The below video compares both devices in three 3D games – “Home run battle”, “Raging thunder 2″ and “Exzeus”. All selected games are quite demanding to the hardware and overall system performance.

Which phone do you think is better suited for the role of a gaming device: Nexus One, HTC Desire, or, perhaps, they are equal?

If you look closely, you will see that the home screen has changed. Search widget now comes with a choice of different search engines. So, it is probably fair to assume that this video is a debut of Android 2.2.

Like it or not, but we will learn more about the operating system in about a week. And if the rumors prove to be true then in addition of some graphical changes users will also get the following new features: Flash support, automatic application updating and an option to install applications to a memory card.

If you look closely, you will see that the home screen has changed. Search widget now comes with a choice of different search engines. So, it is probably  fair to assume that this video is a debut of Android 2.2.

Like it or not, but we will learn more about the operating system in about a week. And if the rumors prove to be true then in addition of some graphical changes users will also get the following new features: Flash support, automatic application updating and an option to install applications to a memory card.

Great news for Nexus One owners. The long awaited Nexus One car dock is now available for $55 at the Google phone store. This is the second official accessory for the device after the desktop dock was announced at the end of January.

Official information from Google’s help page:

The Nexus One Car Dock is the perfect place to put your phone when you’re in the car. In addition to holding your Nexus One, the car dock also charges your phone’s battery, lets you use your phone handsfree, and provides easier access to voice and navigation apps.

The dock’s built-in speakers and volume controls also enhance the in-car music and media experience. And the Car Home app, which loads automatically, makes it easy to access Maps and Navigation, Voice Search, Contacts, and Music.

You can mount the dock on the windshield or dashboard, and it ships with an adhesive disc that lets you attach it to a textured surface as well. The dock comes with a charger to fit into your car’s 12V utility socket, and the holder can rotate for flexible orientation.

If you are a lucky owner of Nexus One, you might be aware of an issue with the screen sensor – it doesn’t always recognise touches correctly. During the experiment, which compares Motorola Milestone (Droid) with Google Nexus One, visible differences in touch processing were identified.

It turns out that not all multitouch screens work the same way. Journalists from Android and Me published a video, which demonstrates the processing of simultaneous screen touches. Special software was created by one of the Android game developers to perform the test.  The video first shows the Milestone – everything is normal here, all touches are processed correctly. When they try to perform the same test on Nexus One it behaves differently -  when you try to use two fingers, the smartphone ceases to understand where each finger is.

Developers who found the bug are hoping that it will be corrected with a firmware update. However, on one of the forums you can find a comment from one of Google’s engineers: “… this is an example of how the touchscreen works at the hardware level in Nexus One. Motorola uses a different sensor manufacturer.” HTC should be more careful when selecting hardware suppliers for its devices. As for Milestone owners, they seem to have nothing to worry about.

Nexus One does not offer any outstanding design features. Its design is quite typical for HTC, and is somehow similar to many recent touchphones. Big screen certainly catches the eye, but without a direct comparison with other phones, it doesn’t look that special. Metal edge encircles the screen and goes to the back cover. This is where you can engrave your name or something memorable when ordering the phone.

The battery cover is firmly secured to the frame and doesn’t have any backlash. It has a soft-touch coat, which is very nice to  touch. My experience shows that this coating is quite durable, but eventually, after 2-3 years of use (or even sooner if you are a very heavy user) it wears out. Nexus One has some sort of a scratch protection, but I haven’t had a chance to test how well it works☺. The manufacturer claims that Teflon was used on the cover, and, as you know, this material repels contamination. And indeed, my phone does not have fingerprints or any other marks on the rear panel. White HTC Hero was HTC’s first device with such a coating, however it has a glossy, not soft-touch, coating.

Battery indicator is positioned above the screen. It is orange when phone is charging, and green once it is charged. A metal grid covers the front speaker. Main speaker (the one that play all sounds and is used in a handsfree mode) is at the back. These days many phones (and especially top-of-the-range smartphones) have two main speakers, and some manufacturers position their phones as having a stereo sound. I can’t say that presence of only one speaker is a big disadvantage for Nexus One, but it’s definitely not a plus. Ringing volume is average, or slightly above such. Volume reserve is quite small, which is typical for the U.S. models, or at least similar to the Apple iPhone.

Camera is located at the back as well. A glass that covers the lenses is part of the back cover, which is very convenient. If you accidentally scratch or damage the glass, you can simply buy new cover and replace it. Volume control button is the only thing that is located on the left side. It is strongly recessed, but quite easy to press, which compensates for this shortcoming. Top side has the power button and a 3.5 mm jack. There are no controls or buttons on the right side. Bottom side has a standard microUSB port and outputs for the desktop charger and car kit.

Nexus One does not have any mechanical buttons (apart form volume control and power button)- only a number of touch keys, which are located below the screen. These are:

• Back
• Context menu
• Menu, and
• Search

Using the touch keys is complicated by the fact that they do not always react properly. This is the main minus to the functionality of the phone. Also, I can’t say that the combination of keys is perfect.

Trackball is exactly the same as in other HTC models. It has a built-in light indicator, which glows when there are missed events (e.g. phone calls, messages, emails, etc).

The size of the phone is 119 x 59.8 x 11.5 mm and it weighs 130 grams. This size is quite typical for a modern touch phone with no keyboard. Let’s compare the dimensions of Nexus One with Apple iPhone, HTC Hero and Samsung HD i8910. Let’s first compare the pure numbers in the table, and then have a look at some photos.

As you can see, sizes of all devices are similar. As are the materials used. Motorola DROID is the only device that stands out. It has more metal, and a different type of protective glass, which is more resilient to scratches. All models in this class are comparable, except for Sony Ericsson X10, which is the only phone that doesn’t have any metal used as such – only plastic.

Availability of two microphones, and a noise reduction system are important points of difference for Nexus One. HTC and Google market this feature as some kind of an achievement, even though HTC is really just catching up with some other manufacturers. Technologically, mobile phone manufacturers such as Motorola, Sony Ericsson and Nokia have much better audio processing algorithms. The evolution of these technologies has led to the devices with two microphones, as well as the marketing names such as Voice Clarity, Cristal Clear and others. By the way, such algorithms do not always require two microphones. Such solutions are implemented in most models without any special marketing campaigns, while HTC decided to emphasize its achievement. But within the market, it is not an achievement as such, and the phone does not provide any real improvements to the quality of speech, noise protection, etc. For the average user sound quality will be at a familiar level.

Google decided to warm up public’s interest in its Nexus One phone. They did it in a rather interesting way – by showing a story of its creation. A series of five videos will be made available on the Nexus One channel on YouTube. These videos will demonstrate the process of creation, design, architecture, component selection, testing, manufacturing and so on. And instead of seeing just a technological piece of plastic, potential customers will see the whole story, including people working on the device. A special channel got opened on YouTube, which will have video clips in which specialists from HTC and Google tell a story of Nexus One.

Everyone knows that the development of some devices takes years – from a concept to shelf in a store. This process is full of unexpected problems and issues. Overcoming these problems should eventually reveal the new device to the public. The videos are aimed to show the whole process to the public and explain why certain decisions were made. Four parts are available for viewing; and the final series will appear in a few days.

Links to the clips:

• Concept & Design
• Display & 3D Framework
• Testing
• Manufacturing
• Nexus One: Day One.