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Google uses its Nexus cell phones to give the Android ecosystem a nudge. The Nexus S, the second cell phone in the line, shows some different concerns than the first Nexus One. Where the Nexus One was an attempt to break carrier control of the mobile-phone market and to set a minimum hardware spec for high-end Android phones, Google's concerns seem to have shifted to better battery life and some hot new technologies. Let's see what the Nexus S reveals about Google's thinking.

1. We Don't Need More Power
The Nexus S has the same screen size and similar processor speed to the existing Nexus One; it doesn't even connect to T-Mobile's new "4G" HSPA+ network. While the Nexus One's Snapdragon processor was a big deal at the time, it looks like existing chipsets can provide all the horsepower Google thinks is needed for a great smartphone experience.

2. But We Do Need Better Battery Life
Power management is a real concern in Gingerbead. I've gotten many complaints from Froyo users about battery life issues. Google seems to be attacking the battery life issue on several fronts: by improving its own apps, by being stricter to misbehaving third-party apps, and even by changing the UI theme to use less battery. That's great.

3. The War Against The Carriers Is Over … Or Is It?
Where Google failed to release a Nexus phone on every carrier by acting belligerent, Samsung and LG succeeded by working with them. Samsung's Galaxy S and LG's Optimus lines show that with U.S. carriers, honey gets you much further than gunpowder. The Nexus S is a T-Mobile phone, plain and simple. (It's unlocked, sure, but it'll only work on T-Mobile's 3G network.)

But there's something deep in Google's DNA that wants to turn wireless carriers into dumb pipes. System-level VOIP support is buried in the Nexus S; Google claims right now this is for large businesses with campus-wide VOIP systems, but it's also a quiet nod at how easily Google could fold in alternative voice-calling methods to the carriers' circuit-switched networks.

4. Updates Are Still Important
Users can't understand why it takes phone manufacturers months to put out updates to Android phones, and I think Google is frustrated, as well. The company made frequent updates a prominent sales point on the Nexus S's Web site. That will hopefully goose manufacturers like Samsung into offering the latest version of the Android OS on existing phones a little more promptly.

5. NFC is Really Cool, Why Don't You Try It?
The Nexus S's major, experimental hardware feature, NFC is designed to let phones physically interact with their environment with a tap. You could tap to collect information from a poster, to check into a location on Foursquare, or to pay your transit fare, for instance. None of this is really possible yet; there's no NFC infrastructure in the U.S., although wireless carriers and credit card companies have gotten behind an NFC mobile-payments experiment called ISIS. But Google clearly thinks this whole NFC thing is a good idea.

Where do you think Google wants Android to go? Tell us in the comments below.