Google’s “open” strategy began with its multi-billion-dollar bid for wireless spectrum in an FCC auction two years ago. The company bid enough to get open-access rules attached to some of the airwaves, but stopped short of actually purchasing any. Two years ago, the prevailing thought in the industry was that Google wasn’t interested in getting into the cellphone business.
Then it introduced its Android operating system. And now the Nexus One handset. It seems Google is looking to make a splash in the cellphone business after all.
The device, a Snapdragon-powered, HTC-built phone looks — on paper, at least — like the ultimate Android handset, combining a newly tweaked and tightened user interface with killer industrial design. A sleek, streamlined phone that can easily go toe-to-toe with the iPhone 3GSs, Pres, and Droids of the world, powered by the latest version of Android (2.1 “Flan,” if you’re counting), and hand-retooled by Google. But is it all it’s cracked up to be? Can the Nexus One possibly live up to the hype ascribed to it? And more importantly, is the appearance of the phone the death knell for the OHA and a sign of the coming Android autocracy? In our exclusive review of the Nexus One, we’ll answer all those pressing questions and more… so read on for the full scoop!
Google Nexus One unboxing and hands-on
Note: The unit we have in hand is — by all appearances — a production model, save for the QR code imprint on the back, which is likely an employee-only Easter egg. However, Google is making its official announcement tomorrow, and there could always be differences. If anything changes with the device, or there are revelations about the marketing or sale of the phone, we’ll be sure to update the review with new info.
This normally would be the place where I’d embed the relevant YouTube video. But this is one video Google doesn’t want on its video site, and the company is pulling the footage down as quickly as it can. (This is where I imagine the Viacom guys chortling and rubbing their hands).
If Google’s strategy is successful at getting other carriers to “unlock” popular handsets, it would move the U.S. closer to aligning with European and Asian markets, where consumers typically buy cellphones directly from manufacturers and then connect to any network they choose. This could put pressure on carriers to increasingly improve their network speeds and capacities, since they will no longer be able to lure customers only with the hottest handsets.
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