Google Nexus One, iPhone Killer?

[MattFancy]

I dunno, if anyone can do it, it's Google. What has Google done that's been bad? Gmail changed email. Google search is the king of all search and all of the other things they've done. I'd say Google could be the only real threat to the iPhone.

Yes Apple is supposed to unveil the iSlate at the end of the month. Microsoft is unveiling their's later today. Google is already working on a tablet to run their Chrome OS. I'm not sold on the tablet PCs.

[MVille_Skins]

lol, if there was ever a more perfect example of a fanboy

Only have a iPhone, and a iTouch. Didn't buy either of them, got them as gifts. I did a 20 page case study on Apple.

[CrazyZeb]

Only have a iPhone, and a iTouch. Didn't buy either of them, got them as gifts. I did a 20 page case study on Apple.

Ok, a cheap fanboy? jk

[mjah]

Nothing will beat the iPhone, or apple for that matter. No company has the creative thinking or inginuity that apple has. Apple doesn't wait for the consumer to tell them what they would like, they tell the consumers what they want. Apple is so far ahead of there competitors it's not even funny.

Many people don't particularly like to have their needs assumed, particularly when Apple manages to get it wrong so frequently.

Case in point: Apple tried to tell me that I "want" to have AT&T as a service provider. I "want" incredibly crappy data coverage and I "want" frequently dropped calls. I "want" their crappy iTunes software on my computer, I "want" to have garbage call quality, I "want" a curiously heavy phone and I "want" a battery that isn't even user-removable. Blame AT&T for some of that if you want, but then you'll have to admit to Apple's incompetence in assessing the most basic suitability of their phone-network pairings. Or you'll have to admit that they gave away the user-experience high ground for boring ol' selfish business and money reasons. Just like countless other companies. Oops!

Apple seems to stay on top when it comes to oversimplified, easy to use hardware and menus. They've been doing that for decades, yet their market penetration is still a distinct minority of users. Why? 'Cuz not everybody thinks that's an acceptable trade-off! They're going to get clobbered by Google, who have done the smart thing and realized that other things are far more important than whether it takes 2 clicks vs. 3 clicks to get to the Bluetooth menu, or whether your have 10,000 apps vs. 100,000 apps in your app store. Things like network quality, processor speed, usable screen size, the entire cost and revenue structure up and down the chain, and OS-related freedoms are WAY more important to users and service providers. Google will hit Apple right in their weakest point, their closed, proprietary, high-cost business model -- and they will hurt Apple badly in the process.

Supposedly Apple is rolling out with a tablet sort device, can't wait to see what this thing would do.

It looks beautiful. It's supposedly going to cost $1000 too, which is kind of a lot for something that appears to do far less than a netbook yet costs hundreds more.

[codeorama]

It amazes me how much AT&T gets blasted. I have no problems whatsoever. I had verizon previously and bought into the fearmongering. I didn't get the first iPhone because I was scared I'd never have service.

Finally gave in and bought the iPhone and couldn't be happier. I have zero problems with dropped calls, I always have service and think their customer service is a million times better than verizon, who acted as if I was lucky to be one of their customers.

My dad has a droid and what's funny is that my phone is so much faster when accessing the Internet. I like the droid, but it's no iPhone.

I love iTunes. To be honest, it's one of the deciding factors for me when I chose the iPhone. It's easy to use. The phone just works. It's easy to use. My 4 year old son can use it.

Many of the things that so many of you iPhone haters argue are problems are actually reasons why so many of us love our iPhones. Not everyone wants or cares about an opensource operating system etc...

[mjah]

It amazes me how much AT&T gets blasted. I have no problems whatsoever. [...]

Given the number of iPhone users expressing opinions exactly opposite to yours, you'll forgive me for not believing that your experience is typical.

If we must share one-off anecdotes, my buddy is a total Apple groupie, and was one of the poor souls waiting in line outside the Apple store a few years back for the privilege of spending $1,000 more than anyone else on a phone and a contract. I gave him a call about a week later and was APPALLED at the unacceptable voice quality of his iPhone. It sounded like Sprint, circa 1999. Maybe worse. It really hasn't gotten any better since then. He lives in Harvard Square, not exactly a difficult place to get reception with a decent network and a decent voice phone. He refuses to complain about his data speeds (Apple loyalty syndrome) but I've seen his phone in action. It's sad, particularly given the price.

Another friend is the biggest techie I've ever met, and is totally fed up with his iPhone's dropped calls. Anecdotal iPhone-vs.-Droid reviews relate stories like sitting in JFK airport, trying in vain to get reception on an iPhone. In the same place in the same airport at the same time, a Droid on Verizon has signal to spare and is cruising.

Anecdotes aren't worth much on their own. Taken in summary, they add up to a representative picture. It isn't a terribly good one for iPhone on AT&T. Their phone is no longer clearly the best and folks have finally stopped pursing their lips about the perpetual frustration of using a good phone on a horrific network. The real collective iPhone experience is finally emerging, with the warts that realists knew existed all along.

Compared to AT&T, you are lucky if you're a Verizon customer. (I'm on neither network, btw.) And the reviews I've read make it clear that Droid is clearly the winner on Internet speeds.

My standards for what makes a good phone have nothing to do with whether or not a 4 year old can use it. In fact, that's also true of my standards for just about anything I purchase for myself.

I don't hate iPhone at all. I just see it for what it is: severely compromised by its network and not any better than Droid/Nexus 1 at the things that are important to me (and scores of others). I find it entertaining that you claim people don't care about open OS, yet iPhone owners everywhere are trying to get just that with their own jailbroken phones and complaints about the draconian iPhone app store. Folks might not care about open-source OS capabilities in a vacuum, but they will care about what that capability enables. And they will care about free turn-by-turn GPS nav, far fewer dropped calls, faster download speeds, better camera (Nexus 1), bigger brighter better screen, removable battery, Flash, and the list goes on...

The best way I've seen it put is this: you choose between Apple's thin edge on handset design, vs. Verizon's massively better data network. Since Android will very quickly improve (yay open source) and iPhone will eventually be on Verizon (probably... someday...), the difference between the two phone experiences will get smaller.

Then the competition will be even more heavily influenced by Google's business model. Good luck, Apple. Hilariously, one of Google's biggest risks in their emerging business model is that they will be too inflexible with the Android user experience and act too much like Apple in the process!

[codeorama]

In my area, I'll put my phone and service up against verizon any day. I've been a verizon customer, my parents have verizon. There is nowhere that I have been with my dad, including out to the Chesapeake bay bridge tunnel on a boat where he had service and I didn't. I can't speak for anywhere else but I have had my phone from the outerbanks nc to Maryland and the service is equal to verizon.

I have had my phone jailbroken but when the 3gs came out with video, I haven't had the desire to jailbreak again. There's nothing that I'm missing.

I'm def not an apple fan boy, I have a mac, but only because my school issues them to us. Personally, I have a win7 pc, and love it.

Sure, there's more thAt be done with the droid, but I had to help my dad figure out how to use it. He has used my iPhone with no problems many times and actually likes it a lot more than the droid. It has a great selection of nautical nav apps while the droid has none. So why didn't he switch? Cause he's so afraid that he won't have service.

[mjah]

I can't speak for anywhere else but I have had my phone from the outerbanks nc to Maryland and the service is equal to verizon.

Well, I'm happy to hear that there's at least one person out there who has had this experience.

Nautical nav apps and the like will be there for Android. It "only" has 20,000 apps now and that number will skyrocket with time. An easy problem to solve.

[MVille_Skins]

Got my iPhone 3 months ago, I live in Harrisburg suburbs, and I travel in the city a lot, and I also in many rural areas, and I have yet to not have service. I haven't had a call dropped and I have never not had 3g service. At&t gets a bad rep because Verizon successfully marketed it that way. Everyone thinks that At&t has crappy service, when in turn it's easily comparable to verizon.

The bottom line is the iPhone, with At&t's service, is the superior phone available on the market

[SoCalSkins]

AT&T service does suck.

4G iPhone on Verizon will be the ultimate phone in a year.

[MVille_Skins]

AT&T service does suck.

4G iPhone on Verizon will be the ultimate phone in a year.

lol...greatest post ever!!!! :doh:

[Riggins77]

I got a free Blackberry Storm from my dad, literally two calls made on it, then he upgraded and gave it to me. I'm actually looking at the Droid now, because of the wife wanting a new phone too. The thing is, the only deal I can get is a Motorolla Droid and HTC Droid for 99 bucks, so I will have one extra phone.

I'm selfish, so I'm going with the Motorolla Droid for me, but my wife will have to choose between the HTC Droid or Storm, both of which look the same to me.

Any suggestions?

[Duckus]

People are missing why Nexus One is interesting. It has nothing to do with the Iphone.

Nexus One is interesting because of Google Voice. I don't know how it will play out in the future, but their is the potential for google to destroy voice plans forever - which would be amazing.

There are a lot of rumors that in the future you will be able to use a Google phone + Goolge voice w/ other technology to run the phone system through the internet. Thus you only need a data plan. No voice plan.

[SoCalSkins]

People are missing why Nexus One is interesting. It has nothing to do with the Iphone.

Nexus One is interesting because of Google Voice. I don't know how it will play out in the future, but their is the potential for google to destroy voice plans forever - which would be amazing.

There are a lot of rumors that in the future you will be able to use a Google phone + Goolge voice w/ other technology to run the phone system through the internet. Thus you only need a data plan. No voice plan.

I use google voice with my iPhone today.

[Riggins77]

Got my iPhone 3 months ago, I live in Harrisburg suburbs, and I travel in the city a lot, and I also in many rural areas, and I have yet to not have service. I haven't had a call dropped and I have never not had 3g service. At&t gets a bad rep because Verizon successfully marketed it that way. Everyone thinks that At&t has crappy service, when in turn it's easily comparable to verizon.

The bottom line is the iPhone, with At&t's service, is the superior phone available on the market

I had AT&T about 6 years ago after they bought out cingular and I dropped more calls than I ever had in my life in non-rural areas. I dropped 5 calls going down interstate in a wide open big city area. My uncle has the I-phone and has informed me that his reception is not that great. So I wouldn't call the service superior or the I-phone superior because of the service. It's an amazing piece of technology, but the service is horrible.

[Duckus]

I use google voice with my iPhone today.

Right. But this would be a bit different.

I am looking for an article of what I am talking about. This kind of sums it up (but poorly) - I will see if I can find a better one:

Google has already created a service called Google Voice that gives you a number and lets you tie your different phone numbers and voice mailboxes together. Even though the service sounds unremarkable, it becomes a different beast if it is coupled with the VoIP services of another application called Gizmo5 which was significantly acquired by Goggle in November 2009. Together with Gizmo5, Google Voice gives one the ability to make long distance calls from your computer to phones.

Is Google moving toward coupling the Nexus One with the Google Voice plus Gizmo beast that might emerge in the near future? Nexus One significantly runs on a much faster 1GHz chip, compared to the 600MHz iPhone, and it allows one to run more than one application at the same time. This will allow Nexus One to be used as just such a phone.

If Google does succeed in taking this path, it would mean that a mobile phone network becomes redundant, and all one needs is a data plan. All your calls will begin and end within the Internet.

With the Internet becoming a giant phone system, all you would have to pay for is a wireless data plan

http://www.walletpop.com/blog/2010/01/06/googles-nexus-one-could-make-phone-plans-redundant/

[chipwhich]

Got my iPhone 3 months ago, I live in Harrisburg suburbs, and I travel in the city a lot, and I also in many rural areas, and I have yet to not have service. I haven't had a call dropped and I have never not had 3g service. At&t gets a bad rep because Verizon successfully marketed it that way. Everyone thinks that At&t has crappy service, when in turn it's easily comparable to verizon.

The bottom line is the iPhone, with At&t's service, is the superior phone available on the market

You must work for AT&T

There is a reason they run their commercials about coverage, and it's not "perception". The iphone is a great phone, AT&T service is not.

Maybe you don't use your phone much.

I have posted this before, I have 2 business partners. 2 of us have Verizon, one has AT&T iphone. We travel together, go to dinner together, meet together. My partner with AT&T almost never has service in restaurants, his calls to me drop constantly, he complains constantly about the horrible service. It's not a myth, it is what it is. Heck even the recent review of the iphone compared to the droid, the iphone won slightly in comparison, the one funny...the iphone didn't ring when the droid called it. It didn't have service. :hysterical:

[SoCalSkins]

Right. But this would be a bit different.

I am looking for an article of what I am talking about. This kind of sums it up (but poorly) - I will see if I can find a better one:

http://www.walletpop.com/blog/2010/01/06/googles-nexus-one-could-make-phone-plans-redundant/

VoIp would make it worse.

Right now they provide TDM toll quality for free.

[MattFancy]

People are missing why Nexus One is interesting. It has nothing to do with the Iphone.

Nexus One is interesting because of Google Voice. I don't know how it will play out in the future, but their is the potential for google to destroy voice plans forever - which would be amazing.

There are a lot of rumors that in the future you will be able to use a Google phone + Goolge voice w/ other technology to run the phone system through the internet. Thus you only need a data plan. No voice plan.

That's a good point. Google Voice could destroy phone companies. I'm trying to get Google Voice on my BlackBerry, but I'm still waiting for an invite.

[Skinz4Life12]

i have verizon and am looking at getting my first smartphone for my birthday (March 26th)

i am very interested in the droid, but now i'm wondering if i should just wait for the nexus one to come out in april.

its probably way too early to tell, but any advice on which one i should go with?

i like the idea of having both a physical keyboard and a touch screen but if the nexus one is the truly superior phone it wouldn't stop me from getting it just because it lacks a physical keyboard.

[MattFancy]

i have verizon and am looking at getting my first smartphone for my birthday (March 26th)

i am very interested in the droid, but now i'm wondering if i should just wait for the nexus one to come out in april.

its probably way too early to tell, but any advice on which one i should go with?

i like the idea of having both a physical keyboard and a touch screen but if the nexus one is the truly superior phone it wouldn't stop me from getting it just because it lacks a physical keyboard.

I would wait. I'd hold out for the Nexus One because it sounds like it will be a great phone. The Droid isn't bad, but wait for the Nexus One so you can at least try it out and then decide. If you get the Drioid now, you won't be able to get the Nexus One unless you are willing to shell out alot of cash.

[Skinz4Life12]

yea the nexus one looks pretty bad ass...

looks like i will be waiting until april (hopefully) to get this phone

[MattFancy]

Here's a review from CNet.com: http://reviews.cnet.com/cell-phones/htc-nexus-one-t/4505-6454_7-33938988.html?tag=TOCmoreStories.0

The good: The Nexus One has a gorgeous display, a lightning fast processor, and a loaded feature set. The enhanced voice capabilities worked flawlessly, and the phone delivers solid performance.

The bad: Like other Android phones, the Nexus One forces you to store apps on the internal memory. The media player remains boring and it's missing some wanted features like multi-touch support, dual-mode capability for GSM and CDMA networks, and tethering.

The bottom line: It doesn't have all the features we'd like, but the Nexus One greatly enhances the Google Android family with a fast processor, good call quality and enhanced voice control

[Skinz4Life12]

where do phones like the iphone store their apps?

[MattFancy]

where do phones like the iphone store their apps?

I think you can put them on a memory card?