The tech world has praised Google’s release of the Nexus One smartphone, labelling it as the most advanced Android-based gadget on the market and a potential threat to Apple’s dominance in the sector.
But many have also suggested the phone doesn’t necessarily live up to its hype, saying the lack of a double-touch screen and a scarce app market will allow the iPhone to remain in the top spot.
Comparing Google and Apple’s smartphones, however, results reflect a close race between the two devices.
The Nexus One and iPhone 3GS are about the same size. The Nexus is slightly higher by 4mm and thinner by 3mm, and is also 130 grams with a battery compared to the iPhone’s 135 grams.
But the iPhone comes on top in the area of flash storage. The Nexus One features just 512MB of internal storage, with the iPhone featuring 16GB or 32GB versions. While the Nexus has the ability to upgrade storage with a microSD card, its full capacity is only 32GB.
The Nexus One screen is about 3.7 inches compared to the iPhone’s 3.5 inches, and also features four physical buttons under the screen compared to the iPhone’s solitary “home” button.
The Nexus One comes with 512MB of RAM compared to the iPhone’s 256MB, and also features a five-megapixel camera with an LED flash. The iPhone features a three-megapixel camera with a “touch to zoom” feature.
Both gadgets come with Wi-Fi and Bluetooth capabilities. However, the iPhone’s file system is locked, barring users from sharing files between their phones. Both gadgets also come with a digital compass and accelerometer, but the Nexus adds a second microphone to its hardware in order to power a “noise cancellation” feature.
So far, the Nexus appears to have more physical features, along with capabilities lacking on the iPhone including expandable memory, more RAM, a higher-quality camera and a lighter body.
And the Android 2.1 operating system will definitely give the iPhone 3.1 OS a fight. It features the ability to carry multiple wallpapers, “interactive” backgrounds which make patterns after a user touches the screen and an extensive file-browsing system.
Google’s work on the OS has also resulted in a number of new voice commands. Users can now dictate voice-to-text, and can use voice commands in order to receive turn-by-turn directions in the phone’s GPS software.
The iPhone OS 3.1 still remains powerful, but lacks a number of features users have called for over the past year including support for Flash, and “background processing”, a feature which allows two apps to operate at the same time.
Its user interface also allows minimal interference, with the ability to change the location of app icons one of the most significant features. However, its simplicity has been a drawcard.
The Nexus One allows users to customise and manipulate their phone in ways the iPhone doesn’t, but its weakness is the availability of apps. So far only 10,000 apps are currently available on the Android market, compared to the Apple App Store’s 100,000+.
Additionally, Apple announced last week the store had recorded over three billion downloads, with one billion of those occurring in the last month. The App Store is booming, and the Android market is suffering as more talented and cashed-up developers flock to the economy gaining the most revenue.
However, developers may migrate to the Android market if it gains popularity with the release of new devices.
And while Vodafone has hinted at a local launch, there is still no Australian release date giving the iPhone the advantage of being the most powerful, and popular, smartphone available to Australian users.
Patrick Stafford is a freelance journalist and a former deputy editor of SmartCompany.
