The Nexus One has a 5-megapixel camera with LED flash.

CORP TALK: The internet is abuzz with the much hyped Nexus One Android-based phone from Internet search giant Google. Word from the Telegraph is that the launch will be in California later today.

TechTree India even has a list of specifications. Of course, Engadget has a video review and photos of the Nexus One already. The phone itself is built by HTC and runs on Google’s Android 2.1 operating system.

It has a 1GHz SnapDragon processor, a 3.7-inch 480 x 800 display and a 5-megapixel camera with LED flash. Here’s a list of the hardware features of the Nexus One:

The Google Nexus One smartphone has a 3.7

Display: 3.7″ AMOLED 480×800 WVGA display
Thinness: 11.5mm
Weight: 130g
Processor/Speed: Qualcomm Snapdragon 3G QSD8250 chipset, delivering speeds up to 1GHz

Camera: 5 megapixel auto focus with flash and geo tagging
Onboard memory: 512MB Flash, 512MB RAM
Expandable memory: 4GB removable SD Card (expandable to 32GB)
Noise Suppression: Dynamic noise suppression from Audience, Inc.
Ports: 3.5mm stereo headphone jack with four contacts for inline voice and remote control
Battery: Removable 1400 mAh
Personalized laser engraving: Up to 50 characters on the back of the phone
Trackball: Tri-color notification LED, alerts when new emails, chats, text messages arrive

Here’s a video of the phone after launch just earlier today:

UPDATE 06/01/10: Apparently, the Google Nexus One smartphone will indeed be available to users in Hong Kong and Singapore at US$577.31 and this includes Google shipping the phone unlocked (with power adapter) to you via DHL. Here’s a screenshot of the shipping terms once you reach the checkout page.

Paolo Manzano, Managing Editor, HWM Philippines

Paolo (HWM Philippines): Despite all the hype that the Nexus One is indeed the Google Phone, it will remain as one handset amongst many other handsets in the crowd.

This means that it will still need to compete with the rest, finding its relevance amongst a user group that will embrace it just like the iPhone was whole-heartedly embraced.

Of course, it has several advantages: one, it is conceptualized by Google, with all the sweets they have to offer, including seamless integration of Google Apps, the best support for Android Market, and perhaps extensive compatibility with future Android updates.

Another point to watch here is the fact that Google is now treading on its partners’ territory by producing their very own branded handsets, something that Microsoft has avoided at all costs in order to keep their WinMo partners happy.

Perhaps the market will go for the Droid or Hero or some other handset, but for any partner, is competition from Google on this front something that they want?

Probably not. It will be interesting to see how it turns out in the next few years and how it will shape the business of Android partners such as Motorola and HTC, and most especially Google.

HWM Indonesia

HWM Indonesia: Being Google, everything that comes out from the Google factories will be hot cakes.

Coupled with HTC’s manufacturing wits, the combination is lethal. Good hardware with global-reach software, what else would you ask? Well, lower pricing may be.

Since the HTC Dream’s launch, when I had expected Android-based phones to boom in two years, I now think it will probably be faster, pending internet infrastructure to be more established in certain countries (e.g. Indonesia).

The product is certainly worth the hype.

Smartphone communities welcome this change from the unreliability we’ve so far seen in other more established platforms.

Will there ever come a time when one smartphone rules over the rest? Knowledge at Wharton finds out.

Knowledge at Wharton lets users download an audio file commentary of their news. We’ve included the link here. It’s a playable MP3 audio file.

T&A: Knowledge at Wharton online business journal released a report asking the question if there will soon be one smartphone company emerging to become the overall market winner.

Basically, this seems to be a trend now, considering that computer operating systems were jostling for the same position in the late 1970s and early 1980s until Bill and company hit jackpot thanks to the IBM-compatible PC.

Today however, the smartphone market is far more fragmented than it ever was. Smartphones today allow users to web surf, email, manage calendars beyond making phone calls and watching the latest bloopers. Players like BlackBerry, Apple, Palm, the Symbian guys (Nokia especially), Google Android and Microsoft are all vying for that sweet spot. What’s complex however is the dominance the telecom providers (like AT&T in the US, Sprint for the Palm Pre, etc.) have over these device manufacturers.

According to Wharton, if this isn’t a game-changing tipping point, nobody would know what is. Will there be a consolidation of just one or two dominant operating systems or will the fragmentation hamper the growth of the industry? The attraction however lies in the locking in of users once their minds are fixed on a particular smartphone. This is because the entire ecosystem has a ‘locking in’ effect and it would be extremely difficult to switch platforms without busting both familiarity and contract. (Editor opinions: 1) (more…)

CORP TALK: Palm’s highly anticipated Palm Pre smartphone has yet to have a firm release date or hit the store shelves but already research firm, iSuppli has come up with an estimated hardware and manufacturing cost for the device.

According to Reuters, the Pre smartphone will cost around US$170 to make, based on 2nd quarter component and assembly prices. Of course, there is no doubt that the Pre, touting its WebOS operating system and multi-touch screen features, is squarely aimed at competing against Apple’s iPhone and RIM’s BlackBerry smartphones.

iSuppli projects that Palm will try to have wireless carrier Sprint Nextel to sell the smartphone for US$300 but with a subsidized plan, the final price should hover around the US$200 range.