Google's Nexus One vs. the Droid: Two Phones Dissected

JR Raphael, PC World
Jan 15, 2010 6:04 pm
Google Nexus One and the Droid.

Motorola can add one more item onto its list of Droid slogans: Droid does have more expensive hardware than the Nexus One. But only by a small margin.

 A new teardown analysis finds Motorola's flagship Android device has $179.11 worth of components inside. Google's Nexus One, on the other hand, has $174.15 worth of goodies beneath its shiny shell, according to the same company. That difference is despite the fact that the Nexus One boasts a faster processor and twice the RAM of its Motorola-made contemporary.

Now, does this finding do anything to change the value of the phones from a consumer perspective? Of course not. But for anyone intrigued by Android, it does make for some interesting trivia.

Inside the Nexus One

So here's the scoop, starting with the Nexus One. Google's high-profile phone went under the knife earlier this week. The surgeon -- a company called iSuppli -- reached its $174.15 conclusion by analyzing every piece of hardware inside the phone.

As one might expect, the Nexus One's processor -- the superfast 1 GHz Snapdragon -- is its most expensive component, accounting for $30.50 of its total bill of materials. The phone's display comes in next, with an estimated cost of $23.50. That's followed by the memory ($20.40), touchscreen assembly ($17.50), camera ($12.50), and then a host of other assorted parts.

Dissecting the Droid

The Droid, in comparison, has a very different bill. According to iSuppli, its most expensive component is its 16GB microSD card, coming in at $35. (The Nexus One is equipped with only a 4GB microSD card; both phones, however, can be upgraded to cards as high as 32GB.)

Following the card is the phone's 3.7-inch TFT LCD display, which is estimated to cost $17.75. While the Droid's display is generally regarded as being one of the best on the market, the fact that it's TFT LCD is likely why it's lower in cost than the Nexus One's OLED alternative. You can see more about the differences between those two technologies in my "Nexus One Questions and Answers" report.

Continuing downward, the Droid has a $17.50 touchscreen overlay, $14.25 camera, $14.04 baseband processor, and $12.90 applications processor. The grand total comes out to about $4.96 more than what's inside the Nexus One.

You can see iSuppli's full component breakdown for the Droid here, and for the Nexus One here. And if you own either handset, be sure to also click over to "Master Google Android: 40 Tips and Tricks," my in-depth guide to making the most of your Android experience.

Android adds another member to the family tree: Introducing "Rachael," from Sony Ericsson.

Above is a pic of the already famous Sony Ericsson Xperia X10. Due to the amount of leaks, Sony Ericsson had to go ahead and confirm all the specs (I guess there was so much hype surrounding this phone they couldn't keep the lid on it any longer). But for those of you not yet familiar with this device, here's what all the fuss is about:
* GSM GPRS/EDGE 850/900/1800/1900
* UMTS HSPA 900/1700/2100
* UMTS HSPA 800/850/1900/2100
* 4.0-inch scratch-resistant WVGA touchscreen with 480 x 854 resolution
* Qualcomm Snapdragon 1GHz processor
* 8.1-megapixel camera with 16x digital zoom, auto focus, and
geotagging
* video recording
* Bluetooth Stereo
* Media player
* Sony Ericsson Timescape and Mediascape features that handle communication and
media, respectively
* Microsoft Exchange support
* Gesture control
* A-GPS with Google Maps and Wisepilot
* 3.5mm headphone jack
* microUSB connectivity
* Wi-Fi support
* Phone
memory: up to 1 GB
* 8GB microSD card
* Android Donut 1.6
* Size: 119 x 63 x 13mm
* Weight: 135g
* 1500mAh battery

( * available February 2010, according to Sony Ericsson)

And finally, on a side note: contrary to what other internet sites are stating, the codename "Rachael" was originally being applied to the exclusive Sony Ericsson version of Android that was running on the device; not to the actual device itself.

For those are pic hungry, here are some more images of the device:

Google Cuts Nexus One Price For Some T-Mobile Subscribers

* JANUARY 15, 2010, 2:16 P.M. ET

By Scott Morrison

Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES

SAN FRANCISCO (Dow Jones)--Google Inc. (GOOG) on Friday cut the price of its Nexus One mobile phone by $100 for some buyers who are already subscribers to Deutsche Telekom AG's (DT) T-Mobile USA.

The Internet search company said existing T-Mobile subscribers with data plans were initially being charged $379 for the Nexus One, while subscribers without data plans were paying $279. Under the new pricing plans, all T-Mobile subscribers will pay $279, and those that had purchased the phone at the higher price will be refunded the difference.

The phone sells for $529 without wireless service. New subscribers, however, can buy the phone for $179 with a two-year contract from T-Mobile, currently the only U.S. carrier that provides a Nexus One wireless plan.

A Google spokesperson did not explain why the company was changing its pricing, but the move might help squelch some of the criticism that has tarnished Google's first branded phone since its launch last week.

While the phone was built by Taiwan's HTC Corp. (HTCXF, 2498.TW), Google is selling it directly to consumers through a Web store. By selling it online and convincing operators to offer wireless plans through its site, the Internet search giant wants to speed innovation, lower costs and establish a new model for the way mobile phones are sold.

But early praise was quickly overshadowed by a series of reports about connectivity snafus, customer service shortcomings and eye-opening "recovery" fees. Shares in Google were down 1.4% at $581.52.

Nexus One Naysayers Are Missing the Bigger Picture

JR Raphael, PC World
Jan 14, 2010 5:59 pm

Google's getting a bit of a beating in the media these days. Since unveiling its Nexus One Android phone last week, the company's come under fire for everything from poor customer support to poor first-week sales with its first foray into the mobile market.

The former is an issue Google will no doubt need to address. Whether they buy in a store or online, people expect a reasonable amount of guidance on something as indispensable as a cell phone. A solution could come in the form of a more robust support system by Google, or a more traditional support system by the carrier -- which, as The Wall Street Journal points out, could end up happening once the Nexus One reaches Verizon Wireless.

Assuming Google can work out the technical kinks, however, I'd argue that the sales numbers themselves may not be as big of a disappointment as some are suggesting. Here's why.

Nexus One Numbers

First, to be clear, the Nexus One sales numbers are far from official. They come from Flurry, an analytics firm that measures mobile app usage and then uses that data to make estimates about overall ownership.

With that being said, Flurry estimates that Google sold 20,000 Nexus One handsets during the phone's first week on the market. That's compared to an estimated 60,000 first-week sales for the MyTouch 3G and an estimated 250,000 for the Motorola Droid. All three phones debuted in a single country with no existing user base.

(Flurry estimates that the iPhone 3GS sold 1.6 million units in its first week; however, that phone debuted in eight countries with a substantial existing user base from previous iPhone models, so it's far less of an even comparison.)

Nexus One: The Bigger Picture

Methodology aside, Flurry's figure has led many to label the Nexus One launch as weak. Twenty-thousand, after all, is a mere fraction of the sales seen by the far more heavily marketed Droid.

Despite the disparity, though, there are a couple of important factors to keep in mind: First, assuming the Nexus One did sell only 20,000 units in its first week, it did so without any significant advertising or marketing campaign beyond Google's own pages. The Droid, in comparison, was backed by a reported initial marketing budget of $100 million. These are two very different business strategies with very different investments.

Second, and perhaps more important, raw numbers alone are likely not what the Nexus One is really about. By launching its own direct sales platform for phones, assuming it can work out those aforementioned issues, Google is setting the stage for a new kind of distribution model. One where the phone you buy is more about the operating system than the carrier, even the manufacturer. One where you look to a single Web site to find the handset you need.

Here's the thing: Google is known for focusing on long-term strategies, as we've seen with everything from Chrome to the company's ever-expanding advertising empire. While it's easy to knock the Nexus One's early numbers, there's a good chance those aren't the real measure of the project's success.

The truth is, it's far too soon to know whether Google's long-term strategy for phone sales will pay off. And, given that, it's definitely far too nearsighted to label the Nexus One a failure based on five digits and seven days.

Study claims Google will sell 5m phones this year

From: StrategyEye
By Andrew McDonald
14th January 2010

Google's Nexus One phone is set to sell 5m units this year and account for 0.4% of the world phone market, but will grow more slowly than the iPhone, according to data collected by finance site Trefis. However, the study claims the unit will account for 9.34% of Google's stock price, contributing more than Google's YouTube division or its app store Android Marketplace. Google's current market cap stands at about USD186bn.

According to the forecast, Google's Nexus One phone will account for 1.4% of the handset market in three years and 3.4% of the world's phone market by 2016. In contrast, the iPhone had a 2.2% market share in 2009 after two and a half years.

Trefis doubts the Nexus One will have the same sales response as the iPhone because Apple's device "had a novelty factor while the Nexus One is following the concept and design bar set by the iPhone". The forecast also notes that Apple's retail strategy and the media attention attracted by customers queuing outside Apple stores worked to its favour. In contrast, Google’s device is only available to buy online. A comparative shortage of Android apps could also play a part, with Google currently offering a fifth of the applications available at the Apple App Store.

The research predicts the price of the Nexus One will drop over time, with subsequent phone releases being brought in at different price points. This will have a knock-on effect on margins, with Trefis predicting that the EBITDA margin on the phone will drop from 43% in 2010 to 15% by 2016.

At its launch price of USD530, Trefis estimates Google is making a gross profit of USD231 per unit. The figure takes into account iSuppli's recent estimate that Nexus One components cost USD174, while adding on additional assumed costs including warranty and R&D costs of USD50 and HTC's profit of USD75. Marketing and selling expenses are estimated at an additional USD50 per unit.

Google Nexus Two will be 'aimed at business users' A follow-up to Google's new Nexus One mobile phone could have a physical keyboard, says Google

By Claudine Beaumont, Technology Editor
Published: 11:32AM GMT 12 Jan 2010


Peter Chou, CEO of Google Nexus One manufacturer HTC, shows off a handset. Photo: Getty

The next version of Google's Nexus One mobile phone will be designed with enterprise users in mind and might have a physical keyboard, said Andy Rubin, a vice president of engineering at Google and a key figure in the development of the Android operating system.
Reuters reports that Rubin made the comment during an interview with Walt Mossberg, a well-known technology journalist, at an event organized by his newspaper, the Wall Street Journal.

The Nexus One, which went on sale in the US last week, is seen as a direct competitor to Apple's iPhone. The device, made by Taiwanese manufacturer HTC, boasts high-speed web browsing and speech recognition for dictating emails and text messages, and runs Google's Android operating system.
But a business edition of the Nexus One could also help to pit Google's flagship device against popular corporate devices, such as Research in Motion's BlackBerry range.
An enterprise version of the handset would need to offer enhanced security options and Microsoft Exchange support, among other features, and would likely need a slide-out Qwerty keyboard for those business users who prefer tapping out emails on a physical keypad rather than the virtual keyboard favoured by the Nexus One and other similar devices.

Vodafone Nexus One Priced at 150 Euros

By Simon Sage on Wednesday, January 13th, 2010 at 1:35 PM PST



You might have heard that Google (NSDQ: GOOG)’s Nexus One Android smartphone was coming to Europe by way of Vodafone. Well, thanks to this German leak, we see that the N1 (along with the LG BL40 and N97 Mini) will be priced at at 149.90 Euros. Despite the hype, Google’s N1 sales have a ways to go to compete with even with its other Android cousins, like the Motorola (NYSE: MOT) droid. From what I’ve seen, the N1 is well-polished and all, but has little to offer that other Android handsets won’t get eventually by way of a firmware update. Who knows, maybe things go differently in Europe, but I doubt it.

Does Google's Nexus One level the playing field?

Here's the link, or just read below:

January 13th, 2010
Does Google's Nexus One level the playing field?
Posted by Joel Evans @ 1:59 pm


Apple will have you believe that you need an iPhone to have the best smartphone on the market. Now Google is trying to convince you that Android is the way to go and is even going into the market itself with its own phone: the Nexus One. While Apple touts its more than 100,000 Apps available on its App Store, Google focuses more on the phone’s features, with its Nexus One sporting its latest Android OS (Eclair / 2.1). Bundled in the new OS is a whole bunch of new features including live wallpapers, Facebook integration, voice control over just about everything in the OS, and a whole lot more.

I had some play time with the Nexus One earlier today and have to say that while I wouldn’t call it a game changer, it’s definitely raising the bar for what you can do with your mobile phone. Sure, the iPhone offers a bunch of the same features, but the Nexus One is on the level and even passing the iPhone this time around. I’ve highlighted a few of the more notable features below:

Facebook integration
Palm made a huge deal about its integration with Facebook when it launched its Palm Pre. In fact, the company even came up with a name for its technology: Synergy. Now the Nexus One does this effortlessly, too, and even launches a decent Facebook experience when you click on a Facebook-related item in the Contact on the Nexus One. Contrast that to the iPhone where the built-in Contacts App doesn’t integrate but the latest Facebook App will sync your Facebook contacts to the iPhone. I haven’t tried this yet, since the concept of an App playing with Contacts scares me, given how protective Apple has been over its core apps on the iPhone.

Live wallpapers
This is more of a gimmick but it shows off the power of the Nexus One. It also reminds me of what I don’t like about the iPhone: it’s ability to do true multitasking and offer more customization options.

Voice to text
Brian showed me how Voice control and voice-to-text is integrated into just about everything on the Nexus One and I managed to capture some of this on video below. In the example he speaks the phrase “my hovercraft is full of eels”, and the Nexus One nails it on the first try. He then clicks a button and the Nexus One speaks the phrase in French–beat that iPhone!



Keyboard
One of the things I hated about older Android phones was the keyboard experience. HTC improved upon that but with the Nexus One it seems that its speedy enough and accurate enough that you don’t need HTC’s enhancements. Granted, I’d love to see what HTC can do with the Nexus One base given what the company has done with earlier versions of the Android OS.

User experience
The Android OS has come a long way since its inception and that evolution coupled with the speed of the Qualcomm QSD 8250 1 GHz processor makes for an incredible experience.

I think the most interesting thing about my play time with the Nexus One was that I had no desire to go into the App Store. As a matter of fact, it seems to ship with just about everything you need.

I’m still a bit troubled by the business model around the Nexus One and believe that Google could have just as easily given this reference design to HTC to bring it to all carriers and not just T-Mobile, but like everything Google, there’s probably a method to the company’s madness.

Now I’m debating about getting a Nexus One myself, as the customizability of it has reminded me of just how restricted I feel when using the iPhone.

Customer Service Will Be Nexus One's Achilles Heel

(As always, here's the original link [or just read the story below]: http://www.pcworld.com/article/186847/customer_service_will_be_nexus_ones_achilles_heel.html)

Google simply doesn't have the kind of customer support that mobile-phone users are accustomed to.

Tom Kaneshige, CIO.com
Jan 13, 2010 5:09 pm


Google's comeuppance is at hand, as two of the most innovative Silicon Valley companies face off. I'm betting the veteran Apple iPhone clobbers newcomer Google Nexus One in the early rounds.

It won't come down to cooler technology, nor better battery life. Wireless carriers? Nope, despite a great many iPhone owners and wannabe owners begging for Apple to end its exclusivity deal with AT&T. Google's arrogance will lead to its downfall.

For whatever reason, Google is selling Nexus One directly to end-users. That means many users are turning to it first, reports IDG News Service, and the search giant doesn't have the kind of customer support that mobile-phone users are accustomed to.

Wireless carrier T-Mobile lacks Nexus One support documents and refers people back to Google, according to a customer going by the name of Roland78. IDG News Service also reports that Google appears to be only accepting email customer queries and pledges to reply in one or two days.

Among consumers, that's not going to cut it.

Sure, Google serves up a search engine for consumers but the money-making end of its operation has little to do with consumers. Google's soaring revenue comes from advertising deals. In these business relationships, Google dictates terms and wields enormous power.

Only a handful of business titans like Rupert Murdoch have defied Google. Murdoch's take on content aggregators: "These people are not investing in journalism. They're feeding off the hard-earned efforts and investments of others ... To be impolite, it's theft."

Google recently made it easier for news sites to opt-out of Google News, yet it's still fair to say that Google isn't known for great customer service. But Google better change its ways with Nexus One—with smartphones, consumers sit in the driver's seat.

Apple, on the other hand, has a cadre of Apple gurus in Apple Stores nationwide at the ready. Its vast customer service outlets have evolved over the years. For the most part, the iPhone is supported extremely well. Apple is perhaps the greatest consumer-focused tech vendor on the planet. (For business customers, Apple customer service lags behind nearly all major competitors.)

All of this means that Google will go through growing pains as it learns about direct sales and supporting consumers. In the emerging smartphone market, however, a learning curve can turn into a death knell especially when you're going head-to-head with Apple.

I should mention that there is a precedent. Years ago, chip giant Intel decided it wanted a piece of the consumer's heart and mind. Intel, which already owned a lion's share of the market, apparently felt that simply creating the best technology wasn't good enough to ensure its future success.

So Intel launched a marketing campaign that called for putting "Intel Inside" stickers on all computers with Intel chips. Prior to this, most consumers had no idea what processors drove their computers. Intel put itself squarely in the headlights of fickle consumers.

Then a techie found a bug in the Intel chip during massive computations. Never mind that virtually no consumer would ever run into the problem. Consumers cried foul. Intel didn't have any experience containing consumer outrage.

The end result: Intel dumped millions of dollars worth of chips. (For many reasons, Intel eventually cemented its position as the king of chips while underdog AMD continues to run a distant second.)

Google will likely receive a giant dose of humility, too. While Apple may not be an angel, at least it knows how to keep consumers happy.

Google Nexus One's First Week of Sales Were Weak, Report says

(Here's the actual link: http://www.pcworld.com/article/186796/google_nexus_ones_first_week_of_sales_were_weak_report_says.html)

Google Nexus One's First Week of Sales Were Weak, Report says

Daniel Ionescu, PC World

Jan 13, 2010 9:19 am

Report: Poor First Week Sales for Google Nexus OneBig hype didn't equal big sales for Google's Nexus One. According to reports only 20,000 Google Nexus One phones were sold in its first week of sales, according to sales estimates from market research firm Flurry. In comparison to its Android sibling the numbers are 12 times lower than for the Motorola Droid and 80 times lower than for the iPhone 3GS.

The Nexus One didn't benefit from such a strong marketing push like the Motorola Droid (estimated $100 million), despite Google's phone featuring so-far unique Android features. This has reflected in poor first week sales for the Nexus One, as per the table below. (Click image above to enlarge)

Instead, Google chose a soft launch for the Nexus One, selling it through their website. But the steep $500 Google is asking for the unlocked device and the mixed reviews the Nexus One received didn't help to maximize first week sales.

Flurry's report mentions that the Nexus One lacks the "wow factor" and the general perception that the device is not seen as revolutionary, but rather just evolutionary from other Android phones.

Om Malik, of GigaOm, notes that Flurry's estimated sales numbers for the Nexus One might even be a bit far fetched. He mentions Google has been giving away the Nexus One to its employees and also lent it to many members of the media for reviews, which could have bumped up Flurry's analytics.

Next to the poor first week sales figure, the Nexus One has also seen mounting complaints over the 3G connectivity of the device and the lack of developer tools for the Android 2.1 platform.

In her review of the Nexus One, my colleague Ginny Mies notes that Google's phone "isn't quite the game-changer people hoped it would be, though it certainly trumps other phones in performance, display quality, and speed." Next to pros like a dazzling OLED display, snappy performance and sleep, slim design, she marks the lack of multitouch support and the software keyboard as cons.

New HTC Android codenames discovered in leaked 2.1 ROM

Buried deep within the code in the leaked 2.1 ROM is a list of codenames for current and future HTC Android handsets. The list includes the Bahamas, Bravo, DesireC, Dragon, Dream, Espresso, Halo, HeroCT, HeroC, Hero, Huangshan, Incredible, Legend, Liberty, Memphis, Paradise, PassionC, Passion, Sapphire and Supersonic. A few of the of the names, like the Dream and Hero, we easily recognize. But new device names, like the Huangshan and Espresso, we have never even seen before. Despite the presence of some familiar names, this list generates more questions than answers. And, we just have to wonder, with very descriptive codenames like “Incredible” and “Supersonic”, what is HTC planning?

(Here's the original link: http://dailydroidblog.com/2009/12/new-htc-android-codenames-discovered-in-leaked-2-1-rom/)

How to unlock and root a Nexus One

(The video, links, and full article are available at this link: http://androidandme.com/2010/01/hacks/video-how-to-unlock-and-root-a-nexus-one/ Otherwise, just read below for the unlocking info.)


Everyone seems to appreciate it when we do guides and hacks so I thought it was time to film another. Today we will be hacking the new Nexus One.

This is not a beginners guide. If you are a beginner, you should not be hacking your phone. These instructions assume you have previously hacked at least one Android device.
Before we begin

Make sure you have accomplished the following things

* Installed the USB drivers (grab them from Google or XDA)
* Confirm your device is recognized by ADB (see CyanogenMod Wiki or XDA for help)
* Backed up any important data from your device

Watch the video walk through once to get a preview of the entire process. Your first time might take you 30 minutes, but it can be completed in less than 10.



Step 1: Unlock your bootloader

In order to flash a new recovery image, you must unlock your bootloader. This process is quite simple, but it will wipe your phone.

* Reboot phone into fastboot: Power off device and hold down trackball while powering back on. (The fastboot screen is the one with the Androids on skateboards)
* Open a command prompt and navigate to your Android SDK tools folder.
* Type ‘fastboot devices‘ to make sure your phone is recognized.
* Type ‘fastboot oem unlock‘ to unlock the bootloader.
* Use volume keys to navigate to yes and press the power button to confirm.

Step 2: Flash a new recovery image

Next we will download a new recovery image that allows us to flash custom zip packages.

* Visit XDA and download Amon_RA’s recovery image for the Nexus One.
* Copy the file to your Android SDK tools folder.
* Open a command prompt and navigate to your Android SDK tools folder.
* Type ‘fastboot flash recovery recovery-RA-nexus-v1.5.3.img‘. (Note filename will change as recovery image is updated)

Step 3: Boot into recovery mode and flash N1 Addon

Now that the new recovery image is installed, it is time to reboot into recovery mode and flash a custom zip package. Since your phone was just wiped, you might have to enable usb debugging again so ADB and fastboot commands will work.

Double check: Go to Settings > Application settings > Development > USB debugging (enable)

For this guide we will be flashing Cyanogen’s N1 Addon.

* Visit XDA and download Cyanogen’s N1 Addon. (or any other custom .zip file you want to flash)
* Copy the .zip file to the root directory of your SD card.
* Open a command prompt and navigate to your Android SDK tools folder.
* Type ‘adb reboot recovery‘ to reboot the phone into recovery mode. (The recovery screen says “Android system recovery” with green text on black background)
* Use the trackball to navigate to “Flash zip from sdcard” and then select the zip file you wish to flash.
* Follow the on screen instructions. Press the trackball to begin the flash when prompted.
* When the flash is complete, navigate to reboot and press the trackball to reboot.

Congratulations, you are finished and it is now time to download some root apps from the Android Market. Search the Market for SetCPU for Root Users, Nexus One Torch, or use the term “Nexus root” and see what you find.

Is the Nexus One honeymoon over for Google?

January 12, 2010 | 11:15 am
It was just a week ago that Google officially unveiled its widely anticipated new phone, the Nexus One, and its new strategy designed to disrupt the mobile industry, an online store. Android fans rejoiced.

Then came customer questions about service plans, upgrades, shipping, etc. Surprise: Google doesn't have the mobile industry's army of customer support folks to respond, just FAQs, forums and e-mail. The slow response ticked off some. Then today shoppers discovered a penalty for early withdrawal.

"Prepare the foot soldiers from the Internet Nerd Rage army for this one," says MobileCrunch. "Apparently if you buy a subsidized Google Nexus One and 'cancel your wireless plan prior to 120 days of continuous wireless service,' you’ll be charged the difference between what you paid for the device and its full retail price of $529. So at its current subsidized price of $179, you’d pay a $350 early termination fee. That fee is paid to Google, by the way, 'and is in addition to any early termination fees that may be charged by your chosen carrier.'"

Google did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

-- Jessica Guynn

Google Nexus One phone parts cost $174: iSuppli

Here's the direct link, or just read the article below the link:

http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE60A4HJ20100112?type=technologyNews


SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Google Inc's new Nexus One smartphone, which retails for $529 without a service plan, is built from components that cost about $174, according to a research report.

Technology | Media

But analysts said the big gap between the components' costs and the phone's price tag did not necessarily mean the Internet giant was making a hefty profit, since the retail price includes expenses such as licensing fees and marketing costs.

"You can't base margins off of costs alone," said Canaccord Adams analyst Peter Misek, noting that a variety of expenses are not reflected in so-called teardown reports, which dissect an electronics device and take inventory of the various parts.

Google began selling the Nexus One, which is made by HTC Corp, on its website last week, its first foray into selling electronics devices directly to consumers. The retail price is $529, but if a buyer agrees to a two-year contract with Deutsche Telekom's T-Mobile USA, the carrier will subsidize the phone and it costs only $179.

According to the teardown by research firm iSuppli, the cost of the Nexus One's various components, including $30.50 for the 1Ghz Qualcomm Inc Snapdragon processor and $17.50 for the Synaptics Inc touchscreen, totals $174.16.

In a note to investors last week, Goldman Sachs analyst James Mitchell estimated that the Nexus One's component costs were $300.

The bill of materials cited by iSuppli does not include other costs such as manufacturing, software and royalties -- all of which are factored in when calculating gross profit margin on a product.

Charter Equity Research analyst Edward Snyder said smartphone vendors typically achieve gross margins around 30 percent.

He said the iSuppli report suggested Google would make a "decent" margin on the product, but added that it was impossible to know exactly how much.

Analysts also noted that the component costs are the costs borne by HTC to produce the phone, with Google then likely paying HTC a mark-up to buy and resell the phones.

The Nexus One, which competes with Apple's iPhone and Research in Motion's Blackberry devices, is the first of a variety of smartphones that Google said were in the pipeline as the company seeks to expand its reach from the PC to the mobile world and ensure its online products and ads get prominent placement.

During an event unveiling the phone last week, Google Vice President of Engineering Andy Rubin said the company had an opportunity for an undisclosed margin selling the Nexus One.

(Reporting by Alexei Oreskovic; editing by John Wallace)

Phone Faceoff: Nexus One Vs. iPhone 3GS

Go and vote for the Nexus One! Click on the link below and vote!

http://mashable.com/2010/01/11/nexus-one-vs-iphone/

Here is a copy of the article; you must actually go to the link though to vote.

Now that the Nexus One has been revealed and the Android-based smartphones are beginning to ship worldwide, it’s time to evaluate whether the Google Phone really can stand up to the giant that is Apple’s iPhone, specifically the 3GS.

From our tests of the Nexus One, we know that it’s a stellar phone, but we want your opinion for this week’s Web Faceoff, our weekly poll series where we let you, the readers, determine which web apps or tools deserve your love.

A month ago, we pitted Android against the iPhone OS, and to our amazement the Android platform won by 36 percent.

Can Google (Google) pull off yet another upset with its Nexus One? We’ll let you have the final say with the poll and the comments section below. This week’s poll closes on Friday, January 15, at 12:00 p.m. PT.

Nexus One development commences with Android 2.1 SDK update

Here's the latest thanks to betanews:

Nexus One development commences with Android 2.1 SDK update

In addition to launching the latest skirmish in the mobile platform/mobile carrier wars, Google and HTC's Nexus One smartphone also introduced the world to Android 2.1.

Before the Nexus One came out, the Motorola Droid launched in a similar fashion, where the device ran Android 2.0 exclusively before the SDK component was released to the public and other devices were upgraded.

Last night, the Android 2.1 SDK component was released, turning over the full 2.1 platform and new APIs to developers.

Unlike Android 2.0 (Eclair), version 2.1 is only a minor platform update which didn't get its own sweet confectionary name. It doesn't add any significant user features, but does add the much-discussed "live wallpaper" framework API, which will let developers take advantage of animated background screens. The Android Market, no doubt, will soon be flooded with animated clock wallpapers.

Nothing else has been added with the 2.1 SDK, but a number of crucial framework APIs have been changed, including SignalStrength, which lets network conditions affect the behavior of an application, and WebChromeClient which includes new methods for handling Web video, browser history, custom views, app cache limits, and so forth.

In addition to the new SDK component, Google's Android developers have also released a new USB driver so the Nexus One can be used to test applications when connected to a Windows computer.

The new components are available now at developer.android.com

HTC admits customers have Nexus One 3G trouble, not yet blaming the phone

HTC admits customers have Nexus One 3G trouble, not yet blaming the phone
By Scott M. Fulton, III | Published January 11, 2010, 10:00 PM

Read the story here:

http://www.betanews.com/article/HTC-admits-customers-have-Nexus-One-3G-trouble-not-yet-blaming-the-phone/1263265252

Google Nexus One - TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

Physical Dimensions Height: 119mm
Width: 59.8mm
Depth: 11.5mm
Weight: 130g with battery; 100g without battery

Storage Flash: 512MB
RAM: 512MB
SD card: 4GB MicroSD card included (expandable to 32GB)

Camera, Photos, Video 5-Megapixel camera
Mechanical autofocus
2x digital zoom
LED flash
User can include location of photos from phone's GPS receiver

Cellular & Wireless UMTS Band 1/4/8 (2100/AWS/900)
HSDPA 7.2Mbps
HSUPA 2Mbps up to 5.76Mbps
GSM/EDGE (850, 900, 1800, 1900 MHz)
Wi-Fi (802.11 a/b/g/n)
Bluetooth 2.1 + EDR
A2DP stereo Bluetooth

Location AGPS receiver
Cell tower and Wi-Fi positioning
Digital compass
Accelerometer

Display 3.7-inch WVGA AMOLED screen

Buttons & Controls Physical power key
Physical volume up/down key
Tricolor, clickable trackball
4 illuminated softkeys (Black, Menu, Home, Search)
Haptic feedback
Teflon-coated back cover

Connectors and sensors Dock pins
3.5mm, 4-connector, stereo headset jack
Earpiece
Speaker
Microphone
Second microphone for active nise cancellation
SIM card slot
MicroSD card slot
Proximity sensor
Light sensor
Tricolor charging and notification indicator LED

Processor QUALCOMM QSD 8250, 1GHz

Audio decoders AACL LC/LTP, HE-AACv1 (AAC+), HE-AACv2 (enhanced AAC+)
Mono/Stereo standard bit rate up to 160kbps and sampling
rates from 8kHz to 48kHz
AMR-NB 4.75-12.2kbps sampled @ 8kHz
AMR-WB 9 rates from 6.60kbit/s to 23.85kbit/s sampled @ 16kHz
MP3 mono/stereo 8-320Kbps constant bit rate (CBR) or variable bit-rate (VBR)
MIDI SMF (Type 0 and 1), DLS Version 1 and 2, XMF/Mobile
XMF, RTTTL/RTX, OTA, iMelody
Ogg Vorbis
WAVE

Audio encoders AMR-NB 4.75-2.2KBPS SAMPLED @ 8kHz

Platform (OS) Android mobile technology platform 2.1 (Eclair)

Image formats JPEG (encode and decode)
GIF
PNG
BMP

Video decoders H.263
MPEG-4 SP
H.264 AVC

Video encoders H.263
MPEG-4 SP

Power & battery Removable 1400 m/AH battery

Talk time: Up to 10 hours on 2G
Up to 7 hours on 3G

Standby time: Up to 290 hours on 2G
Up to 250 hours on 3G

Internet use: Up to 5 hours on 3G
Up to 6.5 hours on Wi-Fi

Video playback: Up to 7 hours

Audio playback: Up to 20 hours

Here are the Snapdragon Specific Libraries found:

* Proximity Sensor/Light Sensor: Capella CM3602 per sensors.mahimahi.so in Nexus One ROM Dump.
* Accelerometer: BMA150 3-axis Accelerometer per sensors.mahimahi.so in Nexus One ROM Dump.
* Magnetic Compass: AK8973 3-axis Magnetic field sensor/AK8973 Orientation sensor per sensors.mahimahi.so in Nexus One ROM Dump.
* Wifi Radio / Bluetooth / FM: BCM4329 in lib/modules
* In libaudio.so I found “Routing audio to Speakerphone with back mic” reference.
* In libaudio.so I found “Stereo FM speaker” also referenced.
* Audience A1026 Noise Canceling Chip – No link but here is the A1024 found in libaudio.so
* Qualcomm QSD8K Specific hardware libs in lib/hw (QSD8250 Probably)
* Adreno 200 Graphics Core with OpenGLES 2.0 – Part of Snapdragon?
* Camera Info Vague, found some references to auto focus, flash, white balance and anti-banding in libcamera.so

Welcome!

WELCOME TO THE NEXUS ONE AND ANDROID MOBILE PHONES!


Hello everyone! This blog will keep you up to date on the latest from Google and their Android platforms/partners. Since the Nexus One is the "Official" Google Phone (at least for now), this site will be dedicated to bringing you the latest news, info, pics, etc. regarding the Nexus One; as well as news from other Android phones. As time progresses, this site will expand and cover more mobile platforms, so stay tuned! Thanks for now,
-Andrew