Google is at work on a version of its Nexus One smartphone specifically designed for the enterprise market, a Google executive said. Interestingly, the news coincides with acknowledgements that Google needs to improve its customer service support for the device, and that some Nexus One users are experiencing 3G network connectivity issues.
Andy Rubin, director of mobile platforms at Google, said an enterprise version of the Nexus One, which is designed by HTC, might have a physical keyboard and might be a world phone. It would be an entirely different device than the consumer-focused version, he said. Google unveiled its Nexus One smartphone last week.
Rubin also discussed Google's approach to selling the device, which the company is offering through a newly developed Web store. Rubin said purchasing a Nexus One--or any device through the Web store--should be a simple process: "No one's breathing down your neck," Rubin said. "No one's trying to upsell you. ... The experiment here is to allow consumers to experience the phone with no pressure, no upsell, they get into a product that best suits their needs."
However, Rubin acknowledged that there is no direct customer service support from Google by phone, and that users might have to wait up to three days to get their Nexus One questions answered via email. "We have to get better at customer service," he said.
Those comments, made on Friday, gained additional weight when T-Mobile and Google acknowledged Saturday that some Nexus Ones are having troubles connecting to T-Mobile's 3G network, or are fluctuating between 3G and EDGE data speeds.
"Google and T-Mobile are investigating this issue and hope to have more information for you soon," according to a T-Mobile forum post. "We understand your concern and appreciate your patience." The company asked users to post information about any network connection problems they were experiencing.
For more:
- see this AllThingsD blog post
- see this Reuters article
- see this T-Mobile forum post
- see this Phone Scoop post
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