Adios Nexus One, we hardly knew ya.

If you haven't heard, Google has stopped selling its Nexus One phone directly to consumers from its website. You can read the news here:
https://www.google.com/phone

Here's another story on the Nexus One's untimely death:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/07/19/nexus-one-dead-google-dis_n_650855.html

Note the video after the article in which very few people actually knew what a Nexus One was. Which is a shame, because the Nexus One is a very good phone. This was a failure of marketing, not of engineering. People didn't want to buy a phone they couldn't touch and feel, nor did they want to pay $529 for the unlocked version.

Unlocked. Remember, that was the real key to the Nexus One. Few people realized it, though. Get the phone and you're NOT locked into a contract. You can pick your carrier (I can use mine on any GSM carrier). You can buy a pay-as-you-go contract. You don't have to buy an expensive data plan, just get data via WiFi (which is all over--and you can always allow pay-as-you-go data, if necessary). That's how I use mine, and I love it. Imagine a phone where you can use it if you like. Or not, and not pay. Make calls on WiFi (no additional cost, once the WiFi is paid for).

Compare that to the other options out there. Buy an iPhone and let Steve Jobs tell you exactly what apps you can and CANNOT run on your phone (Google Voice, anyone?). Or buy an Android from most any carrier and get stuck with bloatware and overwrought customized versions of the Android software.

The Nexus One could have been a game-changer. But we, as a whole, are not smart enough to realize this or appreciate it. Let me put it in terms that most of you will understand. "Baaa. Baaa, baaa."

In retrospect, I am VERY happy that I have one. I am kicking myself for not getting one for a business phone, in addition to my personal Nexus One, while I had the chance.


Let's look at some of the issues I mentioned above. This is relevant as I look at phones from other carriers.

Bloatware on Android phones in general:
http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2010/07/bloatware-android-phones/

Bloatware on Verizon:
http://consumerist.com/2010/05/verizon-my-new-phone-has-an-incredible-amount-of-bloatware.html

Bloatware on T-Mobile:
http://geekshuiliving.com/2010/07/22/android-bloatware/

In addition to bloatware, AT&T cripples their Android phones:
http://androidandme.com/2010/03/news/att-the-most-crippled-android-experience/

In this regard, the iPhone (under Apple's strict control) is superior to most Android phones. But not superior to the Nexus One.
http://www.tipb.com/2010/07/22/true-cost-apple-control-bloatware-iphone/


As you may know, Google recently came out with the latest version of the Android software, version 2.2 called "Froyo." Nexus One owners got it as soon as it was released. All other Android phone have to wait.

Why do they have to wait? Because many cell phone makers and service providers are customizing Android to their liking. Which is another way of saying that they are screwing it up. The Motorola Droid X is the latest example.

From Gizmodo:
http://gizmodo.com/5587225/motorola-droid-x-review
"Software kneecaps this phone at nearly every corner. It makes the sizzling hardware look bad in the process. Watching this phone sputter, which it does occasionally for the even most menial of tasks, like opening the apps menu, feels more egregiously tortuous than normal, given its prodigious size and weight. It's brain-stabbingly maddening if you actually know what's inside of all that."

From Engadget:
http://www.engadget.com/2010/07/01/motorola-droid-x-review/
"From a hardware perspective, this phone is pretty much a bang-on execution of what a high-end mobile powerhouse should be, but Motorola clearly still has work to do in order to play in the same software league as HTC does with Sense. If it can get there -- or heck, if it can just offer this phone with stock Froyo -- you've got perhaps the best Android phone ever made."


Many people with Androids wonder when they'll get Froyo.
http://community.sprint.com/baw/message/172789
This post is typical. Notice this quote:
"I consider timely and regular upgrades to be part of my purchase of a Sprint Android phone. It's one of the key reasons I purchased an Android phone. I didn't drop this much money and take on a 2-year contract for an Android phone that would become outdated and unsupported in regard to upgrades within 3 months. It's bad enough that Sprint chooses to trespass on my phone's limited storage space with NASCAR and NFL apps I don't want and cannot uninstall. If Google releases an upgrade, Sprint needs to get it on my phone in the absolute shortest time possible. If it's an HTC issue, then Sprint needs to work it out with HTC, but I purchased the phone from Sprint so that's whose ultimately responsible, in my opinion. If Sprint can't handle that, then it needs to void my contract, let me return the phone, and let me move on to a service provider that can give me what I pay for."


Hear that? Just leave the Android software alone, don't force unwanted apps on us, and give us the updates in a timely fashion. Just like the Nexus One did.


August 5, 2010
P.S. There is a real advantage to being open, and getting the latest Android firmware as soon as possible. Consider these test results.
http://androidheadlines.com/2010/07/battle-the-droid-x-and-the-samsung-galaxy-s-enter-the-arena.html
http://mobile.downloadatoz.com/article,samsung-galaxy-s-compare-with-motorola-droid-x.html

The Nexus One is competitive, or even faster in most tests, as compared to the latest phone offerings such as the Motorola Droid X, the HTC Evo 4G, and the Samsung Galaxy S. There is a real speed advantage to getting the latest firmware. The Nexus One, which doesn't have to wait for phone manufacturers to customize their software builds, has a clear edge in this area.