Google's Nexus One made big waves on the internet when its details were leaked late last year and again when it was officially announced ahead of CES 2010. The Nexus One was described as the next "iPhone Killer" by many and was billed by Google as the "next stage in evolution for the Android".

The smartphone -- which is powered by Android 2.1 -- hit all the right hardware notes thanks to a 1GHz Snapdragon processor, 3.7" (480x800) AMOLED display, multi-touch, and a generous 1400 mAh battery. What could possibly go wrong with Google's full backing, a sleek exterior design, and geek-friendly hardware specs?

Well, everything has gone wrong according to Flurry Analytics. Flurry, if you recall, is the company that first spotted a few dozen iPad devices running iPhone OS 3.2 right before the official launch of the device. Flurry estimates that Google has managed to sell only 135,000 Nexus One smartphones in its first 74 days of availability – Flurry uses the 74 day benchmark because that's how many days it took for the original iPhone to reach the one million mark back in 2007.

If Flurry's numbers are accurate, the Nexus One appears to be actually losing momentum rather quickly considering that Google sold an estimated 80,000 units during the month of January and has only added another 55,000 sales in the past month and a half.

For comparison, another Android device which has made headlines in the past few months is doing quite well in the marketplace. Flurry estimates that Motorola sold 1.05 million Droid smartphones during the first 74 days of availability.

The reasons for the Nexus One's failure are plentiful. The device is barely known about outside of the tech circle, the phone has to be purchased directly from Google, and T-Mobile doesn't quite have the same clout as AT&T or Verizon. The Motorola Droid is backed by the United States' largest wireless carrier, Verizon. Apple's iPhone, on the other hand, is the crowning jewel of second place network AT&T.

“Despite the fact that the Google Nexus One is the most advanced Android handset to date, and enjoyed substantial buzz leading up to its release, the launch has been overshadowed by lower than expected sales,” stated Flurry on the company blog. “In our previous reports we offered several possible reasons including unconventional choices in marketing, pricing and distribution.”

The Nexus One is supposed to launch on Verizon's network later this spring, so hopefully Google will see an uptick in sales at that time.

Updated 3/16/2010

Google is now offering the unlocked Nexus One to wireless customers on the AT&T network.