While the LG Nexus 4 might be lacking 4G LTE, it is jam-packed with extremely powerful graphics and processing power. In fact, there is so much great hardware in here, it seems impossible that Google Play is able to sell the Nexus 4 for only $299. That’s because they are actually not making a dime directly on the hardware, it seems.

So far we’ve started to see other retailers get their hands on the Nexus 4 for sell off-contract and it is listing at prices around $750-$800. Of course these retailers need to make a profit after they buy the handset– but even so, that’s a HUGE price difference between the $299 we are seeing Google Play sell the Nexus 4 at.

There are two explanations, one is that Google is relying on their services and ads to make all the money so they are selling this at-cost or even slightly cheaper than cost. The other possibility is that vendors overprice gadgets a good margin. The truth is probably somewhere in the middle. Google knows it can make back the money on its services and search, so why charge a bunch?

For those that need a reminder, the LG Nexus 4 features 8GB of storage, 2GB of RAM and a Qualcomm S4 Krait chipset all for $299. Do you plan to pick one up or is there another phone that seems more up your alley right now?

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