T-Mobile - G1 Cell Phone Review

The T-Mobile G1 is a strong phone especially for those with a higer than avergae knowledge of technology and those who want a great deal of flexibility and customization options.

Before purchasing my G1 I had considered several other trouch screen smart phones including the Iphone.  In the end I settled with the G1 for its functionality and the possibility for customization and expansion.  The phone runs on the Android operating system written by Google which is very strong.  It runs smoothly and efficiently.  The operating system includes the ability for the user to customize practically everything.  Another advantage to the phone is it's open source capabilities.  This means, that anyone with the proper knowledge can write practically any program for the phone to improve or change its functionality.

 Some of the software on the phone is still lacking.  There is no native exchange capabilities, video capabilities outside of YouTube, or other software options which are found on many phones.  This, however, is intentional, as all it is intended the user will download what programs he or she feels are necessary for their phone from the built in applications store.  Up until the end of 2008 at least everything on the app store is free.  The plan is to eventually set up an infrastructure to allow paid for applications but this is not yet in place.  It stands to reason that when such a system is in place, the offering of applications and customizations will only improve.

Probably the largest omission in the area of the applications is that there has yet to be true exchange server capabilities offered through the app store.  This is a major issue for those who need a phone for business that will sync with their Microsoft Outlook exchange server.  However, outside of outlook, the integration on the phone with Gmail is seamless and the option to access other types of email accounts supporting POP3 and other access systems is well integrated.

 The touch screen on the phone is very bright and works quite well.  It doesn't seem to be quite as responsive as the Iphone, but is so close that it is barely noticeable.  The screen lacks multi-point technology, meaning one is unable to re-size and zoom in and out with a pinch of the fingers.  However, the zooming tools on the phone and other controls are easy to use and, in my opinion, easy make up for the lack of multi-touch.

 One of the strongest advantages of the G1 over many other touch screen smart phones is the inclusion of the slide out keyboard.  While some have reported the keyboard is hard to use because of the slightly up-curved mouthpiece, I have not found this to be the case.  They keyboard works better than any other physical keyboard I have used on a phone.  The design and use of it is very intuitive and it is a nice addition to the phone.

 Another major advantage of the phone is the inclusion of the trackball.  The trackball provides a secondary navigation option as opposed to the touch screen.  This is very useful when navigating smaller objects on the screen such as links on a web page.  It makes selecting and activating links and other objects very easy.

The GPS on the phone is functional, however, it is not as accurate as an automobile GPS in my experience.  However, rarely is there a need for the GPS to be as accurate.  This phone will not replace your in car GPS, at least not yet.

The Wifi feature on the phone is very nice.  You can connect to any available wireless network, along with the many T-Mobile hotspots.  This can help in an area where 3G is not available for faster use of any of the phones internet capabilities.

 The battery life on the phone is not great.  However, with the amount of tools available and processors needed, along with the large screen and other capabilities, this is to be expected.  It is on par with the Iphone and other touch screen phones supporting GPS and Wifi.  Turning off some of the extra features of GPS, Wifi, 3G and dimming the phones screen can greatly improve battery life.

 The only complaint I have of the phone is its tendency to slow down eventually after a great deal of use.  The touch screen becomes less responsive, and applications load and move slower.  This is fixed with an easy reboot, something I do about once a day.  Hardly a major inconvenience.

 In summary, this phone is not as sexy as other touch screen phones.  It is not as seamless and does not offer as strong of a package right out of the box.  However, the expansion and customization abilities of the phone best any other on the market at this point in time.

If you are looking for a phone that "just works" where you set it and forget it, this phone is not for you.  In addition if you are looking for the coolest sleekest phone, the Iphone is probably going to fill that desire better.  However, if you like to tinker, are looking for a phone with a strong operating system and customization options this phone cannot be beat.  The options for and abilities of this phone will only get better with time.

 I ended up giving this phone 4 stars only because it is still lacking in some areas.  However, given time, this phone is well positioned to be one of the strongest and most useful on the market