Sep 23, 2008
T-Mobile G1 / Android bits you may not have caught
Just a few bits on today’s monumental T-Mobile G1 / Android / HTC Googlephone / funnererest handset evar announcement that may have gone under the radar.
- T-Mobile claims G1s will be SIM-locked (no surprise). But hey, the software platform is completely open source; I can’t wait to see how they think they’ll protect against that.
- T-Mobile claims you can’t use the device as a tethered data modem. But again, the whole OS — networking stack, app layer, radio interfaces, etc. — is open. Try and stop us.
- Since T-Mobile’s US 3G network is 1700MHz-based, and the device only supports 1700 and 2100MHz bands, that means there could be it’s unlikely that future G1 versions would support 1900MHz (which is what AT&T’s 3G network requires). So we can probably count out an unlocked import unit for the time being.
- HTC claims better 3G talk time compared to the iPhone 3G: 350 minutes 3G talk time (vs. 300 minutes). 2G talk time is apparently much worse though, 406 minutes to the iPhone’s supposed 600.
- It supports microSDHC — meaning you’re not capped at 4GB of storage. When 16 and 32GB cards show up, you can drop those in and keep growing your device, whereas your iPhone will stay static.
- They didn’t include a 3.5mm headphone jack — they’re using HTC’s combo USB / audio jack (ExtUSB), which requires an adapter. Bunk.
- Sync is done all over the air, and through Google services. It’s still unclear how many of these services you can elect not to use (i.e. can one have a contact list that ISN’T synced to their Gmail account?).
- We knew that the device has a capacitive touchscreen (like the iPhone), but not how they solved the problem of copy/paste, which has plagued Apple. Turns out they half-assed it, or so I understand. Seems that you can only copy/paste data in fields. If you’re on a web page, for example, you can’t select a string of text in a paragraph. The search continues for someone to commit to chasing down the fat-finger-touchscreen copy/paste unicorn.
- Although its browser runs on Webkit and some of the Chrome code base, they’re not officially dubbing it Chrome, or Chrome Mobile, or anything like that. Head Android Andy Rubin said it’s fair to think of it as “Chrome light,” though — just don’t call it that. Yet.
I'm an editor and technology critic in the midst of founding a new web startup: 
I didn’t hear much about getting music on the device, or movies, or t.v shows, and it’s a little scary that this is sort of a cloud phone?? I mean all your info is on google trusting away. Also why is it so hard for phones to come with a 3.5m headphone jack? Also can A2DP be added by an application??
thanks Ryan
What puzzles me is the lack of desktop software given the Amazon MP3 store. Perhaps Amazon’s MP3 download manager will be updated to suck songs off the phone and sync into iTunes and/or in reverse? Otherwise, it’s way too manual.
No headphone jack is also a bad idea for mainstream acceptance.
T-Mobile guy said that it already is 2band 3G, 4 band GSM.
Ryan, would there by any benefit to an Android-based tablet over the Touch? I am intrigued by the idea of getting all the Google, open-source, goodness without the phone itself.
“Dual-band” traditionally refers to the two bands needed to operate the phones on European and Asian 3G networks. The bands it has now will only work in Europe and T-Mobile’s new US network. There will have to be a second version of the phone to work elsewhere.
I’m underwhelmed by this. I’m not going to pass final judgement until I actually use one (which probably won’t be for a while seeing as how I live in Canada), but it seems disappointing. The 1.0 iPhone was way more intriguing than the 1.0 Gphone.
On that note, I had just gotten over being smitten with the iPhone and decided I can live without one. I was hoping Android was going to be my saviour, but it’s just disappointing. It looks clunky and cheap. The interface drags compared to the iPhone and looks far less intuitive. Also, no 3.5mm jack? No hard-line syncing? What a joke. Yay for expandability, but microSD is such a pain. Would it have been so difficult to put in a full-sized SDHC port?
Again, won’t completely pass judgement until I can use one, but I think the G1 is a pretty big letdown. The concept is great, the execution is mediocre. It’ll be interesting to see what second gen Gphones bring to the table.
I’d like to hear more about the apps – I think that’s where this would / could shine. Not impressed by the hardware at all.
Maybe a Sony/ nokia running this OS is really where we’ll see something geared for the mainstream folks.
From the press release they claim Music At Your Fingertips: “The T-Mobile G1 comes pre-loaded with a new application developed by Amazon.com that gives customers easy access to Amazon MP3, Amazon.com’s digital music download store with more than 6 million DRM-free MP3 tracks. Using the new application, T-Mobile G1 customers are able to search, sample, purchase, and download music from Amazon MP3 directly to their device (downloading music from Amazon MP3 using the T-Mobile G1 requires a Wi-Fi connection; searching, sampling, and purchasing music can be done anywhere with a cellular connection).
The T-Mobile G1 will be the first device with the Amazon MP3 mobile application pre-loaded.”
Download over WiFi only, searching, sampling, and purchasing even over EDGE.
As for the lock, i’d assume there is a hardware thing going on.
IHMO the 3.5mm it’s HTC stubbornness for agesnow, much like Sony’s memery stick.
“T-Mobile claims G1s will be SIM-locked (no surprise). But hey, the software platform is completely open source; I can’t wait to see how they think they’ll protect against that.”
So what if it’s open, so are cryptography systems. :)
Still, that’s the saying about locks, isn’t it: how they exist to keep honest people honest?
What I’m gonna love, is when official HTC/Carrier Android ROMs start leaking just like good old WM ones do, and the hacking community tweak it to their desire (e.g. removing/disabling any unwanted google sync services).
I still use a Hermes but I don’t think it’ll be long before drivers for all its chips come to fruition. There’s a lotta linux geeks out there, so fingers crossed.
Few things I like to point out about the G1:
Pros:
- Open source finally means no more carrier cockblocking as much as people are used to (I’m looking at you Verizon) in that apps department.
- Google integration should be awesome because your probably guaranteed a genuine amount of innovation from them.
Cons:
- No headphone jack. (In this day and age it should be on everything included your kitchen sink but especially a phone with multimedia capabilities.
- T-Mobile (Barely any bars where I live or work so not appealing but can be redeemed when att or verizon picks it up, ideally att in NYC.
- Open Source rules but it’s going to be a pain to have to manage and identify all the apps that would eventually be part of this store.
[...] I want this phone. [...]
[...] 7. What’s with the headphone jack? I can’t fathom how anyone could release a smartphone in 2008 that won’t work with standard headphones, no adapter required. (Then again, I was startled when Apple released the first-generation iPhone a year ago with the same issue.) Headphone jack standardization doesn’t seem to be a high priority with HTC: They made my AT&T Tilt, which, while a fine phone in multiple ways, sports a bizarre USB headphone jack. (Update: According to Ryan Block, the G1 has the same oddball jack.) [...]
I want to know your final opinon. Would you own this phone? Would you own it over a first gen iPhone? HTC has another phone coming out called the Touch which is a windows mobile based phone that looks promising. I’m curious how it will stack up against this one.
[...] we may have missed a couple of good nuggets about the T-Mobile G1 and Android in general. Luckily, Ryan Block has filled us in with a couple of good ones. Namely, the T-Mobile G1 will support microSDHC meaning there is no cap [...]
I too have read/heard nothing about how one can transfer files (music, photos) to the G1. Does the USB connection allow for data transfer?
Google has definitely forgotten the desktop software side of the whole thing. The iPhone + iTunes makes the package appealing, and google is not doing that. This will result in the Android being a (maybe, just maybe) a good platform for geeks (linuxy guys mainly), but for the consumer, the iPhone is THE device. Hands down.
I think the G1 will appeal more to geeks than the general consumer, at least in this iteration. Personally, I’m looking forward to an Android ROM dump to load on my Tilt. There’s a huge HTC user/dev community dedicated to tweaking the platform to the max. Going open source just expands the possibilities. If an Android ROM can be ported, the forthcoming HTC TouchHD looks promising (the specs include 3.5mm headphone jack). Ryan, I’d be curious to see how the 3G performance of the G1 is, if you switched SIM cards with another carrier, say AT&T.
How can I delete or remove Amazon application from my G1 Phone ?
I downloaded a bunch of applications and games from the market thing. And some of them I really don’t need. How do I delete them?
This is great as for iphone it a little better but who wants to pay when you drop it or uy child throws it well I don’t i’d rather have a iphone but I can’t bare the pain of havein to put up500 or more again I mean its just a phone guy answer the phone send a text message e mail somebody butt don’t make things harder than it has to be.
how do you delete apps you dont want that you downloaded
Is there or is there going to be a Call Block app for the G1? If there is where can I get it? I had the “Call Block” for WM6 and it worked great.