The Small Wave.

Google warned potential customers last week that it was close to discontinuing the Nexus One, and this Android OS smartphone didn't last much longer -- Google has sold its last unit.

Against the backdrop of recent reports about impressive Android sales, perhaps the platform's best phone, the Nexus One, has been discontinued.

Though released a few months ago, the Nexus One's specs are still impressive. A 1GHz processor, 800 x 480 AMOLED screen, 5MP camera, etc. It was certainly not canceled for being out of date. But I'm not interested in phones just for spec geeks—the sum of the parts is what matters—it's the non-geek areas where the phone is more impressive than its flashier peers. 

While many Android phones are getting bigger, the Nexus One is a relatively compact, smooth phone that fits well in the hand. The design is low-key, and in my opinion looks better for it. 

And then there's the distribution. The phone was sold direct, either unlocked or with a contract for T-Mobile or AT&T, and was unencumbered by any of the carrier or manufacturer add-ons we see creeping into the Android world.

In comparison to many new Android phones, the Nexus One: 

• Did not include third-party carrier or manufacturer "crapware"
• Did not include a third-party UI, such that another Android user may not even recognize it
• Represented a "clean" Android install
• Can install the latest Android release (2.2)

That last point is interesting. Android phones released even in the last month (e.g., DroidX, Galaxy) are running Android 2.1. The addition of third-party UIs, software, and carrier requirements make testing an OS release more time-consuming. These phones will likely be certified for 2.2 at some point, but by then that release may be old news. Nexus One's "clean" nature made new release certification a relatively speedy affair. 

I don't think the Nexus One cancelation had anything to do with design, hardware or software. Rather, I think it was a victim of its own distribution. Buying online with little chance to touch/feel the phone hurt it. Out of sight, out of mind. It was also a victim of Google being wholly unprepared to deal with client support issues. The decent buzz it had at the beginning was soon crushed by bad buzz about support. 

I wish Google had done a Nexus Two, but I understand why they did not. Google's interest in Android is to get it in as many hands as possible and sell ads. In Google's eyes, a Nexus Two would provide no advantages to them or their ad buyers over any other new Android phone. The fragmentation of varying UIs, services, and other add-ons doesn't need to concern them. Sheer volume and ads, that's their business model. I'm not knocking the model (it's very successful), but it's in keeping with it that they not waste resources on another Nexus.

Pity, though. I think Google inadvertently showed everyone the best way to make an Android phone.