How long will the Premium Price stick?

[diesteldorf]

Little disclosure: I got the GN at launch when the Rezound and original Razr were the same price, so I went in with the mindset that a new phone would cost $299.99

2. It's a great phone and I already have mine and hope that, should I decide to sell it when next year's VZW GN is released, the price stay's relatively high so I can get reasonable money for it---50% or so of whatever the new GN will cost buying at full retail

Fast forward 2 1/2 months and the Rezound is selling for $99.99 and the original Razr has also fallen dramatically and has even been upgraded/re-released with a bigger battery.

However, most people don't care about ICS, having no bloatware, or even rooting and ROMing. Heck, for 80-90% of what I use my phone for on a daily basis, I could've probably managed with a Rezound/Razr/Spectrum or even my original DX (since I spend most of my time in a 3G. However, I'm glad I upgraded since:

A) 4G is great when traveling
B) I love having pure ICS with no bloatware
C) It's great to know I have the potential to flash something new even if I may not exercise that potential as frequently as some
D) I'm 2 1/2 months closer to my next upgrade than if I hadn't done anything.

Does anyone think VZW is keeping the price high intentionally:

A) Because, like the Iphone, they know it will only be released once per year and people that want a Nexus will pay for it.
B) They are keeping it higher to discourage more people from getting one
C) None of the above. The price will fall soon when...........happens

But, as long as the price stays high in comparison to other 4G devices, it'll be hard to recommend it or justify it to some of my friends.
At this point, if someone asked me about Android and I knew they didn't seem like a person that cared about ICS or customizations, I'd recommend the Rezound because I'd feel better about saving my friend(s) $200 than I would about trying to justify why they truly will appreciate all the things that make a Nexus great.

If I new that money wasn't an issue, I'd still recommend it for ICS/4G/unlocked bootloader etc, but I'm just concerned that as long as the price stays high, it'll discourage people from giving the Nexus, when cheaper Android options are available, or make them stick with the fruit phone.

 

[ultravisitor]

The price is supposed to come down around the end of March, I believe.

Even for more casual users, I'll recommend the Galaxy Nexus because it's the device with the longest lifespan without needing to root or ROM. When all the new phones start coming out with ICS or Jelly Bean, a lot of people with other phones will be like, "Wait. Why can't my phone do that?" and then someone will have to explain to them that their phone is old and they'll have to wait for the OS update, should it EVER arrive for their device, etc.

 

[greydarrah]

Just my opinion, but I don't think you're going to see any huge price drops anytime soon. I don't think that Verizon ever wanted to sell this phone, they just wanted to get the exclusive initial offering so other carriers wouldn't have it.

As far as selling yours when next years verizon GN is released, I wouldn't want to bet too much money on verizon getting the next Nexus. Since they seem to have invested somewhere around $0. in marketing the GN, and push every possible customer towards a Droid or HTC device, I doubt Google, Samsung, or possibly even Motorola will be all that excited about building another CDMA model for verizon. I could be wrong, and because I wont leave verizon's network and really want the next Nexus, I truly hope I am.

 

[Nakrohtap]

Maybe they'll drop the price when the Sprint version comes out. If they find themselves sitting on huge inventories, maybe you'll see a BOGO free offer in the spring. I would guess that they reduce the price somewhat in the next month, then bump it back up right before a clearance promotion.

 

[Nakrohtap]

Oh yeah. Don't count on being able to sell it to offset next year's Nexus, unless you plan on leaving Verizon. I think there will always be a market for a used Nexus, just don't count on a lot of interest in it, since there seems to be a smaller market for these types of phones. Most people don't know what stock Android is.
I would like to think that Google would go for a carrier with a GSM phone. But, then again, a lot of carriers seem to be switching to LTE. I don't think they would leave this model out of the 4G carriers...even though it seems to be a pain is their backside.

 

[pauldroidr2d2]

The price is supposed to come down around the end of March, I believe.

Even for more casual users, I'll recommend the Galaxy Nexus because it's the device with the longest lifespan without needing to root or ROM. When all the new phones start coming out with ICS or Jelly Bean, a lot of people with other phones will be like, "Wait. Why can't my phone do that?" and then someone will have to explain to them that their phone is old and they'll have to wait for the OS update, should it EVER arrive for their device, etc.

Given the problems Moto is experiencing getting ICS to be blurred, we just may have Jelly Bean before the Moto line of Droids get ICS.

Sent from one of the following: Galaxy Nexus, Bionic or Xoom using Tapatalk.

 

[diesteldorf]

I wouldn't want to bet too much money on verizon getting the next Nexus. Since they seem to have invested somewhere around $0. in marketing the GN, and push every possible customer towards a Droid or HTC device, I doubt Google, Samsung, or possibly even Motorola will be all that excited about building another CDMA model for verizon. I could be wrong, and because I wont leave verizon's network and really want the next Nexus, I truly hope I am.

You definitely bring up some good points, but, provided that Verizon is willing to carry another Nexus, I see Google's desire to make money and continue to expand their audience, to outweigh any personal grudge they may have against the way Verizon handled the first GN release.

As AT&T continues to expand their network, it can be debated whether VZW will continue to maintain their LTE advantage and status as having the best network, but Google is a business and would be silly, in my opinion, to keep Verizon's network and customers out of the next Nexus because of a personal grudge.