Google Nexus One Review

The first time I heard about the Google Nexus One, I learned that it was an unlocked phone that was capable of running on multiple carriers, however, could not utilize AT&T’s 3G network.  As we are stuck with AT&T for a while, this was a massive downfall and the reason I didn’t buy one right away.

A little time passed, and Google announced a version of the device that was now compatible with AT&T 3G, I paid a little more attention to the device.  The more research I did, the more impressed I was with which is considered the “most powerful and fastest smart phone to date”.  I placed my order around 3:00 pm via www.google.com/phone, and had the device in my hands by 11:00 am the next day, thanks to the free FedEx overnight shipping.  I ignored the free engraving Google was offering, as the 7-10 day wait was just not an option.

I opened the box, powered on the device, and was truly blown away.  Within a few hours, this had easily become the best smart phone I had ever owned.  Yes, and I apologize to my friends, more so than the iPhone.  Here’s why:

Hardware:

Holding the Nexus One is very comfortable and feels sturdy.  The smooth edges and gray/black combo make this an attractive device.

Although the devices utilizes “cloud synchronizing” via Google, there is a micro USB port on the bottom that is used for PC connectivity and charging.  There are also volume buttons and a main power button to wake or power down your unit.

Similar to the Blackberry device, the Nexus One is equipped with a trackball.  In the week or so of using the unit, I used it once and it was just to see what it would do.  In my opinion, this additional hardware is a waste of space and functionally, and will never be used.

Inside the Nexus One, the Snapdragon CPU from Qualcomm powers the experience raising the bar to a whole new level.  512MB of both RAM and ROM leave some disappointed again with internal storage.  My unit shipped with a 4GB microSD card, which was quickly upgraded to 8GB out of my Blackberry.

The display is stunningly rich and bright.  It is an AMOLED (Active-matrix organic light-emitting diode or AMOLED) touch screen with 480×800 resolution.  The Nexus One also contains a proximity sensor, an accelerometer and a light sensor for dimming the screen if selected.  WiFi capabilities bundle up the deal nicely.

Other than the Snapdragon, there is nothing groundbreaking or new here, but the phone seems pleasantly responsive nonetheless.

Software:

The Nexus One ships with the Android 2.1 OS.  Not having much experience with Android, I still felt I needed to set the bar high…I was not let down.  It is HIGHLY customizable and just plain fun to use.  Unlike the iPhone, Android allows multiple applications to run at once…this is an awesome feature which feeds “widgets” that live on your screen updating 24 hours a day.

The introduction of “live wallpaper” is a neat idea for a minute, but not practical and distracted me from what I was doing.  One live wallpaper is water than when touched on the screen will ripple and move nearby floating leaves.  After tinkering with live wallpaper,  I switched to a still background almost immediately after setting up my device.

I thought about creating a video so that our readers can see Android 2.1 in action on the Nexus One, by why recreate the wheel:

Voice Quality:

The voice quality on the incoming calls is decent, however, not the best or loudest I have ever heard.  One nice addition is a noise-canceling feature, which is a lifesaver for the person on the other line.  There are two microphones built into the phone, one near your mouth, and one on the back of the device.  All of the incoming noise via the back microphone (noisy traffic, people near you, etc) is canceled while your voice is amplified for clear conversation, the feature works very well.  The only downside of this feature so far is resting the phone on your shoulder covers the back microphone and converts your voice to that of a robot (from what I’m told).

Camera:

The camera on the Nexus One is pretty impressive.  It’s 5-megapixel lens and flash took crisp, detailed images shown here.  The office photo shows off the inside capabilities while the outside shows, well, outside.  These images are scaled way down due to size.

The camera application loads MUCH faster than most other smart phone camera apps.  With my iPhone and Blackberry Bold, I was losing the “perfect photo opp” waiting for the app to load.  All around a nice camera that finally gives a reason to leave the “point and shoot” camera at home.

Apps:

Apple really set the bar with an amazing and user friendly App Store.  Although the Apple App Store boasts an insane 150,000+ apps, the Android Marketplace only has 30,000+ at press time.

The games in my opinion are of equal quality, and prices are around the same on each platform.  I have downloaded a handful of fun and productive games and apps, however, could not find a decent golf scorecard/GPS/do everything I need it to do app via the Android Marketplace as I easily did via the Apple App Store.  The Marketplace is still young, and holds a lot of promise for great apps moving forward.

Cost:

Final Thoughts:

Overall, I am very happy with this device thus far, it has met and exceeded my expectations.  Having gone though more smart phone devices than anyone I know, this is by far one of the, if not, the best one I have used.  I highly recommend this device and am excited to see where the Android OS will go from here.

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Jeremy Gibson | PCQuikFix

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