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Google Nexus Rumored To Cost $530 Or $180 w/Plan
wkurzius writes "The new Google phone, the Nexus One, is rumored to cost $530 unlocked and will work on any GSM network. A subsidized version is also available for $180 and will get you a T-Mobile Even More Individual 500 Plan for 2-years with a $350 termination fee. Access to the phone is supposed to be invite only at first, with January 5th being the supposed release date."
Seriously? Since when the hell is the ability to buy a phone "invite only"? I swear the social aspect of phone ownership is getting ridiculous.
"People who think they know everything are very annoying to those of us who do."-Mark Twain
Who got invited? Whoopi Goldberg? Or one of the celebs on the T-Mobile Android ads?
And $530 for an unlocked phone that will last about three years? Really?
I can only hope this brings down the cost of these phones. The prices are already greater than the cost of netbooks and bargain laptops/desktops. I realize that miniaturization is a factor, but we really need more strong competitors in this area. I would much prefer a non-subsidized phone except the price is a little daunting all in one lump sum.
Those wanting to buy the handset subsidized will pay $180 and have to sign up for a two year contract. There appears to be only one plan available for these customers, and that is the T-Mobile Even More Individual 500 Plan, which gives you 500 minutes, free weekend and in-network calls and unlimited SMS, MMS and data. That bring the total cost over two years to $2,100.
The unsubsidized price + a data plan is vastly cheaper
[Fuck Beta]
o0t!
If someone buys the phone with the subsidy then subsequently leaves T-mo and pays the ETF, will T-mo unlock the phone? Also, is the ETF prorated? In any case, it seems that the combination of a cheap phone for voice and a netbook/laptop + WiFi or if ubiquitous access is necessary a data stick are a better deal for the money.
I've seen this post on many other sites, all referencing to the gizmodo link, which is a mockup of the page which is supposed to be the actual page offering the phone. No confirmation, no real data, no journalism.. just plain old FUD.
ATH++
Like all the other smartphones in recent memory, they cost a fortune if you're an early adopter. If you don't want to get mugged then just wait a couple of months for the hoopla to die down. Your old phone won't stop working in the interim if you don't have the latest whizbang handset the day after its release.
Finally, an unlocked smartphone! But what is the cheapest voice+data plan you could use it with? Will it be possible to use it with a pre-pay carrier, like Virgin Mobile?
I don't talk much, and I'm rarely far from a real computer, but I would love to have the ability to get on the web from a smartphone available to me.
A slashdotter who didn't build his own computer is like a Jedi who didn't build his own lightsaber.
Good move from a marketing standpoint. They pick out users who are more likely to be technologically savvy, and those users won't flood the internet with complaints like "TEH PHONE DOSNT WORK W/ITUNES... WOULD NOT BY AGAIN"
By the time it launches widely, there will be some very interesting projects they can show off. I'm waiting to see what if there will be an SDK and what kind of access users will have to the phone. Hopefully it will be wide open.
There are a lot of disappointed people over @ nexusoneforum.net with regards to the pricing. It sounds to me like Google lost alot of good will with such a high unsubsidized price.
Discussion here: Nexus One Pricing Discussion
Forum Foundry, Inc.
Why? The touchscreen buttons are so much easier.
Security is mostly a superstition... Avoiding danger is no safer in the long run than outright exposure. - Helen Keller
In Denmark, an unlocked HTC Hero costs ~620 USD. (including the Danish 25% VAT).
Most people I know (myself included) buy phones unlocked (because my (current/prefered) phone company don't sell phones - but I like their simple "~10 USD/month for up to 1GB" data plan).
Using the "US to Danish price" conversion (multiply by 1.25, add some) it will cost around 670-700 USD in Denmark (of course payed in DKK).
The price does not surprise me. I am planning to replace my phone ½ year from now (then my current phone will have survived 2+ years). It will probably be an Android based, in that price range.
For comparison, in Denmark, an iPhone (unlocked 3GS/32GB) costs ~1100 USD.
Sweet! A decrypted protocol with an OS by a company that doesn't care about your privacy... Where do I sign up???
"Be prepared, son. That's my motto. Be prepared." --Joe Hallenbeck
there's already a google voice app in the market. I think you're asking if it will use google voice over IP.
If it allows GV via voip, w/ 3g we might all jump at the chance.
They're using their grammar skills there.
You can buy an N900 for $569.00. As long as you are going to drop that kind of change, why would you limit yourself to an Android fone?
* Carthago Delenda Est *
hell yes, and I want a hand crank and one of those cups on a wire to put up to my ear. I don't think I understand, can I get a horse and buggy analogy?
Like another poster says in reply to this, there's a lot you've gotten wrong here. You seem to have your technologies confused.
The only reason that smartphones make more sense at the moment on GSM/UMTS networks has nothing to do with the technology involved, but the economics. There are a lot more people on GSM/UMTS networks than CDMA, mostly due to the fact that CDMA was a late comer to the cell phone game. My guess is that the CDMA follow-on will come later in the year.
Dial? What is this dial of which you speak?
Oh, you mean "dial" as in "push buttons". How quaint.
I use a bluetooth headset, and just press the button and read off the numbers I want to call (assuming it's for someone not in my phone book).
I get three benefits out of this:
1. Everyone around me sees what an Important Person I am, and thinks, "wow, someone that technologically forward and yet tastelessly rude must be important." Many of the females obviously think "and I must mate with him immediately!" but sadly I live in a prudish area, so they just look at me with longing, pass into a slight faint where their eyes roll back in their head, then glare because they are angry they can't have sex with me right away.
2. I get to announce to everyone in earshot what number I am trying to call. I just know everyone wants to know that. It's important.
3. When the phone misunderstands the number I meant to dial, complete strangers have the pleasure of speaking to me, albeit briefly. Most of them understand the value of my time and, once they realize it's me, they remind me that I have important things to do and end the call.
"This post contains words, known to the State of California to cause thought. Wash brain thoroughly after reading."
You can buy an N900 for $569.00. As long as you are going to drop that kind of change, why would you limit yourself to an Android fone?
I would turn that around and ask why on earth you would buy anything with a dead-end OS, when you could buy a fully programmable Android device that you can buy a lot more applications for.
The Nokia is nice to use but that's as far as it goes, overall it is not nearly as useful just based on application availability alone.
"There is more worth loving than we have strength to love." - Brian Jay Stanley
True, but from my understanding there are only four bands that cover the majority of the world. So, if the phones are quad-band GSM phones (which is the most likely scenario), you will still have greater potential market than just with a CDMA phone. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quad-band). This also means you don't have to fiddle with the onboard radio either.
Change is inevitable, except from a vending machine -- Robert C. Gallagher
rich guys still like to flaunt their Porsche's, Maserati's and Aston Martin's
... you'd be flaunting your's like there's no tomorrow.
Infuriate left and right
AT&T's woes are from being overused in the big cities.
Sorry, but that's only part of it. It's also a complete lack of reasonable coverage outside of cities. There's a map for that...
You don't know what you are talking about. Variants of IS-95 CDMA (the original 2G CDMA) are widely used in China, Korea, and elsewhere. In China, CDMA phones even have SIM cards. All 3G technologies (EV-DO, UMTS, HSPDA, etc.) use CDMA signaling technology because it is more spectrum efficient.