First-gen iPhone, Droid sold 8 times better than Nexus One debut

Posted:
in iPhone edited January 2014
In its first 74 days of availability, the Google Nexus One has sold an estimated 135,000 units, compared to 1 million in the same timeframe for the original iPhone, and 1.05 million for the Motorola Droid.



The new sales estimates, released Tuesday by mobile analytics firm Flurry, use the 74-day landmark because it's the amount of time that it took the original iPhone, launched in 2007, to cross the 1 million threshold. A year later, the iPhone 3G sold 1 million in its first weekend. For comparison, last November the Motorola Droid sold 100,000 units in its first weekend.



"Despite the fact that the Google Nexus One is the most advanced Android handset to date, and enjoyed substantial buzz leading up to its release, the launch has been overshadowed by lower than expected sales," the firm said. "In our previous reports we offered several possible reasons including unconventional choices in marketing, pricing and distribution."



Flurry said they believe the Droid bested the initial sales of the first-generation iPhone for a number of reasons. First, consumer perception and demand are vastly different than in 2007, when most users had a very different idea of a mobile computing device.



In addition, the Droid launched on Verizon, which is a larger network with more subscribers than AT&T. The device launch was also accompanied by a $100 million advertising blitz.



Finally, Flurry said the Droid likely benefitted from being launched in the holiday season, while none of the first 74 days of sales for the original iPhone and the Nexus One fell during the holidays.



"As Google and Apple continue to battle for the mobile marketplace, Google Nexus One may go down as a grand, failed experiment or one that ultimately helped Google learn something that will prove important in years to come," the firm wrote. "Apple's more vertically integrated strategy vs. Google's more open Android platform approach offer strengths and weaknesses that remind us of PC vs. Mac from the 1980s."







Google unveiled the Nexus One in early January with an innovative approach, offering the unlocked device through direct sales. Though the device is available through T-Mobile for $179, it is also offered for $529 contract-free if users are willing to pay the premium. The handset is expected to launch on the Verizon network soon.



When Apple sued handset maker HTC earlier this month, the Cupertino, Calif., company specifically cited the Nexus One as a handset it believes infringes on iPhone-related patents. With a firmware update the Nexus One was given multi-touch functionality much like the iPhone, an act that some believe led to the lawsuit.
«1345

Comments

  • Reply 1 of 96
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by AppleInsider View Post


    In its first 74 days of availability, the Google Nexus One has sold an estimated 135,000 units, compared to 1 million in the same timeframe for the original iPhone, and 1.05 million for the Motorola Droid.



    It's the network. This is no slam on Google.

    The iPhone is a superior phone on a second-place network, the droid vice versa, and the Nexus One is comparable to the droid in execution but the network breadth is a problem.
  • Reply 2 of 96
    walshbjwalshbj Posts: 864member
    The Droid ads were pretty intense. Plus Droid is a strong name for a certain audience. Marketing matters.
  • Reply 3 of 96
    istudistud Posts: 193member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by walshbj View Post


    The Droid ads were pretty intense. Plus Droid is a strong name for a certain audience. Marketing matters.



    I couldn't agree more with your signature!
  • Reply 4 of 96
    quadra 610quadra 610 Posts: 6,757member
    http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology...e-launch-delay



    Google forced to delay UK launch of Nexus phone as Apple?s iPad, next-gen iPhone loom

    Tuesday, March 16, 2010 - 10:29 AM EDT



    "Google's attempt to break into the mobile phone market has hit serious problems in Britain with the launch of its flagship Nexus One device understood to have been delayed until the middle of next month," Richard Wray reports for The Guardian. "While Google has been working with the industry on the Android mobile phone software for several years, the Nexus One, made by Taiwan's HTC, is the first handset over which the search engine group has had complete control. But launching a new phone has proved more difficult than Google expected."



    "It was released in the US in January, but Google's decision to sell it solely through its website immediately came in for criticism as buyers struggled to get help with technical problems, and Google, which has traditionally relied on email for consumer contact, was forced to introduce telephone helpline support and the problems it has experienced in the US has given it reason to pause over the phone's launch outside the US, to make sure it has its customer service operations in place," Wray reports. "Last week Goldman Sachs slashed its estimate for Nexus One sales this year from 3.5m units to 1m worldwide."



    "The delay also means the Google device will be available in the UK only weeks before another hotly anticipated gadget, Apple's iPad. Several of the UK's mobile phone companies are finalising deals with Apple to sell the tablet computer to British consumers," Wray reports. "Unlike its last mobile device, the iPhone, which was offered through just one exclusive partner for the first two years, the iPad is expected to be available through multiple network operators from the start."



    Wray reports, "Apple said earlier this month that the device will go on sale in the UK towards the end of April but the mobile phone companies believe that the 3G version of the iPad will not be available until May. Orange, T-Mobile, O2 and Vodafone all expect to be selling the iPad to customers and they are all locked in talks with the Californian company. Apple, however, has made it plain that it does not want iPad users to be tied to long-term contracts with any mobile phone operator. Instead it wants users to be able to pay for mobile network access on a pay-as-you-go basis."
  • Reply 5 of 96
    mazda 3smazda 3s Posts: 1,613member
    It's an "adequate" phone on a mediocre network. How is this news?
  • Reply 6 of 96
    quadra 610quadra 610 Posts: 6,757member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Mazda 3s View Post


    It's an "adequate" phone on a mediocre network. How is this news?



    Because it was supposed to be Google's miracle-baby.
  • Reply 7 of 96
    You can't compare the Droid to the original iPhone without mentioning the price difference. . .the iPhone sold for $499-$599 for its first couple months, then for $399, while the Droid never went for more than $199 (after a MIR), yet still only managed 50K more sales during the same period (and as the article states, the iPhone 3G sold 1 million units during its first weekend, the following year). A study that fails to point "price" as a reason that the Droid outsold the original iPhone during its 74 days cannot be trusted as it is obviously nonexhaustive.
  • Reply 8 of 96
    esoomesoom Posts: 155member
    The Nexus One is a miserable phone, Im a long time TMobile customer, and have had one for 2 weeks now, its a class action suit waiting to happen.



    In appx 1 hour of use yesterday, I did 3 hard resets because of the screen/digitizer issue.



    It has



    1.) A poorly oriented antenna thats incredibly sensitive to hand placement in the handset.



    2.) A cheap POS screen/digitizer that washes out in sunlight unless its cranked up to full brightness, loses calibration at the drop of a hat, and the keyboard is crap.



    Its a poorly designed knock off at a premium price. Add in the poor coverage of TMobiles network and you have a barely working handset.



    When this thing shows up on Verizons network, Googles image will take a hit because buyers are going to be seriously angry at the issues.
  • Reply 9 of 96
    quadra 610quadra 610 Posts: 6,757member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Esoom View Post


    The Nexus One is a miserable phone, Im a long time TMobile customer, and have had one for 2 weeks now, its a class action suit waiting to happen.



    In appx 1 hour of use yesterday, I did 3 hard resets because of the screen/digitizer issue.



    It has



    1.) A poorly oriented antenna thats incredibly sensitive to hand placement in the handset.



    2.) A cheap POS screen/digitizer that washes out in sunlight unless its cranked up to full brightness, loses calibration at the drop of a hat, and the keyboard is crap.



    Its a poorly designed knock off at a premium price. Add in the poor coverage of TMobiles network and you have a barely working handset.



    When this thing shows up on Verizons network, Googles image will take a hit because buyers are going to be seriously angry at the issues.



    Google is all about betas. It's just another beta effort.
  • Reply 10 of 96
    applestudapplestud Posts: 367member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Quadra 610 View Post


    Because it was supposed to be Google's miracle-baby.



    Ironically, Motorola felt jilted by the quick release of the NexusOne so soon after the Droid, however the Droid has clearly outsold the N1. Marketing does indeed matter, as does the network (at least as far as anything other than AT&T or VZ).
  • Reply 11 of 96
    dluxdlux Posts: 666member
    I have to give Google credit for one thing, and I hope it doesn't get buried by the carriers with the excuse of poor sales: selling the Nexus unlocked directly from their web site. The iPad signals a change with it's a la carte wireless service, and I hope we eventually get the option to buy iPhones (or any other handset for that matter) in the US without a carrier lock.



    You don't buy your computer from your ISP; you shouldn't have to buy your mobile handset from the wireless carrier. Good for Google for at least making that step.
  • Reply 12 of 96
    applestudapplestud Posts: 367member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Esoom View Post


    The Nexus One is a miserable phone, Im a long time TMobile customer, and have had one for 2 weeks now, its a class action suit waiting to happen.



    In appx 1 hour of use yesterday, I did 3 hard resets because of the screen/digitizer issue.



    It has



    1.) A poorly oriented antenna thats incredibly sensitive to hand placement in the handset.



    2.) A cheap POS screen/digitizer that washes out in sunlight unless its cranked up to full brightness, loses calibration at the drop of a hat, and the keyboard is crap.



    Its a poorly designed knock off at a premium price. Add in the poor coverage of TMobiles network and you have a barely working handset.



    When this thing shows up on Verizons network, Googles image will take a hit because buyers are going to be seriously angry at the issues.





    truly remarkable how far ahead of the pack Apple is. The iPhone is 3 years old and still nobody is even close. Looking forward to iPhone 4.0....
  • Reply 13 of 96
    gazoobeegazoobee Posts: 3,754member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by walshbj View Post


    The Droid ads were pretty intense. Plus Droid is a strong name for a certain audience. Marketing matters.



    Marketing indeed works very well, but to me it just proves how stupid and malleable the average consumer is.



    People always say that advertisements don't hypnotise or otherwise force anyone to do anything but the people who work in advertising know better. You can make people buy almost anything with the right advertisement.



    Droid is an awful product with lots of design flaws and the Nexus beats it hands down in most tests and reviews, but it sells 8 times better?



    Love the signature BTW AppleInsider's mobile app is infuriating at best.
  • Reply 14 of 96
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Quadra 610 View Post


    http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology...e-launch-delay



    Google forced to delay UK launch of Nexus phone as Apple’s iPad, next-gen iPhone loom

    Tuesday, March 16, 2010 - 10:29 AM EDT



    hello? iPad is not a phone! these two gadgets (iPad and NexusOne) have only one similarity: mobile internet. so what?
  • Reply 15 of 96
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by AppleStud View Post


    truly remarkable how far ahead of the pack Apple is. The iPhone is 3 years old and still nobody is even close. Looking forward to iPhone 4.0....



    i haven't noticed the hand blocking antennae issues pointed out but android isn't that far away. the nexus one ain't perfect but apple needs to put some distance between it and android with next iphone release. one decent handset and patch and android could surpass the current iphone by a little bit.
  • Reply 16 of 96
    chronsterchronster Posts: 1,894member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by AppleStud View Post


    truly remarkable how far ahead of the pack Apple is. The iPhone is 3 years old and still nobody is even close. Looking forward to iPhone 4.0....



    Did iphone ever have any issues when it first launched?
  • Reply 17 of 96
    iluviluv Posts: 123member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by screamingfist View Post


    . one decent handset and patch and android could surpass the current iphone by a little bit.



    Android is all fragments. That is why nobody likes it.
  • Reply 18 of 96
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by AppleStud View Post


    truly remarkable how far ahead of the pack Apple is. The iPhone is 3 years old and still nobody is even close. Looking forward to iPhone 4.0....



    This isn't really a defensible comment. Even the 3GS are showing their age at this point. I'm not saying Droid/N1 are the answer, but they are light years ahead in terms of hardware.



    I'm with other people that don't see the big deal on this as there are mitigating factors both ways. On one hand, Droid was cheaper, had some pretty intense marketing (at least in NYC), and is on Verizon at the same time it's not running 2.1 and "Droid" is hardly ubiquitous in the way iPod/Phone was.



    This was the bigger story anyway:



    http://www.comscore.com/Press_Events...r_Market_Share
  • Reply 19 of 96
    swingeswinge Posts: 110member
    It speaks volumes to how well the first gen iPhone was marketed....demod a full SIX MONTHS before release... The anticipation built to such a frenzy.... Apple had zero track record as a phone maker and were inventing a whole new class of phones and still managed to sell so many units....
  • Reply 20 of 96
    timmydaxtimmydax Posts: 284member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Esoom View Post


    A cheap POS screen/digitizer that washes out in sunlight unless its cranked up to full brightness, loses calibration at the drop of a hat...



    Thanks for verifying what we've all been presuming:

    http://labs.moto.com/diy-touchscreen-analysis/

    http://www.displaymate.com/Nexus_iPhone_ShootOut.htm

    The Nexus One has an epic failure of a screen, not some magical organic gorgeousness.



    This failure of Zune proportions has gotta be embarrassing for Google. After years of rumour/speculation, the fabled G-Phone flopped like a soggy cookie. I'm waiting for the real iPhone killer to upgrade from my 3G: iPhone 4
Sign In or Register to comment.