A few weeks back, when details and rumors about the Nexus One were starting to dribble out, we did a technical specifications-only comparison between it, the phone and the Moto Droid (click here for a refresher).

Since then, Google announced complete details about the Nexus (exemplar, superphone in Google speak) -- specifically, that you could buy the phone unlocked directly from Google for a hefty US$529.99, or through T-Mobile for only US$179.99 plus a two-year contract.  Which got us thinking: how do those numbers compare with the competition?

As you can see from the chart below, we did a total-cost-of-ownership comparison of the Nexus, Droid, iPhone, and Palm Pre -- the current "must-have" handsets of  T-Mobile, Verizon, AT&T, and Sprint, respectively. 
We looked at the phone cost with and without a two-year contract, as well as the monthly costs of both an average plan and one with unlimited calling/texting/data.





Once you get past the sticker shock of "I'm spending THAT much for phone service in twenty-four months?!?", it turns out the Pre and Nexus have the lowest TCOO on the 450-500 minute plans.
Now, while these are important factors to consider when getting that smart du jour, they're not the only things to consider. 
Verizon's higher total price, for instance, comes with a larger and more reliable network -- AT&T, while having the single hottest phone (and a gazillion apps for it) recently admitted that yeah, their 3G network is still the pits in some locations.
Likewise, the Pre's attractiveness, both feature- and plan-wise, is tempered by lack of apps (yes, compare to other offerings).

Thank you www.ismashphone.com