Google's Nexus One Smartphone Spreading To More Networks

Prepares Verizon Model

By Joseph Palenchar -- TWICE, 3/17/2010

Mountain View, Calif. - Google launched a version of its Nexus One smartphone for use on AT&T's 3G network, and a Sprint-network version is on the way.

Both versions of the Android 2.1-based smartphone are intended for sale only through Google's online store.

Google today started selling the AT&T 3G-network version unlocked at $529 without service plan, but it will offer the Sprint version at a subsidized price with Sprint service plan, Sprint said. Details of the Sprint service plan, phone pricing and availability date will be announced "soon," the carrier said.

Meantime, a Google spokesperson told TWICE that it still plans to offer a Verizon Wireless version with service-plan subsidy "soon."

The new versions are joining Google's original Nexus One, launched earlier this year for use on T-Mobile's 3G network. That version, which could also operate on AT&T's lower-speed 2G and EDGE networks, is available unlocked at $529 but also at a subsidized price of $179 with a two-year T-Mobile service contract.

The AT&T 3G version, like the T-Mobile 3G version, operates in 3G mode internationally in the 2.1GHz band. They feature HSPA data technology to download at peak rates up to 7.2Mbps and upload at 2Mbps peaks.

The Nexus One offers 1GHz Qualcomm processor, an embedded navigation application with spoken turn-by-turn driving instructions, five home-screen panels, Wi-Fi, 5-megapixel camera/camcorder with geo-tagging and 4GB removable SD card that's expandable to 32GB.

Sprint touted the market potential for mating the phone with its 3G coverage, which it contended is twice as large in square miles as AT&T's 3G network and 10 times larger than T-Mobile's 3G network. The carrier also touted the potential of pairing the phone with its Everything Data 450 plan, which delivers unlimited voice, text, Web and navigation for $69.99/month. Similarly priced plans from AT&T and Verizon, Sprint said, deliver only unlimited talk for that price.