Google to Break Mobile Market Open
There has been much speculation since the launch of Google’s first Android
device, the T-Mobile G1, about whether Google ultimately plans to make and sell their own phone directly to consumers. Today, the Wall Street Journal confirms that Google plans to brand a new HTC-built device the Nexus One, and sell it directly to consumers themselves, without a carrier partner. To do that, they will sell the phone ‘unlocked’, which means the device will work with any SIM card from any carrier.
Because HTC has been building and releasing Android devices since the G1, and has been doing it across both GSM and CDMA networks, the company has engineers familiar with carriers’ network and device requirements. These locked devices have been optimized with proprietary carrier settings, giving HTC experience that Google will no doubt leverage to build the Nexus One. 
A few days ago, to much less fanfare, Nokia also announced the launch of two unlocked smartphones in the US, the E72 and the 5800 Navigation edition. And in November it launched the N900, another unlocked smartphone.
Nokia has been aggressively trying to introduce their high end smartphones to US customers through retail distribution with an unlocking strategy that gives it the broadest potential customer base across carriers. Best Buy today lists 5 unlocked Nokia devices for sale on its site, all priced at $299 or more.
An unlocked Google phone may present some challenges for consumers, especially for support. Today, Google does not offer phone suppo
rt when a user forgets their password or has difficulties with their credit card while using Google Checkout. In addition, since an unlocked phone is not attached to a carrier that could subsidize the device, consumers will usually pay much more for an unlocked phone than a comparable locked model.
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