Google's Nexus 6 is one step closer to landing in consumers' hands as the handset has officially gotten the thumbs up from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) days before pre-orders begin.

Although nothing special (money's the fact both Google and the FCC expected the device to pass), the FCC's stamp of approval means there shouldn't be any delays in hitting the deadlines Google has set for itself.

Pre-orders for the Nexus 6 begin Oct. 29 through the Google Play store, just a couple days before Halloween. Bear in mind, however, this isn't a Nexus handset like any of the others.

For starters, it's plain and simple: The Nexus 6 is a high-end beast and one with a price tag to match. The 32GB Nexus 6 starts at $649 unlocked, while the 64GB model is an extra $50 more at $699. It's not cheap, and it's a leap from previous Nexus smartphones like the Nexus 4 and Nexus 5 that started in the $300 range. The low price tags, coupled with commendable performance, made the Nexus handsets a niche must-have. The new Nexus 6, however, will come out of the gate in a much different manner.

All major U.S. carriers will accompany the Nexus 6 launch. Sure, the unlocked version will still be Google's spearhead, but the price is simply too high to justify following the same marketing strategy as before. Instead, Verizon, AT&T, Sprint and T-Mobile will all offer the Nexus 6 through their services. Why is this important? Because carriers offer payment plans, whether through subsidies masked by a two-year contract, or through lease options like T-Mobile and Sprint. Buyers won't have to shell out over $600. They can drop $300 and move on.

Expect the search giant to aggressively push the Nexus 6 during the fall holiday shopping season. After all, it is going up against the likes of the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus (already proving themselves, thanks to larger screen sizes, to be wildly popular) and other large-screen Androids that have a significant foothold, such as the Samsung Galaxy Note 4.

Still, the 5.96-inch high-resolution display, roaring quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 805, and 13-megapixel camera should be enough to keep the Motorola-built Nexus 6 on shoppers' minds. It'll be interesting to see if the mod community embraces the Nexus 6 the way it did with previous Nexus models given the higher price point -- but as we all know, timely Android updates straight from Google without an OEM's or a carrier's interference can be priceless.

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