T-Mobile G1

Call it the T-Mobile G1.0. The first-ever Google Android smartphone is a solid initial work that, given an open development platform, will grow with time. It is missing a bunch of key features right now—like a decent media player & support for corporate e-mail, for instance. But the G1, manufactured by HTC, is a quality phone with few bugs, & given the open nature of Android, I am confident that more features are on the way. This makes the G1 a nice choice for someone who wants an expandable phone & is interested in the future of mobile communication.

The 5.6-ounce G1 looks like a grown-up Sidekick. It is a rectangular black phone (4.6 by 2.1 by 0.6 inches—HWD) with rounded corners as well as a massive 3.2-inch, 320-by-480-pixel capacitive touch screen that is bright & responsive. Below the display, there is a trackball; Menu, Home, & Back buttons, & buttons to pick up & finish calls. Volume & camera controls are on the sides of the handset, & the 3-megapixel camera is on the back.
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The G1 starts up to a configurable home screen onto which you can drop any application you'd like, along with a massive analog clock as well as a Google search box. &, yes, this home screen is configurable—you can even throw out the phone dialer if you require. You drag icons around on six virtual home screens, through which you scroll with a flick of the finger, like on the iPhone.

Slide the screen up to reveal a comfortable small QWERTY keyboard. The keys are slightly domed & separated. They are not as excellent as, say, the BlackBerry Curve keys, but they are on a par with the keys you'll find on a Sidekick.

By default, most of the phone's applications are hidden in a "drawer" that pops open with a single touch. (Again, you can move them to the home screen if you wish.) Working Android apps will be familiar to someone who is used a touch-screen gizmo before, with one twists: Hitting the physical Menu button brings up context-specific options & you can pull down a "window shade" from the top of the screen at any time to suppress new messages alerts & calendar alarms.

To select items on the screen, you can use either your fingers or the trackball. I found the trackball useful in the Web browser, where some links were little to click with my finger.

They achieved 600-to-700-kilobit-per-second speeds in the G1's browser on the 3G network, which is typical for a 3G phone. They also connected to our WPA2-secured 802.11g wireless network without a problem, though the G1 doesn't support T-Mobile's HotSpot @Home system for making calls over Wi-Fi. RF reception was decent.

A quad-band EDGE, dual-band HSDPA phone (1,700/2,100), the G1 works on T-Mobile's 2G & 3G networks here in the U.S. & on high-speed networks overseas. You cannot use this phone as a modem for your PC, at least not yet.

Calls on the G1 sound terrific, at least for the person who is using the phone. Calls on T-Mobile's 3G network in New York were loud, clear, deep, & well-rounded. There is no in-ear feedback of your own voice, but whether that is nice or bad is a matter of taste. The speakerphone is loud & clear. But the phone's mic layers your voice in with a lot of background sound on the other finish. The G1 made calls with our mono Plantronics Voyager 520 Bluetooth headset but could not successfully pair with our stereo Motorola S9 headset. You get voice dialing, but you cannot trigger the feature with a Bluetooth headset; you must tap an icon on the phone. Your MP3s can be used as ringtones.
Review by Sascha Segan on PCMAG.Com

Nexus One ETF Lowered To $150

Remember when we learned that Google’s Nexus One ETF (technically Equipment Recovery Fee) was not only a whopping $350 but also was imposed in ADDITION to T-Mobile’s ETF – and then we threw a hissy fit? Well the FCC promptly started an investigation and it looks like Google is either admitting they overdid it or doing some pre-emptive cost maneuvering – the WSJ is reporting they lowered the ETF from $350 to $150.

It’s true, it’s true… check out the new deets at “Terms of Sale for Nexus Device“:

I thought the $350 pricetag was outrageous but that wasn’t even my main complaint. I don’t understand why both T-Mobile AND Google are forcing these fees for cancellation/return. They’re systems/inventory/shipping is obviously integrated in some way if you’re able to purchase a T-Mobile contract through Google’s website, right? Do the customer a favor and condense those 2 separate ETF fees into one and choose either T-Mobile or Google to institute it.

The $150 is much more reasonable and I can appreciate the reason for its existence… but I think we’ve got a long way to go in terms of transparency and consumer education with these fees. At least this is a start.
This review by PHANDROID.COM