for all future phones regardless of who that phone comes from (except maybe Apple). It was never meant to be a competitor to HTC’s or anyone elses range. Google didn’t intend to become the next major phone manufacturer, it was upping the quality of the Android platform to encourage wider adoption and thus rake in the bagillions from future phone advertising renenue.
I bought my Nexus One even though phones with better hardware were available because of the OS and am more than happy to be running my (apparantly now dead) Nexus One on Froyo while new Super Phones are being released already out of date. I’ll be saddened the day I have to retire it and move over to a skinned OS covered in crap by the manufacturer.
Tilt your cap to the Nexus One, it’s the very-cool dad of Android and it’s done exactly what it was meant to.