You’re the (Nexus) One That I Want: Confessions of an iPhone Lover Gone Astray

To protect the innocent, names have been changed. In this publication, a once-faithful iPhone lover will be referred to with a fictional Twitter name: @madluv4iPhn.

A recent tweet:

@madluv4iPhn Dear iPhone – I’ve met someone new named the Nexus One. I’m strangely attracted to her and need a few days to figure this all out.

I initiated a conversation with @madluv4iPhn to understand his reasons for leaving his iPhone.  The first reason he provided is that the Nexus One serves as a much better telephone than the iPhone. Inconsistent coverage has been a general gripe of the iPhone user population. The Nexus One provides more consistent service with improved sound quality and fewer dropped calls.  To be fair, iPhone’s AT&T service is greatly responsible for the frustrating inconsistency of their calls. Interestingly enough, T Mobile has served the Nexus One very well so far, despite its general criticism for inconsistent coverage.

Another captivating feature is the Nexus One’s ability to sync flawlessly with Google applications. Granted, it is a Google phone, but these applications are seamless in comparison to their counterparts on the iPhone. On the Gmail client, one can even sync contacts with Facebook contacts to include profile pictures and status updates.

Google has realized that, despite anti-texting/talking cell phone laws, people will continue to use their phones on the road. The Nexus One has taken the initiative to create voice command functionalities that make driving while talking or texting a safer endeavor.  The “talk to text” function allows you to dictate text messages and has surprisingly accurate results.  The GPS navigation system can announce the directions aloud while you drive.

In addition to the aforementioned capabilities, the Nexus One’s processing speed is incredibly fast, vastly enhancing the internet browsing experience. The 5.0 megapixel camera, trumps the iPhone’s and is complete with an LED flash. The Nexus One is an unlocked device, allowing you to choose your own provider.

The Nexus One’s multitasking capabilities add another level of convenience for the ever-busy smart phone user.  Any notifications appear in their own section that you can view without interrupting other running applications.  Unlike the iPhone, Pandora can play music in the background amidst other running applications.

When asked what he misses about iPhone, @madluv4iPhn noted the ease of iTunes, the apps, and gaming capacity that the iPhone possesses.  The Nexus One’s media player is ugly compared to iTunes. The iPhone is simply a better gaming device and the App Store offers better apps. The Nexus One has hardly enough space to store games and the Android Market’s 20,000 apps leave something to be desired.

While there are in a bevy of perks that the Nexus One has to offer, the ultimate choice comes down to personal preference. The iPhone is a beautiful, simple device that even children can use with ease. The Nexus One, however, boasts the forefront in smartphone technology.  Admittedly, leaving the iPhone behind was bittersweet for @madluv4iPhn. Even so, the Nexus One is his soulmate.  You just can’t argue with fate.

Google’s Nexus One – Changing the Mobile Gaming Market?

While the iPhone has taken the lead in attracting development for the mobile gaming genre, and development for the Android has been trailing behind, many folks are currently wondering if the Nexus One will be the device that truly changes the mobile game development market around in favor of the Android open source mobile operating system.

The Nexus One is Google’s latest smartphone to hit the market – releasing just a few days ago during CES on January 5, 2010. The phone runs on the newly released Android 2.1 operating system, which features a number of significant enhancements such as Live Wallpapers that are animated in the background and react to different user inputs, an Application Drawer that can be pressed to access the list of applications installed on the phone, and a Media Gallery that provides several new features allowing users to browse, edit, and share photos and videos on the phone with just the swipe of a finger.

Aside from these dazzling enhancements, the Nexus One features some real meaty upgrades such as a 1GHz Snapdragon processor, on-chip graphical capabilities and a 480×800 resolution screen (ideal for gaming) that truly set this device apart from the iPhone. And the kicker…..Adobe has confirmed that Flash Player 10.1 will be coming soon to the Nexus One, and they promise that it will provide a consistent, cross-platform runtime across desktop and mobile devices.

This news is particularly significant because Flash-based game development is so widespread in the gaming industry, yet the iPhone doesn’t support Flash. Highly-trafficked and popular entertainment genres including social games (via Facebook, MySpace, etc.) and virtual worlds monetizing through the sale of virtual goods and microtransactions are primarily Flash-based. The opportunity to additionally monetize from the Nexus One platform is significant news for mobile game developers as well as the many Flash game developers who have held off from developing for the iPhone SDK due to these limitations.

As it stands now, the Android Market has about 18,000 apps available while the iTunes App Store features upwards of 100,000 apps. It is yet to be seen whether Google’s Nexus One will be a game changer for the mobile gaming space, but considering how fast this market has moved in the last year, it won’t be long before we find out.