Many phones have come out which claim to be the next iPhone killer, however often fall short of this claim. Apple has cleverly carved a niche for themselves in the realm of apps, music, and portable media with the iPhone. So in this article we will take a look at Google’s new phone, the Nexus One, and see if it stacks up to all the hype. Below is a comparison chart of important features:
iPhone 3Gs | Nexus One | |
Cell Service | AT&T | T-Mobile, (Verizon coming soon) |
Touch Screen | 3.5 in. | 3.7 in. |
3.5mm Headphone Jack | Yes | Yes |
Camera | Yes | Yes |
Camera Resolution | 3 megapixel | 5 megapixel |
Camera Flash | No | Yes |
Video Record | Yes | Yes |
Speech Dictation | No | Yes |
Multimedia Messaging | Yes | Yes |
Size | 115.5 mm High x 62.1 mm wide x 12.3 mm deep | 119mm High x 59.8 mm Wide x 11.5 mm Deep |
Applications Available (approx) | 100,000 | 10,000 |
GPS Enabled | Yes | Yes |
External Microphone | Yes | Yes (Noise Cancelling) |
Price | 199.99 | 179.99 |
Downloadable Applications | Yes | Yes |
So what does all this mean? The nexus one has a number of interesting features which some iPhone users have been craving such as voice dictation (meaning you can speak into the phone and it types out your messages). This feature will go over well with those who like to text as it is much easier and removes the need for a keyboard. It also has a higher resolution camera and an LED flash. These are upgrades over the iPhone’s lackluster camera. As more and more people use camera phones as their primary way of taking pictures, this was a smart move on Google’s part. The price point also being lower than the iPhone does help as well. The points where the iPhone edge out the Nexus One are in storage (Nexus One has only 4GB while the iPhone comes with 16 or 32 GB). Note that the Nexus one can be expanded all the way up to 32 GB, but that will incur extra cost through the purchase of a micro SD card (the small storage cards you often see in digital cameras and other phones). The iPhone also has the Nexus One beat in the application department with over 10 times more applications than the iPhone. The positive to this is that people are constantly developing new applications for the Google phones and should eventually catch up to the iPhone. The final comparison is the cellular service. The iPhone is currently offered only on the AT&T network (although that will soon change), which has a spotty at best data (3G) network and a questionable cellular network which typically makes you loose signal as soon as you enter a structure such as a house or office building. While I cannot say that I am impressed with AT&T and their overpriced, underperforming network, the carrier who Google chose to launch this new phone is definitely inferior to AT&T. The Nexus One was released on the T-Mobile network who provides a weak data network and spotty cell coverage. The saving grace in this is that Google will very soon launch the phone on Verizon where it will most likely discontinue the Droid phone which they have been pushing so fervently.
The final word:
The Nexus One is superior to the iPhone physically in a number of ways, from the camera, to the voice dictation capability. Where the Nexus One falls short is in the application and software integration side which the iPhone (combined with iTunes) definitely has an edge. The other area where the Nexus One falls short is the cellular service. While AT&T by no means is the best provider out there, they definitely trump T-Mobile in both their data and cellular networks. Both of these shortcomings can be, and most likely will be, overcome by Google Developers. So, is Nexus One the next iPhone killer, or just a passing fad? The solid foundation that Google is building with this new phone definitely has the ability to rival and eventually overtake the iPhone, however only time will tell if this actually happens.
