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Google Nexus One launches today: gPhone release rumors, reviews rife
Google will be holding its event to release the Android-powered Nexus One later today -- or so the review speculation goes. On paper, the gPhone looks interesting, but the Devil's in the detail. In IT Blogwatch, bloggers play 'guess the secret'.
Your humble blogwatcher jammocked these bloggy morsels for your enjoyment. Not to mention shopping the Japanese PM...
Priya Ganapati knows all:
Google's upcoming Tuesday press conference is likely to mark the debut of the Nexus One [its] own Android-based smartphone ... the first phone ... to be directly marketed by Google, setting higher expectations. ... The Nexus One was designed by HTC, which has a close relationship with Google.
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The Nexus One has a 1-GHz Snapdragon CPU, a 3.7-inch 480 x 800 display, 512 MB of of RAM and an expandable 4-GB microSD card. ... The 1-GHz processor alone should make the Nexus one of the fastest smartphones available currently. ... It has a 5-megapixel camera with LED flash, Wi-Fi connectivity, accelerometer, compass and proximity sensors. The phone is also reportedly extremely thin slimmer than the iPhone.
Greg Sterling has a silver tongue:
The worst kept secret (non-secret) in technology is that the Google-HTC Nexus One is going to be formally introduced tomorrow at a press event at Googles Mountain View headquarters. ... [But] theres not that much left to say about it. So there must be something else going on tomorrow right? I mean, Google had to be aware that when it gave out hundreds of these phones to employees (and a few others) it would get this kind of exposure.
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Back to the event tomorrow. Theres new speculation that we may see discussion or announcement of a Google-HTC Android tablet collaboration (ahead of the anticipated Apple iSlate/iPad/tablet). ... Theres other speculation that ... Google is moving toward carrier-like offerings (via Google Voice).
Mike Butcher offers a European perspective:
Tomorrow Google will unveil at a press conference, well, something. Most of the press and blog coverage surrounds the speculation that ... this will likely be an unlocked handset. The reason this is big news in the US is ... most handsets there are sold locked to a network. In Europe? Meh. You can easily get an unlocked handset, if you want to pay through the nose. But what few seem to have noticed is that this Nexus One is going to have to have some kind of network to, er, work.
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Which leads me to this speculation of my own: Would Google launch the Nexus One with a Google-branded SIM card? ... SIM cards which work cross-boarder are now commonplace. There are many players globally. ... It seems there may be little to stop it partnering with, or perhaps even acquiring a company that can globally distribute SIMs which make the Nexus One experience even better.
Joshua Topolsky thinks he's already reviewed the to-be-announced phone:
Long before the name Nexus One or the recent bounty of pictures and details existed, the very concept of a "Google Phone" had been ingrained in the public conscience, predating even the Open Handset Alliance and Android itself; the company dabbled in the concept of direct sales through its offering of the Android Dev Phones 1 and 2 (alias Ion), but this time, it's a public retail ordeal, not a couple of one-off developer specials.
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When you first lay eyes on the Nexus One, you can almost hear someone at Google say something like, "Make us something as sexy as the iPhone, but let's not forget what got us here" -- "what got us here" being the G1. ... For the most part, they've succeeded. The phone shape finds itself somewhere between the iPhone and Palm Pre ... absolutely fantastic; even though the surface of the device houses a 3.7-inch display, the handset generally feels trimmer and more svelte than an iPhone.
But Tony Bradley's not impressed:
Nexus One is Google's chance to manage the bigger picture and provide a mobile device capable of meeting the potential of Android. ...
It won't be an iPhone, or iPhone killer as we in the media so love to call each new innovative device.
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The market for the Nexus One probably already just got a Droid and won't be looking to change for a couple years. ... I'm sorry, but there is a reason T-Mobile is the number four wireless provider in the United States. ... Nexus One will be a missed opportunity.
Richi Jennings is an independent analyst/consultant, specializing in blogging, email, and security. A cross-functional IT geek since 1985, he is also an analyst at Ferris Research. You can follow him as @richi on Twitter, or richij on FriendFeed, pretend to be richij's friend on Facebook, or just use good old email: itblogwatch@richij.com.
