Google Phone

Google Phone

Google Phone’s Existence Confirmed; It’s Unlocked, Thinner Than iPhone

SOURCE : www.wired.com

At last, the Googlephone has appeared. Forget the Droid, the G1 and all those other Android wannabees: Google is testing its own handset, the search giant confirmed over the weekend.

Although Google did not specify details on the phone or its plans to sell it, numerous sources have fleshed out the picture. The handset is designed by Google, made by hardware partner HTC, is running Android 2.1, and is called the Nexus One, according to multiple sources including the Wall Street Journal, TechCrunch, Daring Fireball, and leaked photos. The phone will be sold online by Google itself, the AllThingsD reports.

The Nexus One will, crucially, be sold unlocked, according to TechCrunch, giving Google complete control over the hardware and software with no pesky carrier interference. Even the iPhone, which has had almost unprecedented autonomy in its functionality is still constrained by carriers: AT&T’s anti-tethering paranoia is a good example.

Although not yet officially announced, Google has coyly admitted that the phone is real. In fact, it has provided the handset to its employees in order to test it out in the wild. The Google Mobile Blog explains, somewhat cryptically:

We recently came up with the concept of a mobile lab, which is a device that combines innovative hardware from a partner with software that runs on Android to experiment with new mobile features and capabilities, and we shared this device with Google employees across the globe. This means they get to test out a new technology and help improve it.

Unfortunately, because dogfooding is a process exclusively for Google employees, we cannot share specific product details. We hope to share more after our dogfood diet.

The phone is already in use, and website log data suggest it is running Android 2.1. Nerdy John Gruber of Daring Fireball found this user agent string in his site’s logs:

Mozilla/5.0 (Linux; U; Android 2.1; en-us; Nexus One Build/ERD56C) AppleWebKit/530.17 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/4.0 Mobile Safari/530.17

It makes sense to identify yourself as Mobile Safari, if only to get proper mobile Webkit pages served to you.

Characteristically, and in contrast to Apple’s secrecy, photos of the Googlephone are already being posted openly by Googlers, or being handed to their friends. The picture above, posted on Twitpic by blogger Cory O’Brien, shows the handset (taken on an iPhone and with a BlackBerry in the background). According to O’Brien, “Google Phone = iPhone + a little extra screen and a scroll wheel. Great touch screen, and Android.”

The hardware specs are also leaking. Erick Schonfeld at TechCrunch says that the Nexus will run onQualcomm’s speedy Snapdragon chip, sport an OLED display, be thinner than the iPhone (with no physical keyboard) and feature two microphones along with a “weirdly large” camera.

Those hoping to get an iPhone-caliber phone on Verizon are out of luck. The Nexus will be a GSM phone, which means T-Mobile and AT&T in the United States. Worse, if you do opt for AT&T, your data connection could be EDGE-only. Gruber again, from Twitter: “The bummer I’m hearing about Nexus One: it’s GSM and unlocked, but on T-Mobile’s 3G band, so it works on AT&T but EDGE-only.”

According to the Media Memo blog at AllThingsD, the choice to use GSM was prompted by Verizon’s refusal to carry the Nexus. Verizon already sells the Android-based Droid, but this odd decision looks like a repeat of the one made when the carrier turned down the iPhone.

This may turn out to be a Zune-like move, where Microsoft alienated hardware makers by ignoring PlaysForSure in favor of its own new DRM scheme. Or the Nexus could be a light that burns twice as bright as all the existing confusion of Android handsets combined, thus building a brand that can rival the iPhone. Either way, we won’t have to wait for long to see. The Nexus should be on sale in early January, and if these last two days are any indication, then Googlers will have “leaked” all the hardware and software well before the launch.

Google Confirms Plans to Release Its Own Smartphone

SOURCE : REUTERS

Google Confirms Plans to Release Its Own Smartphone

Mon Dec 14, 2009 10:20am EST

More from Wired

Editors' Picks for the Wired.com Sleep Photo Contest

24 Nov 2009

- Wired.com

At last, the Googlephone has appeared. Forget the Droid, the G1 and all those other Android wannabees. Google will begin to sell its own reference Android 2.1 handset, designed by Google, made by hardware partner HTC, and called the Nexus One. The phone will be sold online by Google itself.

The Nexus One will, crucially, be sold unlocked, giving Google complete control over the hardware and software with no pesky carrier interference. Even the iPhone, which has had almost unprecedented autonomy in its functionality is still constrained by carriers: AT&T’s anti-tethering paranoia is a good example.

Although not yet officially announced, Google has coyly admitted that the phone is real and will be on sale early in the new year. In fact, it has provided the handset to its employees in order to test it out in the wild. The Google Mobile Blog explains, somewhat cryptically:

We recently came up with the concept of a mobile lab, which is a device that combines innovative hardware from a partner with software that runs on Android to experiment with new mobile features and capabilities, and we shared this device with Google employees across the globe. This means they get to test out a new technology and help improve it.

Unfortunately, because dogfooding is a process exclusively for Google employees, we cannot share specific product details. We hope to share more after our dogfood diet.

The phone is already in use. Nerdy John Gruber of Daring Fireball found this user agent string in his site’s logs:

Mozilla/5.0 (Linux; U; Android 2.1; en-us; Nexus One Build/ERD56C) AppleWebKit/530.17 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/4.0 Mobile Safari/530.17

It makes sense to identify yourself as Mobile Safari, if only to get proper mobile Webkit pages served to you.

Characteristically, and in contrast to Apple’s secrecy, photos of the Googlephone are already being posted openly by Googlers, or being handed to their friends. The picture above, posted on Twitpic by blogger Cory O’Brien, shows the handset (taken on an iPhone and with a BlackBerry in the background). According to O’Brien, “Google Phone = iPhone + a little extra screen and a scroll wheel. Great touch screen, and Android”.

The hardware specs are also leaking. Erick Schonfeld at TechCrunch says that the Nexus will run on Qualcomm’s speedy Snapdragon chip, sport an OLED display, be thinner than the iPhone (with no physical keyboard) and feature two microphones along with a “weirdly large” camera.

Those hoping to get an iPhone-caliber phone on Verizon are out of luck. The Nexus will be a GSM phone, which means T-Mobile and AT&T in the US. Worse, if you do opt for AT&T, your data connection could be EDGE-only. Gruber again, from Twitter.

The bummer I’m hearing about Nexus One: it’s GSM and unlocked, but on T-Mobile’s 3G band, so it works on AT&T but EDGE-only.

According to the Media Memo blog at the Wall Street Journal, the choice to use GSM was prompted by Verizon’s refusal to carry the Nexus. Verizon already sells the Android-based Droid, but this odd decision looks like a repeat of the one made when the carrier turned down the iPhone.

This may turn out to be a Zune-like move, where Microsoft alienated hardware makers by ignoring PlaysForSure in favor of its own new DRM scheme. Or the Nexus could be a light that burns twice as bright as all the existing confusion of Android handsets combined, thus building a brand that can rival the iPhone. Either way, we won’t have to wait for long to see. The Nexus should be on sale in early January, and if these last two days are any indication, then Googlers will have “leaked” all the hardware and software well before the launch.

An Android dogfood diet for the holidays [Google Mobile Blog]

Photo credit: Cory O’Brien

Google tests new phone to profit from mobile Web

SOURCE :

Google tests new phone to profit from mobile Web

By MICHAEL LIEDTKE (AP) – 3 hours ago

SAN FRANCISCO — Google Inc. is determined to gain more influence over how the Web is used on mobile phones, even if the next step in the quest tramples some of the relationships forged during its two-year expansion into the wireless industry.

The focus on Google's mobile ambitions is sharpening now that the Internet search leader is working on a new phone called "Nexus One." The handset is being tested by Google's 20,000 employees, who received the device just before the weekend.

Google declined to comment on the reason for the Nexus One's development.

But The Wall Street Journal and The New York Times have described the employee testing as a prelude to selling the phone directly to consumers early next year.

The phone — manufactured by Taiwan's HTC Corp. — wouldn't be tied to a specific carrier, unlike other devices using Google's mobile operating system, "Android." The autonomy of a so-called "unlocked" mobile phone could give consumers more freedom to select the carrier of their choice, although the unique technology running competing U.S. wireless networks will probably limit the options.

It's not clear how wide-ranging Google's ambitions are for the phone. Unless Google is willing to sell the phone at a loss, the Nexus One is likely to be much more expensive than Apple's iPhone and similar devices, which receive subsidies from wireless carriers.

With those subsidies, most "smart" phones sell for $50 to $200, instead of the $400 to $600 price they'd have without the financial aid. The carriers recover their expense through service plans that cost $800 to $1,000 a year.

Without a sharp discount, Nexus One won't make much of a dent in the mobile phone market, predicted Forrester Research analyst Charles Golvin.

Google, which is based in Mountain View, started selling an unlocked version of the first "Android phone," T-Mobile's G1, for $399 last year. It was aimed at Android developers, but anyone who registered as such could buy one.

If it intend to keep the Nexus One's price low enough to pique consumer interest and protect its earnings, Google might still have to negotiate subsidies from wireless carriers — an arrangement that wouldn't change the status quo.

Or Google could be hoping to generate enough revenue from ads shown on mobile Web sites and applications downloaded on the Nexus One to cover the cost of any discounts.

But the mobile advertising market in the U.S. is still small, with $416 million in revenue expected this year, according to research firm eMarketer Inc. In the United States, Google generates more than $10 billion annually from the sale of online ads shown on personal computers.

Google hopes to improve its mobile advertising network with the $750 million acquisition of AdMob, a pioneer in the field. That deal is expected to close early next year.

"Mobile is clearly the next big business opportunity and (Google) wants to do everything possible to control its own destiny," Golvin said.

Selling equipment would mark a significant shift for Google, which has consistently said it prefers to leave the design and marketing of smart phones to manufacturers and carriers that have embraced Android since the system's November 2007 introduction.

At that time, Google downplayed the need for a "Gphone," saying its mobile software and alliance with dozens of partners have a bigger impact on the market than any single device.

Android has given Google a strong foothold in the mobile market, although it's not nearly as large the one Apple has carved out while selling more than 30 million iPhones during the past 2 1/2 years.

Motorola Inc. is pinning its smart-phone hopes on the Android and Verizon Wireless has thrown its weight behind phones running on the Google software, too. Over the past month, Verizon has been heavily promoting the Google-powered Droid phone as a compelling alternative to the iPhone.

William Blair & Co. analyst Anil Doradla believes Google may alienate some of its partners and thwart Android's expansion by selling its own phone.

"Given that Android is still in its initial stages of deployment, Google needs all the good will it can get to ensure success," Doradla wrote in a Monday research note.

Verizon Wireless said it isn't upset about Nexus One yet.

"We are still looking at different possibilities with our friend Google," Verizon spokesman Jeffrey Nelson said.

If Google decides to sell its own handset, it would intensify its budding rivalry with Apple, a former ally that shared antipathy toward Microsoft Corp. Apple spokeswoman Natalie Harrison declined to comment Monday on the Nexus One.

Google shares gained $5.22 to close Monday at $595.73 trading, while Apple shares increased $2.31 to $196.98.

The brewing competition between Google and Apple sparked a Federal Trade Competition inquiry into the two common directors the companies shared on their boards. That was resolved when Google Chief Executive Eric Schmidt resigned from Apple's board in August and Genentech Chairman Arthur Levinson quit Google's board in October.

The iPhone has been the biggest source of mobile traffic to Google's mobile services during the past two years, according to Google executives.

Nexus One apparently is a reference to a line of replicants, or androids, in the 1982 science fiction film "Blade Runner." Its name was confirmed in a Federal Communications Commission filing released Monday.

Based on Internet photos of the phone, Nexus One will run several Google applications, including a recently introduced feature that lets mobile users submit pictures of landmarks, products and other objects to get a pertinent list of search results.

The FCC filing indicated the Nexus One will be compatible with many networks overseas, but T-Mobile has the only 3G network that would support it in the U.S. It would only take minor tweaking to make it work on AT&T Inc.'s 3G network in the U.S. as well, Golvin said.

T-Mobile declined to comment on the Nexus One.

AP Technology Writer Peter Svensson in New York contributed to this story.

Copyright © 2009 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.

India has 500 million mobile phone numbers

SOURCE :

NEW DELHI: By the start of the New Year, India will have breached a previously unthinkable landmark — half a billion wireless connections — making it the second largest group of mobile phone users after China.

Overall, telephone connections in India (fixed line and wireless) will be closing in on 550 million by the time you read this. This translates into a teledensity (phone connections per 100 population) of roughly 45%, an urban teledensity closer to 97% and a rural teledensity of about 18%.

India had crossed 488.40 million wireless connections at the end of October 2009 and will be breaching the half-billion wireless connections mark just about now. Yet, the actual number of subscribers might be less than half a billion, since a few hold multiple SIM cards and not all of them are in use at the same time.

In sharp contrast, wireline connectivity is down to 37.25 million phones, exhibiting a clear consumer preference for wireless, including mobile phones, as a preferred technology for voice and data communications. India’s broadband penetration, however, is abysmally low at 7.5 million — a consequence, say telecom experts, of policy failure, partly due to the declining use of wireline phones.

India’s telephony growth is remarkable despite the fact that the last two years have been full of controversy and litigation, with government and industry divided on crucial issues like spectrum policy, tariffs and introduction of new competition.

India has 13 to 14 operators providing wireless connectivity — mostly mobile — in its 22 service areas. Of these, 8-9 companies are operational and another 5-6 are obligated to launch service to meet rollout obligations. Many of the new entrants who had bagged spectrum in January 2008 have been unable to get off the ground nearly two years after receiving licences.

Nokia 5235

SOURCE :techtree.comSoon after the announcement of the Nokia 5230, it's time now to welcome another Music oriented phone from Nokia. Say hello to the just introduced Nokia 5235. Note that the 5230 was not an XpressMusic branded phone, neither is this one. However, it does come with the "Comes With Music" service loaded.The 5235 is being marketed as a "Comes With Music" phone - which means the device will come preloaded with quite a few free audio tracks and will come with a 12 or 18 month subscription for Nokia's Comes with Music service - all for free. This service allows users to access Nokia's Music library and download tracks for free. The phone is similar to the 5230 and boasts of a decent spec sheet that should keep most users happy.The phone features a 3.2-inch resistive touchscreen that displays the Symbian S6- V5 standard resolution of 360*640, 3G connectivity and full GPS support with Ovi Maps. Being a music oriented device, there is a very much needed 3.5mm jack provided as well. The camera is not a very impressive 2-megapixel unit. The phone supports memory expansion with microSD cards and can take upto 16GB of external memory. A 1320mAH battery should provide enough power to last 33 hours of continuous music playback.The 5235 is expected to be out by the first quarter of 2010 and will retail at around 145 Euros (Rs. 10,000).

UNLOCKED GOOGLE PHONE

UNLOCKED GOOGLE PHONE

Google’s phone

Google phone with T-Mobile contract in Jan: source

source :

www.reuters.com

Google phone with T-Mobile contract in Jan: source

FRANKFURT/SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Google Inc plans to sell two versions of its own-branded cell phone: one with a service contract with T-Mobile USA and another that is unlocked, a source familiar with the matter said.

TECHNOLOGY | MEDIA

The phone, manufactured by HTC, has a number of code names such as HTC Passion, Dream or Nexus One and could be available directly though the Google website as early as January 5, according to the source.

Google said on its official blog on Saturday that it was testing a new mobile device with its employees. Media reports have said that Google will sell an unlocked version of the touch screen phone, allowing consumers to pick a carrier of their choice to provide wireless service.

Another version will be linked to Deutsche Telekom's T-Mobile USA, which will subsidize the cost of the phone for U.S. consumers who agree to a service contract, the source said. Pricing details were not available.

"In the long term Google will become a seller and get commission from operators," the source said, adding that other operators are expected to follow T-Mobile's lead eventually and agree to Google's terms.

The phone is similar to Apple Inc's iPhone but has, among other features, an exchangeable battery, a somewhat larger screen and the ability for consumers to add a memory card to the device. Any operator who wants to make the phone available to its customers will have to go through Google, the source said.

"Apple had a phone so hot it changed the business model and got operators to agree to revenue sharing. This is going to change the business too," the person added.

A T-Mobile representative said the company does not comment on rumors or speculation.

A Google representative would not comment beyond the blog post on Saturday, which said that Google employees were testing an Android-based device to "experiment with new mobile features and capabilities."

Baird Research analyst Will Power said: "We expect the launch of a new competitive device to be directionally negative for most of the existing smart phone markers, including Apple, Research in Motion, Nokia Oyg, HTC, Motorola Inc, Palm Inc, Samsung and others, while perhaps most negative for the existing Android partners."

Until now, Google has partnered with many handset makers by offering its open-source Android software as a freely available operating system for smart phones.

As of last month, Google said that more than a dozen phones were available with Android, including the heavily promoted Motorola Droid phone that is available with Verizon Wireless, a unit of Verizon Communications and Vodafone.

(Reporting by Nicola Leske in Frankfurt, additional reporting by Alexei Oreskovic in San Francisco; Editing by Phil Berlowitz)

Google Phone Nexus One Full Review

Google Phone

Review Google Phone

Google Nexus One Phone (First Look)

Google's 'Nexus One' the New iPhone?

Touch Pro2 Product Tour

GOOGLE PHONE

HTC Touch Pro2 Product Tour

HTC Touch Pro2 - Hands-On @ MWC 2009

HTC Touch Pro2

Nexus One Release Date

source : nexusoneblog

Nexus One Release Date: As Early As January 5th?

According to Reuters, the Google Phone AKA Nexus One could be set to launch as early as January 5th of next year. Sold directly unlocked from Google and for a discounted price if you sign a contract with T-Mobile. Pricing wasn't mentioned in the report.

That's less then a month of waiting. AsMashable also noted, that sets the debut of the Nexus One right in the same week of this year' CES.

Readers, will you be getting one and for how much would you consider shelling out for it?

Nexus One Photo Gallery

Source : www.nexusoneblog.com

Nexus One Photo Gallery

Nexus One Pictures

Nexus One

GOOGLE Nexus One

NEW Nexus One

Photo Gallery > Close Up with the Nexus One

Photo Gallery Nexus One

Photo Gallery GOOGLE Nexus One

VIDEO

Photo Gallery Nexus One

VIDEO GOOGLE Nexus One

NexusOne Boot Animation

Source : http://www.engadget.com/

Android 2.1's boot animation for the Nexus One reminds us of... something

Google Nexus One phones

`Google launching Nexus One phones'

`Google launching Nexus One phones'

Source :http://infotech.indiatimes.com

LOS ANGELES: Google Inc plans to sell its own cellphone direct to consumers as soon as next year, bypassing wireless operators in a rare strategic move, the Wall Street Journal cited sources.

Called the Nexus One and made by smartphone maker HTC, the phone will run on the search giant's Android operating system -- around which Motorola and other cellphone makers have built devices -- and will be sold online, the newspaper cited persons familiar with the matter as saying.

Cellular service will have to be bought separately, it added.

The Internet search leader may be sounding a challenge to wireless carriers such as Sprint and Verizon, as well as smartphone makers like Apple. It marks a departure for the leader in Web advertising, which has rarely sold devices directly to consumers, the newspaper said.

Google's Android phones have won attention in the mobile industry lately, with Motorola and Sony Ericsson choosing to launch it with their new top models.

Analysts say the aim is to gain access to valuable consumer data that can be used to sell ads at premium prices, rather than to make money from direct hardware sales, as companies such as Nokia or Research in Motion do.

Research house IDC estimates the market share for Android operating software rose to 5.4 percent from 4.2 percent in July-September in Western Europe, a key market.

Executives at HTC, the Taiwan-based world's No. 4 smartphone brand, were not available for comment. Google was also not available for comment. Google began sharing a version of the Nexus One with employees in recent days, the newspaper cited its sources as saying.

The road to Hajj-Azerbaijan,China,Japan

The road to Hajj - Azerbaijan - 25 Nov 09 - Pt 1

The road to Hajj - Azerbaijan - 25 Nov 09 - Pt 2

A road to Hajj - China - 24 Nov 09 - Pt 1

A road to Hajj - China - 24 Nov 09 - Pt 2

Road to Hajj - Japan - 26 Nov 09 - Pt 1

Road to Hajj - Japan - 26 Nov 09 - Pt 2