Google Nexus One sale disappointing: opinions?

Forums › Android › Google Nexus One sale disappointing: opinions?

freitasm

BDFL - Memuneh
60245 posts

Uber Geek
+1 received by user: 11298

Administrator

Trusted

Geekzone

Lifetime subscriber

Topic # 58682 17-Mar-2010 08:40

It seems the Google Nexus One sold just about 135,000 units in its first six weeks. Not what people would call a success.

Comments? Ideas on how this happened or how this could be different?

Geekzone broadband switch | Amazon (Geekzone aff) | MightyApe (Geekzone aff) | Backblaze cloud backup (personal and business) | My technology disclosure

You can support content creators (and Geekzone) by using the Brave browser.

1 | 2

7782 posts

Uber Geek
+1 received by user: 775

Subscriber

Reply # 308247 17-Mar-2010 12:48

Open it up to the rest of the world and drop the price maybe??

Regards,

Old3eyes

NZtechfreak

4649 posts

Uber Geek
+1 received by user: 470

Trusted

Reply # 308250 17-Mar-2010 12:54

Almost completely due to Google's bizarre decision around distribution... shame really, great device.

Twitter: @nztechfreak
Blogs: HeadphoNZ.org

Try Wrike: fast, easy, and efficient project collaboration software

geekiegeek

2038 posts

Uber Geek
+1 received by user: 348

Trusted

Subscriber

Reply # 308253 17-Mar-2010 12:58

maybe all the people that want a smartphone have alreay brought an iphone or a pre or another android based device so the market just isnt that big anymore.

When you live your life on Twitter and Facebook, and are only friends with like minded people on Twitter and Facebook, you are not living in the real world. You are living in a narcissistic echo chamber.

My thoughts are my own and are in no way representative of my employer.

vinnieg

2260 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

Reply # 308254 17-Mar-2010 12:58

NZtechfreak: Almost completely due to Google's bizarre decision around distribution... shame really, great device.

Yup, totally odd tbh.

also the lack of advertising and not giving many online reviewers prototypes before hand was a real turn off.

If they'd wanted to, they could have blitzed the scene with advertising. Maybe they were just too afraid to test the water. Or they have a bigger and better N2 phone coming out with which they'll try harder...

I have moved across the ditch. Now residing in Melbourne as a VOIP/Video Technical Trainer/Engineer.

Linuxluver

5047 posts

Uber Geek
+1 received by user: 1017

Trusted

Subscriber

Reply # 308260 17-Mar-2010 13:14

This "poor sales" meme is being put about by people seeking to mislead others. The Nexus One launch was not a typical mass market sales push. FAR from it.

It has been a 'soft' launch right from the start. Sales have been by word of mouth and media stories. As far as I know there hasn't been any mass media sales campaign at all, anywhere.

Comparing this product launch to something like the Motorola Droid - with TV ads during the Super Bowl - is not possible. It's comparing oranges to toothpicks.

The story I've heard is that Google is using the Nexus One soft launch to stress test its direct sales / support engine and identify gaps that need filling. It is their first ever tech item for sale direct to the public.

They would also have to be careful of their telco ties. They want to be partners, not competitors. Looks to me like a long game. I suspect Google has been using this as an experiment to test channels and effectiveness of different kinds of advertising....and carefully monitoring the "buzz"...and where it appears and how it flows.

The phones are probably secondary.....for now. It's the strategy and how and where it is effective that may matter to them most...with the "open" phone precedent bedded in....and all the early-adopters paying close, admiring attention.

Another way to look at is that they have, with their first-ever smartphone offering, established mindshare as a major player with a product second to none.

Maybe we're baking cakes...not frying eggs. (Cakes take longer).

____________________________________________________
I'm on a high fibre diet.

lchiu7

4827 posts

Uber Geek
+1 received by user: 84

Trusted

Reply # 308576 18-Mar-2010 06:24

The fact that you can't just walk into a store and play with one before purchase must have dissuaded many people from purchasing one.With no advertising campaign the only way Google could sell the phone was to those online geeks who are happy to buy the phone sight unseen (like me I guess since I purchased the day it was released without knowing much of anything about the phone nor having any prior experience of Android) .

System One: Popcorn Hour A200, PS3 SuperSlim, NPVR and Plex Server running on Gigabyte Brix (Windows 10 Pro), Sony BDP-S390 BD player, Pioneer AVR, Raspberry Pi running Kodi and Plex, Panasonic 60" 3D plasma, Google Chromecast

System Two: Popcorn Hour A200 , Oppo BDP-80 BluRay Player with hardware mode to be region free, Vivitek HD1080P 1080P DLP projector with 100" screen. Harman Kardon HK AVR 254 7.1 receiver, Samsung 4K player, Google Chromecast

My Google+ page

https://plus.google.com/+laurencechiu

Linuxluver

5047 posts

Uber Geek
+1 received by user: 1017

Trusted

Subscriber

Reply # 308605 18-Mar-2010 08:39

lchiu: You're probably right. I didn't buy one because of the convoluted two-step and consequently murky warranty picture. I've played that game before and though I've never had any issues with the purchases, I've grown tired of the "stress" that can arise from unexpected delays, demands for documentation, customs agent issues and other Customs-related matters.....

____________________________________________________
I'm on a high fibre diet.

lchiu7

4827 posts

Uber Geek
+1 received by user: 84

Trusted

Reply # 308660 18-Mar-2010 10:52

Linuxluver: lchiu: You're probably right. I didn't buy one because of the convoluted two-step and consequently murky warranty picture. I've played that game before and though I've never had any issues with the purchases, I've grown tired of the "stress" that can arise from unexpected delays, demands for documentation, customs agent issues and other Customs-related matters.....

Well in this instance I was more like a US consumer. I heard about the product, saw the launch and went online and bought it. I was in California at the time so it arrived the next day (alas I had to pay Ca tax). But I headed off to CES in Las Vegas before it arrived so while many people at the show had the phone (of course) and it was on display at several booths, my was languishing at my Ca residence in a Fedex box :-(

Even so it's a leap of faith to spend $579(US) on a device you can't go and try first and especially when you are not familiar with Android (which I wasn't). But I wanted a new phone to replace my P1i, didn't want an iPhone and was leaning toward the N95 before I saw this.

I am happy with the phone - no regrets on the purchase but I can see a less tech savvy becoming quite frustrated with some of its problems which have been well documented.

My Google+ page

https://plus.google.com/+laurencechiu

MikeyPI

450 posts

Ultimate Geek

Reply # 308672 18-Mar-2010 11:14

Have to look deeper than one particular phone,

lchiu7

4827 posts

Uber Geek
+1 received by user: 84

Trusted

Reply # 308688 18-Mar-2010 11:40

How about a graph showing launch costs for each phone. Had Google launched with the same expenditure that Apple and Motorola did, their backend support processes (already quite inadequate) would have collapsed under the strain! That would severely damaged an already bruised reputation they got from the soft launch of the N1.

My Google+ page

https://plus.google.com/+laurencechiu

Kiwipixter

246 posts

Master Geek
+1 received by user: 1

Reply # 308711 18-Mar-2010 12:32

Lesson #1
Telco knows how to sell phones...and airtime.

Lesson #2
Customers like to see and feel the phone before forking out their money and commit to a contract.

n95

169 posts

Master Geek
+1 received by user: 8

Reply # 312049 28-Mar-2010 14:38

Yes I would buy one if they were available in NZ!

ald

147 posts

Master Geek
+1 received by user: 4

Trusted

SimWorks

Reply # 312377 29-Mar-2010 12:45

Hi Paul, I agree that Google could have sold a lot more N1's if they had simply opened up purchases to the whole world.

Steve, I hear what you're saying but even on a market for market basis it does appear that sales of N1's have fallen far short of what many commentators expected. Whether sales have fallen short of Google's expectations, whether Google is disappointed, well I suppose that has a lot to do with what Google's hopes for the N1 were. I have no idea of what Google's hopes were but if sales to date are in line with what Google was hoping for then Google's PR folk did a poor job of setting the markets expectations. If they were testing their direct sales, doing a soft launch etc, then maybe they should have said as much at launch? Many people had high expectations for the N1 and sales to date have not borne these expectations out creating an unfortunate perception!

Best regards,
Aaron Davidson.

SimWorks International Limited

www.simworks.com - New Zealands leading developer of mobile applications

Handsomedan

1795 posts

Uber Geek
+1 received by user: 324

Subscriber

Reply # 313917 1-Apr-2010 15:05

It's expensive, it doesn't come with a nice fat handset subsidy from a carrier, it isn't available in shops to ogle and play with, it's not widely marketed in the mainstream media and it's a "new" OS that people (ordinary folk) are still coming to terms with. Google also want to sell their OS - if they outsell all of their competitors in the handset arena, they cut their own throats

I think it's sold quite well considering all of that.

Handsome Dan Has Spoken.

walt12

324 posts

Ultimate Geek
+1 received by user: 2

Reply # 313928 1-Apr-2010 15:23

Agreed, but lets revisit this when it becomes available on all carriers in the US - which is possibly only a matter of months away and will make it the only model with a hardware/software combo which is homogenous in that sense.

1 | 2