Google has finally blown the lid off of its worst-kept secret: the Android-powered Nexus One mobile phone, the first of many new smartphones that will be sold either through carriers or from Google itself, with its newly opened Web store accessible at google.com/phone.
Google's Nexus One has been hailed by many as the best Android smartphone ever, and it's not just fanboys saying this. Walt Mossberg from the Wall Street Journal confesses to liking the Nexus One a lot, saying, "It’s the best Android phone so far, in my view, and the first I could consider carrying as my everyday hand-held computer."
Even David Pogue from the New York Times, who thinks the Nexus One could have been better in several areas, points out that the introduction of this phone signals a time for celebration, because it's part of a systematic move by Google to try and shake up the market in favor of the consumers, who have been victimized for far too long by carriers taking advantage of their position.
So what else is there to know about the Nexus One? Well, it's got a 3.7-inch 480x800 touchscreen, a 5-megapixel camera with an LED flash at the back, 7.2Mbps HSDPA, 802.11 b/g/n Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 2.1+EDR and a 1GHz Qualcomm QSD 8250 processor.
There's also a load of sensors built-in to the Nexus One, including an AGPS receiver, digital compass, and accelerometer. All units currently being sold are GSM-only, and are available in the U.S., U.K., Hong Kong and Singapore. If you try to find it online at the Google phone store (at google.com/phone), there's a good chance you'll see the words Sorry, the Nexus One phone is not available in your country. scrawled on the right side of your screen.
But the Google phone store isn't the only place where you can buy the Nexus One. Apart from being sold at $529 USD unlocked, the Nexus One is also on offer from T-Mobile for $179 with a 2-year contract.
It might be a while until the Nexus One reaches the Philippines, but from the looks of it, the wait might be worth it.
Source: [Official Google Blog]
