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Initial Sales of Original iPhone, Droid, and Nexus One Compared
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One app - really? I am pretty sure I can install dozens and not need more. (As a bonus I can run all the dozen at once and switch between them - howzzat!) Also Google is said to be working on an update to remove that restriction. Plus - its open, so I could just mod the firmware to pickup apps from SD card or change partitioning such that more is available for 3rd party apps. Hey I can't do any of this on the iPhone
From a Google Engineer -
All Nexus One devices have an unlockable bootloader (% fastboot oem unlock), which, once unlocked will allow you to reflash the boot partition (kernel + ramdisk), system partition, etc.
I did do an update ( and it took 4 days from the UPS guy picking my phone up until I got it back. The support from HTC UK was fantastic but (and this is a huge but) it had nothing on my iPhone 3g exchange I did with the local Apple store.
I literally took it in after booking an appointment with Apple, the genius looked at it, went out back and swapped it there and then. Never before has a company resolved an issue in such a non challenging way as my exchange went with Apple.
Without an AT&T plan to go with it that doesn't not have subsidy fees built into it, probably only a modest increase. You are mainly going to get folks who have a phone a family or some kind of deal who swap SIM cards into the Nexus One. Not sure what plans Rogers has that don't include built in subsidizes.
There was a previous comment about how T-mobile was worse than Sprint, AT&T, and Verizon as a choice. A similar comment was how the T-mobile had an exclusive deal with Nexus One. Both of those totally miss the fact that Google has as one of the primary objectives of with Nexus One is trying to bust the "subsidized phone" model. It is an unlocked phone. Preplexed how that can be an "exclusive" deal when there is no lock and sold side-by-side with the unsubsidized version.
T-mobile does not have an exclusive deal. The phone is sold unlocked !!! How many other major new phones comes out unlocked ????? The iPhone tried to push on the unsubsidized phone model, but it was locked. Google is trying to do something that even Apple did even attempt to do. Whether it works out better or not depends upon your perspective.
T-mobile is also the only major vendor in US that has plans for unlocked phones ( lower monthly rates for unlocked phones. ). You might be able to swap a "no cost" , pay-go ATT phone's SIM card into a nexus one , but you are working around the fact that the majors don't have unlocked plans. However, it does make lots of sense to target T-mobile because only plans with no built in subsidy make sense. ( otherwise the customer is giving "free money" to the carrier to pay for a phone that they already paid for. I'm sure ATT and Verizon would love that ... but doesn't seem likely millions of customers will do that. )
The deployment problem for Nexus one is that it has yet to do major deployed yet into numerous countries where the common model is unlocked, unsubsidized phones. That just got unblocked.
It also isn't going to hurt Google if that just simply make the money back on the phone's development. They don't have to "print profits" off the phone , just get the R&D money back for them and HTC. Then Google can pick Sony-Er, Moto, or perhaps HTC again to do another "push the platform" phone. It is the platform that matters, not the Google's maximizing vertical sales.
As far as Nexus One being a "failure". Let's see. 135K over 70 days. Let's say they do 55K a month for rest of year ( lowballing since worldwide rollout is continuing and now have phone that works on most 3G networks. )
About 660 yearly rate. At about $500 that's $330M . That's substantive revenue for a 'failure'. Nor does it account for the viral marketing campaign to finally get kick in. Shouldn't be too hard to boost that into the 800K - 1M range. That's likely a break-even amount.
Success or failure is more so defined as having enough resources to continue the fight.
If the objective is to move the standard tech used on Android platform phones forward Nexus One is fairly successful. Likewise given Google didn't have much of customer service org beforehand a less peak loaded, but sustained growth rate is a far more optimal move. Finally, it would make zerosense for Google to get into an advertising war that might have collateral damage on Droid. More Droid phones is also a win for Google !
If Droid had been a colossal flop it might have made sense to jump and raise up a more populist champion for Android, but it wasn't. So there little wrong with a lower key, sustanined growth launch for Nexus One.
I don't think Google thinks will get rid of the subsidy model in one blow with the Nexus One. It will take chipping away at it over a long term. They have money for long term issues. Also doesn't hurt that the volume is lower (allowing the Android partners to learn and/or shine. )
The only "battle" Google will loose are these fan boy "my thing is bigger than your thing" , crotch grabbing, pissing matches on discussion boards. Long term, that stuff doesn't matter. They aren't really strategically significant.
Those are carrier offers and absolutely nothing to do with HTC/Motorola. Verizon had paid for the handsets and got to charge a 2nd line for the 'free' phone.
What is the problem with that?
We don't know what data Apple is collecting about us, or how they're using it. Locations services, log data, application usage statistics, iTunes, and who knows what else.
We also don't know everything that Google does behind closed doors with our data, but if their statements are to be believed, you have the option of opting out of most of the data collection, seeing what they collect, and their claim that the data is anonymized and aggregate only after a period of time.
At least with Google's data collection, you're aware that's what they exist for, and can act accordingly. With Apple, and all the other people you use devices from (TiVo anyone?), you're not even sure what they're collecting, and what they're doing with it.
Google's also unique in that no other company has so many privacy advocates and groups scrutinizing everything it does and shouting it out to the rest of the world.
I've gotten over most of my paranoia over Google, I hope I don't live to regret that.
You do realise I'm in the UK and bought my Nexus One direct from Google don't you?
http://www.google.co.uk/support/forum/p/android/thread?tid=43f71cbcbdf528e2&hl=en
Can I just ask, I'm seriously interested in getting the Nexus One to replace my G1. Do you mind if I ask how much it cost overall with taxes and so forth to get it shipped to the UK?
I am not as techie as most of you but iPhone serves my purposes very well. Especially, I can write Chinese to my parent and they can write back as well. I don't know if Nexsus one can do that but I think it can translate it well. Also Exchange is a biggie for my work as well. It makes calendar that much more useful.
I am sure Nexsus one is great and sure looks like a good phone. Competition will bring out the best of these companies.
This..
So true and totally made me laugh.
The fanboi stuff is getting really old eh?
I love my iMac and I like my G1 although I am starting to feel its age and wanting an upgrade.
I think Apple's success has a lot to do with the fact that the ipod is the media player of choice for most people.
Its just a fact, most people prefer an ipod regardless of features or functionality.
So an ipod that can surf the web and make phone calls and do other stuff is even better.
I NEVER listen to music on my G1, I just don't. Of course the stupid bloody usb headphones don't help. Now THAT was a bad idea.
Those are carrier offers and absolutely nothing to do with HTC/Motorola. Verizon had paid for the handsets and got to charge a 2nd line for the 'free' phone.
What is the problem with that?
Who says Verizon had already paid for the handsets? In those situations where a handset isn't popular and not selling, the manufacturer generally takes the hit, not the carrier. Carriers aren't that stupid.
The total was around £430, £60 of that going to our lovely government in taxes.
Initially I only paid the $529 + $30 shipping with the tax bill coming in 4 weeks later so you don't have to pay that all upfront.
It's not paranoia. I've met a few guys who used to work for Google, and they basically admitted Google got where it is today from the selling of personal information (which is perfectly legal, assuming the user is properly informed, which is debatable). That's pretty much fact. I don't care what they know about me, that wasn't the point, the point was the discrepancy of the individuals claim that Apple did A while Google doesn't do A. In fact, it would be more precise to admit that Google is making their stake in the system through selling out their users. As for opting out, where is the option to opt out of Google using your searches to sell your data to corporate America and its advertisers?
How has Apple used the sale of its customers to gain a profit? With a lot of money in the bank and selling more products than Google, I'd gather that Apple has made it with the sale of their hardware and software products and iTunes, especially with the hugely successful sales of their mobile devices such as the iPod and iPhone. Also, didn't Apple just celebrate the 10,000,000,000th iTunes download? With a roughly 30% tax on every iTunes purchase/download, that's a lot of profit.
Sweet, cheaper than Ebay then. Last question I promise, how long did it take to arrive?
If the carriers hadn't paid for the handsets they wouldn't have them.
Do you really think they work on a "Give us a million handsets and we will try to sell them but if not we'll give them away" model?
RIM/HTC and Motorola couldn't keep that up for long.
You need to take a closer look. Verizon has a history of Bogo. AT&T on the other hand I can not think of any of their smart phones they go BOGO with. Hell they normally cost more than the other carriers.
Just over a week. If you do order one, forewarn your credit card company and the payment should go through easier to speed things up.
How is Google controlling your Internet experience or your owning your information? Sure they make money off the Internet/advertising but I don't think they sell your private data nor do they dictate what sites you can visit or what software you can run on your computer or Phone.
Apple has, under the guise of totally illogical explanations made up by the biased Media, controlled everything for their profit. Plain and simple. It's like the dictatorship present in some countries - except no dictator looks as shiny/clever and media has no reason to be biased towards them
IOW the whole 'control in the name of user experience' thing is B.S - its all a profit for control and control for profit - me and mine, all mine thing. Very narrow minded and evil.A) I have no carrier choice B) I have no choice of what software I can and I cannot run. C) Developers do not have a choice - they have to do what Apple wants them to do and then hope their app will be approved - then they have to pay 30% of the sales, and then live in fear - the app can be yanked any time D) I need to have Mac hardware to develop for iPhone. etc. I don't have to repeat all that.
Sure if you like to be told what is good for you and feel comfortable inside the garden - good for you. Many people can't stand being walled. No matter how many 'good sounding' reasons you give them.
If the carriers hadn't paid for the handsets they wouldn't have them.
Do you really think they work on a "Give us a million handsets and we will try to sell them but if not we'll give them away" model?
.
You really think that's how business works--that any time someone like a carrier is "stocking" a product for sale, it's already bought and paid for with no chargebacks, etc. for future events? That if it's a complete POS, that the carrier is stuck with it? No way. The very best a manufacturer is going to do in those situations is shared pain.
There is no real difference between what is called "subsidize" ( cover costs of the phone for the customer and then incrementally retrieve the money back) and putting it on a credit card. The difference is primarily in the label slap on it, not in effect. ( OK perhaps the phone company's interest rate may be smaller these days. )
There is a major difference in a subsidy that is in effect a grant ( you don't have to pay it back directly) and a subsidy that is really a upfront loan.
Very few cars are bought with cash.
It isn't really just the cell phone industry or else the tactic would not work as well as it does. Lots of other "lower the upfront costs" gadgets are used to get people into "higher than they want to spend" items. Car dealers will typically ask the question "what can you afford as a monthly payment" and then whip out the mechanism that hits that amount. Leasing , extended years on car loan , trade-ins , etc . etc. etc.
Similar with rebates , 0% financing , etc. Most of it is gear to get folks on the financing treadmill with minimal resistance. Same with the cell contract where the provider can recover the cost of the phone over time.
Go to the Apple online store and see if you don't find "you can have this for just $XX a month" appear on the screen next to any high ticket item.
How is Google controlling your Internet experience or your owning your information? Sure they make money off the Internet/advertising but I don't think they sell your private data nor do they dictate what sites you can visit or what software you can run on your computer or Phone.
Apple has, under the guise of totally illogical explanations made up by the biased Media, controlled everything for their profit. Plain and simple. It's like the dictatorship present in some countries - except no dictator looks as shiny/clever and media has no reason to be biased towards them
A) I have no carrier choice B) I have no choice of what software I can and I cannot run. C) Developers do not have a choice - they have to do what Apple wants them to do and then hope their app will be approved - then they have to pay 30% of the sales, and then live in fear - the app can be yanked any time D) I need to have Mac hardware to develop for iPhone. etc. I don't have to repeat all that.
Sure if you like to be told what is good for you and feel comfortable inside the garden - good for you. Many people can't stand being walled. No matter how many 'good sounding' reasons you give them.
Now I look on the other side of the fence where its filled with BSDs, Linuxs and other OpenSource software. Then I look back over on my side of the fince where theres a 'dictator' company and a company that undermines competition. I see usable software.
Then I ask you
So control doesnt have anything to do with GUI implementation then?
what kind of phone plan do you have now? I am interested in trying to get this to work under my BB data plan and wanted to know how you plan on getting it setup.
Well, I know Google has at least one new Nexus One buyer as a result of releasing it for AT&T's frequencies. Mine should be here tomorrow
That's ridiculous. Show me where I can find more about your diet, I am willing to pay top dollar to Google for that information