Anand's Google Nexus One Review
by Anand Lal Shimpi on April 3, 2010 3:40 AM EST- Posted in
- Smartphones
- Mobile
Final Words
I've never felt such a lengthy review was so incomplete by the time I reached the end. There's not much more to be said about the Nexus One itself. The hardware is fast, the frame rate issues are annoying and do detract from the overall experience. The screen is beautiful, the form factor great to hold but not my favorite to type on. Battery life is a sore spot if you actually use your phone a lot. You get everything you need with the Nexus One out of the box, which you should given that if you want to use it on AT&T's network or buy it sans contract it'll cost you $529.
Where I do have more to say, but limited time to do it is on the software side. There's just so much to the Android platform and so many great apps out today. Far too many for me to include in a single review. Former AnandTech Editor and DailyTech Editor at Large, Kris Kubicki heard I was reviewing the Nexus One and told me to check out Google Sky Map. This Android app lets you point your phone at the night sky and it'll map out constellations for you. Speaking as someone who has never been able to find constellations on his own, that's just cool.
I understand that you can make the same argument for the iPhone and its app store; I guess the maturity of the Android Marketplace really surprised me. Apple may have the sheer number advantage, but I'd argue that the quality apps are just as prevalent on Android as they are on the iPhone (although 3D gaming does appear to be more of an iPhone strength at this point and going forward).
The buck doesn't stop there, Android as a platform is extremely powerful and has been on a very steep ramp. The roadmap going forward, from what I've heard, looks quite strong. And we see where it's going. The barcode scanning applications, image searching, voice recognition - Google wants Android to eventually power the sort of device that can do things we've only been able to see in movies.
The only faults I have with Android really boil down to its polish and fragmentation in the market. Not all Android devices currently support the same Android builds, which is something that Google apparently plans on addressing this year. There are also many manufacturers that offer their own skins on top of Android, which leads to interface fragmentation as well. With the iPhone, webOS and eventually Windows Phone 7, you get a consistent experience in anything that uses the OS. The same can't be said for Android.
The flexibility and power at your fingertips is addictive however. The integrated Google Voice support alone may be enough for some to run out and buy a Nexus One. Android's pros list actually reads a lot like a modern take on Windows Mobile with a touch of iPhone flair, rather than a direct iPhone competitor.
On the other side of the fence you have Apple with a very closed platform, with a very consistent UI and extreme attention to detail. All UI transitions are as smooth as possible, no application is too deep, it's just a very clean and focused device for when you're not around your desktop or notebook.
It's really all about functionality. Google offers more out of the box, making the Nexus One more like a computing device and less like just a smartphone. I suspect that many will prefer that, while others will still not be swayed if they value a cleaner, more focused interface. Just like there are Mac users and PC users, there are iPhone users and Android users. It's not that Android is an iPhone alternative, it's that Android is a completely different approach to what Apple offers.
On paper, Android and the Nexus One offer all of the value. You get more out of the box, you get features like Google Navigation, Google Voice and you get a platform that can do pretty much anything you'd want. Honestly, on paper, the iPhone is a tough sell. It's got slower hardware, less flexibility and you have to pay extra for what Google will give you for free. It's actually very similar to the Windows Mobile vs. iPhone debates from 3 years ago. What sold folks then was Apple's UI advantage, and Android is no slouch in that department.
Many of the same value/openness arguments are made against buying Mac computers over PCs. Ultimately what sways users is how much they appreciate Apple's way of doing things. Clearly not everyone does, but I suspect that there are enough who do to keep the iPhone strong despite Google's serious lead in functionality/bang for your buck.
These two platforms are very polarizing. I have friends who would clearly not work well with an iPhone and others who wouldn't enjoy the Nexus One. It really boils down to what you value most as there's no clear cut answer for everyone. Personally, there are things I love about the Nexus One, and things that I still prefer on the iPhone. If Google or Apple would just copy and improve upon the Pre it would be a much easier decision for me :)
Going forward, Google will have to reign in some of what makes Android so flexible today to avoid it turning into another Windows Mobile. And Apple will have to embrace some of what Google is doing to prevent iPhone from turning into what Apple's products were in the 1990s.
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Johnmcl7 - Sunday, April 4, 2010 - link
Very much agreed, I thought far too much time was wasted on Iphone references which given the Iphone generally does everything worse I really couldn't care less about it. Most noticeably multitasking was only given a brief mention despite being being detailed extensively for the Palm Pre reviews.I didn't understand the complaint about the notifications either, to me as a non-Android user the system makes perfect sense - it seems entirely logical to have icons for each notification which when tapped show a list with text on each one.
John
jamawass - Saturday, April 3, 2010 - link
Great review Anand. do you think the speech recognition worked well enough to be a complete subsitute for typed entry? I've been averse to touchscreen only devices (gave iphone to my wife) because I hate typing on them. Also did you try gesture search which has a highly publicized feature not too long ago?I'm currently using a treo pro windows mobile and even with all it's lack of polish it does feel like I am carrying a portable computer with me. I was hoping Windows7 series would enhance this but it appears as if MS is going to take the Apple approach in this regard. Looks like Android has picked up the windows mobile torch and literally flown to the stars with it.
Sidharthmodi - Saturday, April 3, 2010 - link
I liked the Depth in this Product Review. Thanks Anand.has407 - Saturday, April 3, 2010 - link
Appreciate the depth and that it's based on extended use. Using the 3GS for comparison is spot-on (everything is relative). Thanks again.Chloiber - Saturday, April 3, 2010 - link
Can we expect a review on the HTC Desire or Evo 4G?I know the specs are really quite the same (especially on the Desire) but HTC Sense UI gives the whole thing really a different touch and, according to first reviews, a much better usability.
Anand Lal Shimpi - Saturday, April 3, 2010 - link
We've been trying to get in touch with HTC to get review samples of both of those products. So far we haven't received any response but we won't stop trying :) Worst case, we'll just buy an EVO 4G when it comes out.Feel free to write HTC to provide some encouragement if you'd like :)
Take care,
Anand
Chloiber - Sunday, April 4, 2010 - link
Well, I'm waiting for my desire too :PEvo 4G will probably take even longer....to test Sense UI one can use the HTC Legend, Desire or Evo 4G - shouldn't make any real difference.
Anyway, I'm looking forward to it :)
relativityboy - Saturday, April 3, 2010 - link
If you already have an Android powered phone you can find the Sense UI online, and run it with the appropriate Rom and tools. I just saw it running on a G1 today. It was pretty fast. :)relativityboy - Saturday, April 3, 2010 - link
A very lengthy and thorough review of the bits, but I didn't come away with a solid understanding of how the device fits together as a user experience...the review feels, disjointed.The keyboard is narrow, how does that fit with the voice transcription?
Sometimes scrolling in the 'app drawer' is slow, but what else was going on in the background? Were you pulling data, listening to music, what else was going on in the phone? The device/os is a true multi-threaded environment for applications. I didn't notice any emphasis there (a major win over iPhone).
Did you try doing any benchmarking? Use 'Task Killer' or 'Setcpu'?
Android is OPEN, unlike apple's mobile products.
You can install apps that aren't in the app store.
Memory is super-upgradeable (when was the last time a 4Gb or 8Gb iPhone could be upgraded to 32Gb for the price of a micro-sd chip?)
The comment "It's Mac vs PC all over again" I think is totally missing representing what's going on here. Yet you hit the nail on the head later when you said Apple sees it as a device that's peripheral to laptops/pcs while Google is aiming for what it could be. Apple had a great idea, the iPhone. Google had a great idea a mobile environment/platform to allow lots of people to have great ideas. Google wants to let the world do the creating. The Nexus One as a device is a punctuation mark in a much larger story that includes the G1, Devour, HTC Evo, Droid, and others. Software development kits are available for-free for just about every platform you can shake a stick ate. Google is harnessing the creative powers of everyone who wants to get in on the game... The iPhone is just, well, Apple's 'one thing'.
A very respected developer friend of mine once said, "In a contest between your software/idea and the real world, the real world always wins." Google knows this. Apple doesn't.
I'm definitely an Android person, both by UI preference and ideology, but I don't feel like you've really tried, or given yourself enough time to 'get' what this platform is about.
jasperjones - Saturday, April 3, 2010 - link
Agree that Android's openness is of huge importance. On an iPhone, you can't even install an app that features a woman in bikini, Apple won't allow it. In this context, I always have to think of Tim Bray's statement that"The iPhone vision of the mobile internet’s future omits controversy, sex, and freedom, but includes strict limits on who can know what and who can say what. It’s a sterile Disneyfied walled garden surrounded by sharp-toothed lawyers."